Mt. Vesuvius
We stopped running away from the big ol' volcano that followed us around during our touring of Pompeii.
We took a bus tour that supposedly would bring us up the mountain to a hiking trail that led the rest of the way to the crater at the top of the Volcano. This was one of the first views we've had of the mountain completely unobstructed by cloud cover.
Along the road leading up Mt. Vesuvius was a "museum" of sculptures carved out of volcanic rock. I liked this one.
We started to see some eye-catching views the higher the bus went.
The Bay of Naples was sprawling out before us.
The trails of grey rock were once lava flows. Just a note. The tour guide informed us that Mt. Vesuvius did not actually destroy Pompeii. It was actually a now inactive volcano named "Montezuma". Mt. Vesuvius, plenty active, formed right alongside it between now and then.
More views of past lava flows.
The views of the Bay of Naples that we saw on the way up got increasingly impressive.
We got off the bus and started hiking. The slippery, rocky trail zigzagged up the volcano.
Gorgeous views of the Bay of Naples kept us plenty distracted.
Looking up the side of the volcano we saw this reddish soil that would remind you of Mars.
We reached the crater at the top after about 45 minutes of trucking along. The tour guide's estimate for when we should get back to the bus was actually a bit tight, so we didn't have all the time in the world to gawk at the magnificent scenery around us, but I think we had enough.
Note the steam rising out of parts of the crater. They told us, on the way up, that the volcano can erupt any day, but they figure they'll have a week or two of warning. Vesuvius is actually the most dangerous volcano on earth because it's right near a massive population center. They figure 600,000 lives are at risk.
Here's a view looking down into the crater. I thought the vegetation growing in there was interesting. Volcanic soil is very fertile. So much so, that they sell wine on Mt. Vesuvius that's actually grown on the volcano.
Here's a much better view of the steam.
Here's what the top of the volcano looked like.
We of course had to take pictures of ourselves at the top of the volcano. Here's Miller, high above the clouds.
Here's me in front of the crater, hoping that no one pushes me in.
These pictures obviously don't do justice to the sweeping views we witnessed. It certainly didn't stop me from taking them, but I guess you'll just have to climb the volcano yourself one day, before it erupts and kills people. Tick, tick, tick...