Australia
Indonesia Travel and Destination Guide
KELIMUTU
Ende Region, Flores
Nusa Tenggara
Set in plunging craters at the summit of a volcano, the coloured lakes of Kelimutu are undoubtedly the most spectacular sight in Nusa Tenggara. Astonishingly, the lakes periodically change hue - today one may be iridescent turquoise, its neighbour chocolate brown and a third lake dark green.
A few years ago the colours were blue, maroon and black, while back in the 1960s the lakes were blue, red-brown and café au lait.
It's thought that the lakes' colours are in constant flux due to dissolving minerals, a process that can accelerate in the rainy season. The moonscape around the summit gives Kelimutu an ethereal atmosphere, especially when clouds billow across the craters and sun shafts add luminescent pinpoints to the lakes.
There's a sealed road up to the lakes from Moni, 13.5km (8.5mi) away at the base of the mountain.
©2007 Lonely Planet Publications Pty Ltd. All rights reserved.
