Mount Kerinci (3805m) is the highest volcano in Indonesia. Eruptions happen frequently, tigers are roaming around and I was there to climb it at the height of Ramadan. Could I deal with it?

Gunung Semeru (3676m) is the highest mountain in Java, and one of the most active volcanos in Indonesia. In 2010 we turned back due to volcanic activity, but 3 years have passed and we're back to make a new attempt.

Gunung Rinjani (3726m) is the tallest mountain in Lombok and the second highest volcano in Indonesia. It takes 3 long days to do the full traverse of Rinjani including the crater lake, and we enjoyed every moment of this wonderful trek and the spectacular scenery.

I've actually been to Gunung Agung (3031m) before, sometime back in 2001. But then I only reached the false summit on the wrong side of the crater rim. 12 years later I came back to finnish the business.

Mount Ramelau (2986m), sometimes referred to as Foho Tatamailau, is the highest peak in the young sovereign state of East Timor (Timor Leste). The hike itself is very straightforward. The biggest challenge is to get to the foot of this mountain.

Photo journal from Cerro Chirripo (3820m), the highest mountain in Costa Rica.

Cerro El Pital (2730m) is the highest mountain in El Salvador. It's also the easiest country high point in Central America because there is a road almost to the summit.

Cerro Las Minas (2870m) is the highest mountain in Honduras. We expected a remote jungle experience, but it was more like a long walk in the park.

Tajumulco (4220m) is the highest mountain in Guatemala and Central-America. Unlike the other volcanoes in Guatemala, it's considered very safe, except for the dangerous chicken bus to/from the trailhead.

Pico de Orizaba (5636m) is the highest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North-America. We almost failed to summit due to bad weather.

The La Malinche volcano (4461m), also known as Matlalcueitl, is the perfect place to acclimatize before a climb to Pico de Orizaba. La Malinche is also a very prominent mountain.

Mount Isarog (2000m) is an ultra prominent volcano near Naga City, and one of the most boring hikes I've ever done in the Philippines.

Mount Timpoong (1630m) is the highest volcano on Camiguin Island, making it one of 29 ultra prominent peaks in the Philippines. Unlike its popular neighbour, Mount Hibok-Hibok, only a few hikers have reached the summit of this "virgin" peak.

Mount Matutum (2286m) is an ultra prominent volcano in Mindanao. It's an active volcano so we were a bit worried about spending the night on the summit.

Mt Dulang-Dulang (2938m) and Mt Kitanglad (2899m) is the second and fourth highest mountain in the Philippines. The traverse is fairly difficult, so an experienced local guide as well as a rope will be needed here.

Mount Tapulao (2037m), named High Peak on most maps, is one of the 29 ultra prominent mountains in the Philippines. It's a long hike mainly on an abandoned mining road.

Corno Grande (2912m) is the highest mountain on the Italian Peninsula and I was really looking forward to do a real climb again, not just a simple hike.

Monte Amaro (2793m) is an ultra prominent mountain in the Central Apennines of Italy. The summit is fairly remote from the road, so you are likely to see more wild chamois than people around.

Picking up a rental car in Pescara

I was able to find a really cheap flight from Oslo to Pescara. I paid only 18 Euro (all inclusive) for the 3 hours flight, obviously avoiding most of Ryan Air's excessive fees. At arrival in Pescara I picked up a rental car from Avis, which I already had reserved for 7 days through internet (140 Euro including insurance). Usually you get what you pay, still I was somewhat disappointed when I saw the ridiculously small Fiat 500. I was really worried that its tiny engine would fail to climb the steepest roads in the Apennines.

A pleasant stay in Caramanico Terme

I arrived Pescara in the afternoon, so it was too late to do any major hikes the same day. Instead I was going to have a look around Majella National Park, where Monte Amaro is the highest peak. Leaving the highway west of Pescara, I drove up to a mountain pass, just some few kilometers west of Amaro's summit. Unfortunately the dense afternoon fog obscured everything before I was able to study any direct routes to the summit from this pass.

I drove back down again to Caramanico Terme, which is a really beautiful medieval town with hot springs and fantastic mountain views. It was soon getting dark, so I decided to check into a B&B which set me back 35 Euro. Instead of visiting the hot spring and spa, I spent the major part of the evening on wireless internet searching for the best route up Monte Amaro. I realised that it was not from the pass I had just visited, because you can get substantial higher with a car from the south side (Blockhaus).

The trailhead at Blockhaus

Early next morning I drove up to Blockhaus, which is the most frequently used trailhead for Monte Amaro. I had already uploaded the Garmin road map of Europe to my handheld GPS device, so I had no problems finding my way via numerous small roads from Caramanico Terme. I parked my small Fiat next to a building (refuge) at almost 1900 m.a.s.l, a really ugly and windswept place littered with a dozen of antennas in all kind of shapes and sizes. The paved road actually continues further up, but it's closed for cars due to environmental reasons.

At the start I took a shortcut on my righthand side to avoid the first bend in the road, then I continued walking on the road. The weather was absolutely gorgeous and I could easily see Pescara and the Adriatic Sea far below, as well as Corno Grande (2912m) in the horizon.

Beware of dwarf pines

The road eventually ran out after 2 kilometers where I continued on a grassy trail. I had some troubles identifying the main trail in the grass, because there were a few variations to choose between. To avoid any loss of elevation, I foolishly chose the upper alternative, which eventually got me stuck in a thick belt of dwarf pines. I was fighting my way through roots and branches, before I was able to find an escape route back down to the main trail after 15 minutes of struggle. The horrendous dwarf pines ripped up my trousers and gave me several painful scratches. However, from this point forward, I had no troubles following the main trail. It was a really gentle hike along a fairly level ridge, before I started on the steep and taxing uphills to Monte Focalone.

Wildlife and solitude

Shortly before the summit of Monte Focalone (2676m), I could see Monte Amaro and its easy recognizable red dome on the summit. But it was still far away and a substantial loss of elevation in between. First I descended to the saddle between Monte Focalone and Cima Pomilio, where I spotted a dozen of goat-looking antelopes (Abruzzo Chamois) crossing the trail. I spent a long time trying to catch them on my DSLR camera. After Cima Pomilio (2656m) followed another descent and ascent to Tre Portoni (2657m). But from here it was just a gentle hike towards Monte Amaro (2793m), and no more intermediate summits or ridges to cross.

The 13 km hike from Blockhaus had taken me 3 hours and 45 minutes, and I had only seen two small groups of hikers on the trail, no one aiming for Monte Amaro though. I spent more than half an hour on the summit, enjoying the solitude and nice views, when I realised that I soon have to return to avoid bad weather and nightfall.

Enveloped in a dense fog

Returning the same route to the car took me another 3 hours and most of the time I found myself enveloped by a dense fog. But the trail was easy to follow and I had my GPS as a backup for navigation. The only thing that worried me was the frequent occurrence of afternoon thunderstorms in the Apennine mountains, because I would really be exposed to lightning on such a high route. But the electrical storm didn't start before later, when I was safe inside my car heading for L'Aquila and my next target, Corno Grande (2912m).

Monte Amaro at EveryTrail

Photo Album

Mount Korab (2764m) is the highest mountain in both Macedonia and Albania. We decided to climb it from Macedonia even though various sources on internet states that this approach can be prone to restrictions due to border issues and security reasons.

Musala (2925m) is the highest peak in Bulgaria and the entire Balkan Peninsula. But it's not a demanding hike, if the gondola is in operation.