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198 Asia
Figure CS10.2 The Valley of the Geysers, Kamchatka
water may be vertical, for example, geysers Velikan Every second there are about 250–300 litres of
(‘The Giant’) and Bolshoi (‘The Great’), or inclined, thermal water pouring out in the Geyser Valley.
as with geysers Triple and Pioneer. The fountain of The various hydrothermal phenomena of Geyser
Velikan geyser is 2m in diameter and reaches up to Valley influence their local environment, such as
30m. Other geysers are not so huge, although they are rock, relief, air, soil, flora and fauna. The air has a
also very impressive. After eruption comes the phase permanent chemical laboratory smell as water
of evaporation, and when the vapour disappears it vapours produced by geysers and fumaroles are
leaves the drying empty mouth of the geyser. At the associated with hydrogen sulphide, methane and
same time under the ground the water starts filling for other gases. Thermal grounds also do not get a
the next eruption. The duration of a full cycle varies permanent snow cover during the winter as the
from geyser to geyser; Velikan, for example, erupts intense geothermal activity of this area has a great
every three hours, the Triple geyser erupts once in effect on the surrounding environment, and in
two-and-a-half hours and Smaller geyser erupts every spring, trees and grasses come to life long before
30 minutes. they do in other regions. River banks are commonly
Pulsating hot springs differ from geysers as they overgrown with warmth-loving plants, the
are continuously erupting with very short calm vegetation bursts into bud earlier in spring, birds
periods. For example, Sakharnyi (‘Sugar’) hot spring start making nests, insects and brown bears wake
has eruptions every four to five minutes, with a up earlier too. The varied mineral compositions
duration of about two minutes. The small pools of and temperatures of natural springs has resulted in
these hot springs are always full of boiling water some of them having associated health and medical
pouring over the edges and forming small streams. resorts (EWP Ecotourism, 2009).
Some of the pulsating hot springs have been geysers
in the past, but changed their character for natural The 2007 event
reasons (mainly micro relief changes) or because of On 3 June 2007, a devastating mudflow virtually
human activity (EWP Ecotourism, 2009). obliterated this natural wonder, forcing the
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