On Sunday, November 13, 2016, a group of adventurers set out on a walk via the train tracks in southern Heterocera. The walk was a lot of fun and was without incident, except for a few of us falling off or through the tracks in Lutra. (Who does one report holes in the tracks to anyway? The moles? The SLRR group?) Ziki and I had not told anyone where we were headed, and the group seemed surprised and delighted to end up at the D-Lab train station in Poecila.
But by far the most delightful surprise was the fact that D-Lab owner Dazai Voom had created a group gift especially for us! I had told him we'd be walking along the SLRR tracks, so for the gift he designed a steam train engine-shaped pipe, with smoke coming out of the chimney (see picture at left). A huge thank you to Dazai for his creativity and generosity! The pipe is still available in the group gift area of the main shop and sky garden. You simply need to join the D-Lab group to pick up your very own pipe! D-Lab, about which I wrote here, is a delightful place, and well worth a visit in any case.
If you'd like to join us for further adventures, please visit our home, Cael Ystafell, and click the group joiner near the blue sign (see below). We will post notices about future walks there, and group chat is a good way to stay connected while walking! We'd love to have a really large group join us next time, and who knows what mischief we might get into and what new adventures we might find!
As I mentioned in my last post, the road network on Satori is unusual, to say the least. From the Satori wiki page: "Originally the roads were supposed to connect, but due to mistakes when
the land was divided as the regions were brought online many of the
routes end in abrupt dead ends. A system of false tunnels and billboards
at dead ends will offer teleports when touched to allow travelers to
easily keep exploring the road network without having to backtrack or
search the map for where the road picks up again." I'm just going to highlight a few of the fun and interesting things you'll find on a road trip through Satori, going in no logical order. And off we go!
Let's start with the tunnels. Every once in awhile, you'll come across a dead end disguised as a tunnel. The one pictured above is located in Bietschhorn, and if you click on the lights on either side of the entrance, it will transport you to a corresponding tunnel in Finsteraarhorn, skipping the sim in between. Only problem is that you'll lose your car during the port, but since you'll land in a rez zone, it really isn't a big deal.
Billboards, like those pictured above, are another device used by the fabulousLDPW moles as a way out of a dead end. These two are located outside of the Dead End Diner in Ellingson, and offer to take travelers to either a tunnel in Aragonese, or to the charmingly rustic Old Wagon Road, which is only two sims in length.
In several locations, the road ends near water. There is a beautifully landscaped Japanese dance area in Davros, located at the junction of Route 8 and Route 8C. From there, if you choose to travel on Route 8C, you'll shortly arrive at a body of water where you'll see a boat launch and a free sailboat rezzer. If you sail across the water to the other end of the road in Valeyard, you'll spy a ramshackle structure (pictured above) where a large hole gives evidence to the notion that someone didn't notice that the road was ending!
If, however, you set out at the Japanese dance area and continue on down Route 8, you'll start to notice a series of signs warning you that the bridge ahead is out. (Along with the bridge made of light in the Sansara Snowlands, this is probably one of my favorite areas on any Mainland road.) As you approach the missing bridge, you'll spy a Road Closed sign which offers "Alternate Transportation." Click on that sign, and a huge bullseye appears, along with instructions on how to position your vehicle to have it catapulted across the water. Are you brave enough to try it? Just remember that you are also being thrown across a sim crossing, so anything could happen!
The subtle, playful humor of the LDPW moles can be found at every dead end on Satori. Above, "competing" billboards at the end of the Old Wagon Road in Sababurg send you either to Ogilvie, or back to the Dead End Diner in Ellingson. You can find a list of all of Satori's rez zones here. No matter where you start, or whether you travel by foot, bike, or car, you'll have fun exploring the roads — and the dead ends — on the continent. Take a trip through Satori, and be King (or Queen!) of the Road!
Forgive me, dear readers, for it's been a long time since my last blog post. Both my First and Second Lives have been way too busy, so I figured it was high time to grab my girl, pack a quick bag or two, and go on a ROAD TRIP! Today, travel with us to Satori, also called Maebaleia, or the Japanese Continent. The main road is Route 8 (pictured below with its interesting topiary-styled trees) which breaks off onto 8A, 8B, and 8C. There is also a very small stretch of road in the middle of the continent called the Old Wagon Road. There are rez zones (listed here) all along the road where you can rez a vehicle; Ziki and I started near the southern end of Satori, in Richfield.
Venturing south, we found ourselves at a small carnival, pictured below, and got out to explore.The owner of the carnival, Gracie Dotterkelch, was nearby, and stopped to speak to us as we peered into the haunted house and tried out the carnival games. When we mentioned that we'd arrived by car, she said, "I'm on a new exploration; the mainland is a whole new adventure for me. Roads and water that actually go somewhere! I'm learning to drive after all these years and seeing if I can find my way home!" She laughed and continued, "I think in that regard, I'm a noob again. I didn't ever before really experience the mainland and its charm."
Gracie showed us the haunted forest next to the carnival (pictured below), which is a great find for spooky October adventures! But visit soon, because Gracie mentioned that after Halloween, she will "dabble with making it a winter park." Ziki and I waved goodbye, then headed back north on Route 8 to investigate some woodlands we had passed.
At the junction of Routes 8 and 8A, we found a lovely, wooded parcel called "The Back 40." We wandered in the lane, past two garden gnomes with strong opinions, and discovered a peaceful oasis filled with wildlife, a rocky waterfall, a pond, a camping area, and a beautiful carpet of bluebells. Owner Dick Spad welcomed us, and mentioned that he had tried to make the parcel into a little roadside park. "Since then," he commented, "I was inspired to create a full sim that looked like this, and I called it Countryside. But I still love this, my very first parcel of land, and I hope people will visit, relax and enjoy themselves here."
Ziki and I took advantage of that invitation to camp out under the stars, enjoying the crisp Fall air, the smell of wood smoke and the sounds of the forest. In the morning, we drove northeast to the other end of Route 8A and stopped for breakfast at the Dead End Diner, pictured below. The dead ends of Satori (and how the LDPW moles worked around them!) are worth a post of their own, and we also spotted an interesting sim behind the diner, so our travels through Satori will continue! Until next time, my friends!
