Kurile Islands, July 2019: Onekotan Island
Impressions from our pilot tour to the northern Kuril Islands in July 2019: we spent a full day and night on Onekotan Island, famous for the Tao-Rusyr caldera containing scenic Krenitzyn Peak volcano.

Approaching Onekatan Island, we see the peak of Krenitzyn volcano peak out above the caldera rim. (P... [info]
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Approaching the shore with Krenitzyn Peak behind. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Massive ignimbrite deposits (light layer filling a valley) are visible in this outcrop. (Photo: Tom ... [info]
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(335 Hits)

Victor showing us his collection of WWII army shells left over at the former site of a military base... [info]
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Shipyard plaque of an old warship. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Old rusting oil barrels (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Trail to the caldera rim (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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A lot of purple iris flowers grow in the meadows. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Looking back to the western shore of the island. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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(142 Hits)

Krenitzyn Peak inside the Tao-Rusyr caldera, an island within an island. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Young Krenitzyn Peak stratovolcano is the most recent active vent of the caldera volcano. (Photo: To... [info]
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(350 Hits)

The formation of the caldera was dated to about 7500 years before present. Krenitzyn Peak, the strat... [info]
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The last eruption of the volcano in 1952 formed a small lava dome at the shore of Krenitzyn Peak. (P... [info]
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(327 Hits)

Snow fields still fill the erosion gullies of the steep cone in July. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Closer view of Krenitzyn Peak. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Wide-angle view of the Tao-Rusyr caldera with Krenitzyn Peak. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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The meadows on the gentle slopes of the caldera are full with wild flowers. (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Red flowers (Rhododendron camchaticum) (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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White and red flowers (Photo: Tom Pfeiffer) [info]
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Back on the beach; lenticular clouds in the sky shows evidence of strong winds at altitude. (Photo: ... [info]
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(113 Hits)