Mt. Kelud and the Anti-gravity mystery

Today I would like to introduce you to Mt. Kelud, an active volcano located in east Java, Indonesia. Its location is near the cities of Kediri , Blitar, and Malang. It is approximately 27 km or 1-hour drive from Kediri. This volcano erupted in 1919 and 1990. At least I can say 3 reasons why this volcano is interesting to me.

The tunnel to Mt Kelud

Firstly, I experienced the 1990 eruption myself. It was on Saturday, 10 February1990, afternoon when I was attending youth service in my church in Kediri. The volcano eruption created dark sky. Then it started raining or "snowing" of white ashes and sands particles coming from Mt. Kelud.

Mt. Kelud location in East Java, Indonesia

The way down to the crater

The small volcano rising from the crater

Since my house is about 6 km from the church, I had to force myself to ride my motorcycle from church to home under the rain of ashes and sands. The "snow" created limited viewing distance so I had to turn on my motor cycle's head light and I also had to wear my raincoat to cover myself from the ashes.



The mysterious road where anti-gravity mystery happens

Secondly, there is a mystery related to this volcano. On one road on the way to the volcano, there is a phenomenon of anti-gravity. If you put a ball or a can of coke on this road, it will roll uphill. Put you car on neutral position and it will run uphill. This mystery is sometimes related to supranatural things but I believe it was because the gravity force uphill is stronger than downhill.

Lastly, the Mt. Kelud itself is quite a beauty. In its crater, there is another mountain coming up, taller and taller each year. My mom told me that when she was young, there was a crater lake amd she used to swim there with her neiborhood friends. The lake disappear now since the eruption and it is replaced by this small volcano.

Another mountain in Mt Kelud area

If you are intested to visit Mt. Kelud, you can fly to Surabaya or Malang, Indonesia, and from there rent a car or join a tour to Mt. Kelud. There are already a good road and facilities in this site so no need to do hiking anymore.