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Mt. Tambora Sumbawa

A big vulcano that erupted in the 19th century
The paroxysmal eruption of Mt. Tambora on the island of Sumbawa in April 1815 – despite having triggered a world wide historic event – is astonishingly neglected in studies of volcanic activity. The world wide event referred to was the so-called "Year without a Summer" - the exceptionally cold months of 1816. In addition to this, Mt. Tambora's eruption far-eclipsed in violence and ejecta the more famous eruption of Krakatau (Krakatoa) in 1883, which also had an impact on the world's weather.

Though disappointing, the reason for part of this neglect is not hard to find. There exist few contemporary records of the eruption and what there is has seen little reprinting in modern works. Nonetheless, enough data is now available that a more definitive study can and should be undertaken. The intent of this posting is to synthesize and integrate what is available and hopefully inspire further investigation.

Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles, later founder of Singapore, was at the time of the eruption serving as Lt. Governor of Java, based at his capital in Batavia. He had occupied this post since September 1911, a month after the British had wrested Batavia from control of Napoleon's France. Having heard of the great human distress and disastrous phenomena accompanying the outbreak, he gave orders that British residents gather information and report if possible to him on the effects of the eruption On April 18, Lt. Owen Phillips was dispatched with a shipload of rice for relief to the disaster zone. It is from Phillips' findings, and Raffles subsequent submission of his report to the Natural Historical Society of Batavia in September 1815 that we learn after-the-fact of the details of the eruption. It is important to note that no native accounts save one are known to survive, and the character and form of the eruption must be reconstructed "retroactively" working backwards from the Raffles report and the physical aftermath on the islands. With this challenge in mind, we proceed.

The eruption Even allowing for the scant documention, the characteristic about the eruption that immediately jumps out at the researcher is its terrifying speed and brevity. When this is contrasted with its stupendous scale and effects, the event becomes a singularly sobering and daunting one. Perhaps only the Mt. Tarawera eruption of 1886 in New Zealand compares in modern times for sheer suddenness and destructive force of eruption. A word of explanation is in order here. Though such celebrated eruptions as Krakatau, Mt. St. Helens, Mt. Pelee, and more recently El Chichon and Pinatubo, capture the public eye and respect, all of those powerful eruptions had fairly lengthy eruptive sequences. In short, for those with mind to do so, there was ample time if not always means to vacate the danger zone. With Tarawera it was different---in 1886 in the space of one night a triple peak mountain range near Lake Rotomahana suddenly split open and erupted. Literally some 4,000 people who had gone to their beds that evening would never again wake up. Such a disastrous and only slightly less deadly suddenness accompanied the Tambora eruption.

The Setting Almost nothing is reliably known about the form and history of Mt. Tambora prior to the 1815 eruption. (Some indication of the lack of exploration of the region is gained by noting that the famous Komodo Dragons on the adjacent island of Komodos were only discovered in 1911!). However, mountains being what they are, the remnants tell a great deal to the expert eye. Although the top of the mountain collapsed in 1815, what still stands is unusual and provocative in its features. According to the best available evidence, before the eruption Mt. Tambora was a volcanic cone 4,000 meters high and 60 kilometers in diameter at sea level; densely blanketed in forest. It is reported to have originally had two summits, and there were several parasitic cones on the east and northeast slopes. What is unusual is that studies indicate that in its first phase of activity Tambora was a shield volcano, not unlike those of Iceland or Hawaii. Later, a bedded cone was built up on top of this, possibly the result of a change in the composition of the magma. The mountain, which may well have begun life as an island separate from Sumbawa, in time rose to dominate a peninsula joining it to Sumbawa on the southwest flank. By the time the Europeans came to occupy Sumbawa in the 18th century Mt. Tambora had lapsed into a deep dormancy. This state of affairs continued for a decade more into the 19th century. Then the volcanic energies once again burst forth.

At the time of the Tambora eruption, some 140,000 natives were reported to be living on Sumbawa. Sumbawa is long vaguely rectangular island running nearly from west to east. About a third the way from the eastern end, on the north side, a large peninsula projects northwestward like the trigger of a gun. But this trigger belonged to a cannon capable of force like no general of the age could ever have imagined. For it is on this penninsula, the Sanggar Peninsula, that Mt. Tambora stands. Scattered around in 1815 some 12, 000 people lived in a handful of villages and towns clustered on the peninsula of Tambora. Forty miles to the eastward, a small British contingent headed by a Resident resided at the village port of Bima, the capital of the European colonists. Bima was located beside Bima Bay, a deep indentation in the northern side of the east end of Sumbawa, and about 40 miles east of Tambora's peninsula.

Though some mild spewings of ash were alleged to have occurred at the summit in the spring of 1814, the first real and almost only warnings were a rolling succession of deep shocks through the Dutch East Indies on the evening of April 5. In Dutch Macassar the warship Benares of the East India Company lay at anchor, the officers and crew perturbed by what seemed to be a naval battle taking place just over the horizon to the south. As dusk neared, the barrage seemed closer, with heavy artillery seemingly sprinkled with intermitent rifle volleys; just then a detachment of troops arrived aboard, and the Benares was ordered to put to sea to investigate. But they found nothing nor the source of the "cannonade", although they remained at sea for three days. In the words of a modern author, "that was just as well. For if they had, there was nothing they, nor all the troops and ships in the world, could have done about it." Indeed, for their quarry was no pirate over the horizon: but more than 200 miles south, and what was fast becoming the most explosive eruption of recorded history.

With sunrise on April 6 light ashes began falling on Batavia. The sun became obscured in the skies over Java, "having the appearance of being enveloped in a fog. The weather was sultry and the atmosphere close, and still the sun seemed shorn of its rays, and the general stillness and pressure of the atmosphere seemed to forebode an earthquake. This lasted several days." Oddly enough, the rumblings and explosions – though they continued – now seemed to come less frequently and with less noise. The Europeans were perplexed and concerned, but some of the Java natives, however, were delighted: priests declared with confidence and satisfaction that the thunder and dark was the sign that the gods of the mountains were coming forth to free the island from foreign rule. However as the ash fall grew and persisted, while the rumblings and explosions continued, all those in-the-know now realized it must be a volcanic outbreak, and the speculation was that Merapi, Kelut, or Bromo was the likely culprit. With the cause if not the source of the disturbance identified, the Europeans at least became less concerned and ceased to pay much attention to it, for this volcanic outbreak was not yet "considered of greater importance than those which have occasionally burst forth in Java".

I,M SUNNY RED JACKET WE ARE AT SUMMIT OF Mt TAMBORA, i DO GUIDE TO Mt TAMBORA FOR Mr ,Alex Cohan USA and Ms,Natalie at mt Tambora on April 2007 Great Mountain This educated complacency abruptly shattered on April 10. As if rebuking their hubris, as the afternoon came, suddenly the roar and detonations like blasting gravel and cannon renwed, even stronger than before, and this time a truly menacing and darkened cloud of ash billowed over from the east. This time it was even greater than before, so that the sun was almost blotted out. In the eastern part of Java, the situation was even more severe. At Solo and Rembang some reported small and continuous earthquakes, and the explosions were tremendous, booming frequently through the 11th with such violence as to shake the houses noticeably. And still the might of the detonations only increased, and the . Once again the priests sang with joy that liberation was at hand, and even some of the Europeans now felt fear and concern. What was happening? None of the suspected volcanoes were known to be in eruption, and yet almost 2,500 miles of island chain was being rocked by cataclysmic quakes. Not a few must have contemplated the fate of Pompeii and Herculaneum---buried by Vesuvius in AD. 79 – but there was little anyone could do but wait. These were the conditions on Java and neighboring islands as dusk approached on April 10. But for those living on the peninsula upon which Tambora stood, matters would grow much worse this night. For in the late afternoon of the 10th Mt. Tambora in fact entered paroxysmal eruption and would inflict a devastation that would leave precious few survivors to tell the tale.
 

Itinerary Tambora Trekking Tours

TAMBORA TREKKING ADVENTURE 4Days /  3Nights

Day 1 ARRIVAL BIMA - TRANSFERRED TO PANCASILA VILLAGE (L.D)
Arrival at Bima Airport from Denpasar, meeting service and having lucheon at
local restaurant enroute, transferred directly to Pancasila Village. dinner and
one night stay at native house. Get rest.

Day 2 TAMBORA TREKKING - OVERNIGHT AT RIM (B.L.D)
After breakfast at native house,  start trekking Tambora to the Rim.
Arrival at Rim and stand a tent and preparing for dinner and get rest.
Luncheon enroute.

Day 3 RIM - SUMMIT - DESCENT TO PANCASILA VILLAGE (B.L.D)
After breakfast at Rim, continue ascending to the Summit of Tambora.
Taking picture on the summit and descend back to Pancasila. Luncheon
enroute. Arrival at Pancasila and having dinner at native house and drive
back to Bima. Overnight at hotel in Bima.

Day 4 BIMA - TRANSFERRED TO AIRPORT (B)

After breakfast at Hotel, around 10.00am check out hotel and transferred
for your flight back to next destination at 12.50. End of Service.


Including In Price:
+ 1 night accommodation at Bima Hotel
+ Trekking tour guide
+ Trekking Gear (Sleeping bag, tent, matras, cooking gear)
+ Meals & Fresh Water
+ Porters
+ Return Transfers Airport - Tambora - Bima - Airport
+ 1 ngiht native house room at Pancasila Village
 

Excluding In Price:
- Air tickets
- Air port taxes
- Nature expenses

Personal Packs:
Sun block lotion,
hat / cap.
Sun glasses
Camera, Handycam,extra roll film for manual camera of fully charged battery for digital other batteries.
Small towel
4/6 pcs of T-shirt.
Long trek pants/wind proof
Jacket and rain coat
4 pcs of short
Trek stick/lekki
Torch / flash light

For Reservation and Price Please contact Us by email : lomboktrekking@gmail.com

Untuk Itenereary Tambora Trekking di larang keras meng copy paste tanpa se Ijin dari P.T Lombok Trekking Travel Service

Route to Mount Tambora Peak

For complete information for Mount Tambora Trekking, please feel free to contact us