Presentation
Get ready for an epic volcano adventure at Mount Pinatubo, the Philippines.
The Mount Pinatubo
Mount Pinatubo (Sambal: Bakil nin Pinatobo; Kapampangan: Bunduk/Bulkan ning Pinatubu, Bunduk ning Apu Malyari; Pangasinan: Palandey/Bulkan na Pinatubu; Ilokano: Bantay Pinatubo; Tagalog: Bundok/Bulkang Pinatubo) is an active stratovolcano in the Zambales Mountains, located on the tripoint boundary of the provinces of Zambales, Tarlac and Pampanga in the Philippines, all in Central Luzon on the northern island of Luzon. Its eruptive history was unknown to most before the pre-eruption volcanic activities of 1991, just before June. Pinatubo was heavily eroded, inconspicuous and obscured from view. It was covered with dense forests which supported a population of several thousand indigenous Aetas.
Pinatubo is most notorious for its Volcanic Explosivity Index (VEI) 6 eruption on June 15, 1991, the second-largest terrestrial eruption of the 20th century after the 1912 eruption of Novarupta in Alaska. Complicating the eruption was the arrival of Typhoon Yunya, bringing a lethal mix of ash and rain to towns and cities surrounding the volcano. Predictions at the onset of the climactic eruption led to the evacuation of tens of thousands of people from the surrounding areas, saving many lives. Surrounding areas were severely damaged by pyroclastic surges, ash falls, and subsequently, by the flooding lahars caused by rainwater re-mobilizing earlier volcanic deposits. This caused extensive destruction to infrastructure and changed river systems for years after the eruption.
Hiking Activities
The caldera formed and Lake Pinatubo has since become a tourist attraction with the preferred route through Barangay Santa Juliana in Capas, Tarlac.