Bogdan Khmelnitsky Volcano

Bogdan Khmelnitsky Volcano is an active stratovolcano on Iturup Island, in the Kurilsky municipal district of Sakhalin Oblast. It stands on the Chirip Peninsula, in the southern part of the Dvugorby Ridge, and together with Chirip Volcano, located 4 km to the north, forms a single volcanic massif. The volcano rises to 1585–1589 meters, making it the second-highest volcano on the island. The nearest settlements are the town of Kurilsk and the village of Kitovy; the volcano is clearly visible already from the exit of Yasny Airport.

History

The volcano's current name honors the Ukrainian hetman Bogdan Khmelnitsky. During the period when the southern Kuril Islands belonged to Japan, it was known as Minami-Chirippu, meaning "South Chirip." Its last known eruptions occurred in 1843 and 1860.

In 1948, Soviet geologist Georgy Vlasov discovered petroglyphs in the volcano's caldera containing elements of ancient Ainu writing — one of the few surviving material traces of Ainu presence on the island.

Nature

The summit is an erosion-worn remnant. Fumarolic activity persists on the southwestern slope and at the foot of Mount Goryachaya (Hot Mountain), while solfatara fields lie on the southeastern slope, the source of the sulfurous Yuzhny Chirip River. In the same area is a young subterranean crater 250–270 meters in diameter and 30–35 meters deep, containing within it a crater from the last eruption about 100 meters across. The western slopes are cut by steep landslides 500–600 meters high. Lava flows from past eruptions reached the Sea of Okhotsk and formed the Yankito plateau.

Getting there

The volcano can be reached by car from Kurilsk through the village of Kitovy toward the Yankito fish hatchery. A hiking route passes Lake Buda to the Yuzhny Chirip River, followed by about 15 km along the ridge to the summit — the climb takes roughly a day and a half. The foot of the volcano can also be reached by sea, by boat to the mouth of the Yuzhny Chirip River.