Exploring Cedar Trails in Second Life

Cedar Trails, September 2026 – click any image for full size

Sitting on the west coast of Satori is Cedar Trails, a Full region presenting an Oregon coast themed region-wide park. The work of Artie Huntsman (Fresita Doll), it is a location I found out about via the SL Trailblazer Atlas, which I recently covered in these pages.

However, the fact that I did should not be taken to mean this is a location only of interest to horse riding enthusiasts – it is beautifully put together and offers a lot to see, do and photograph throughout, whether or not you’re on horseback.

Cedar Trails, September 2026
Cedar Trails is a peaceful mainland destination inspired by the Oregon Coast. Enjoy peace among pines, coastal views, and quiet paths. Visit & stay awhile. Enjoy our restaurant, coffee shop, bar, event space, hiking & access to sailing.

– Cedar Trails About Land description

Cedar Trails, September 2026

The water access mentioned in the About Land description refers to one of two coastal bays presented by the park. This bay provides a rez zone, allowing boating fans to access Satori’s coastal waters and – just across the local water corridor – the waters of one of the Bellisseria Houseboat theme areas. This makes Cedar Trails an ideal destination for anyone wishing to sail / boat up to the park from their Linden Home (and gain a BBB passport stamp).

The second bay provides more of a beach area reached by passing by the park’s trio of chalets (available for rent?). These sit between the two beach areas, and a short walk downhill from the Landing Point.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

The latter sits in the south-west corner of the park, elevated on a table of rock above the waters running into (and out of) the rez zone bay. This comprises a mix of general facilities – information / welcome centre, which includes a useful map of the park and its points of interest, refreshment stations, little shops for campers and a social space and events area.

The Landing Point is also where those wishing to follow the trails on horseback and who don’t have their own horse, can take to the saddle via the Teagle Horse rezzer – click the tethered horse for one to ride, then right-click and sit on the rezzed horse (you may need to disable any AO before sitting), and you’ll also get a riding HUD.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

As you depart the Landing Point area on foot or horseback, you’ll pass a sign about the Cedar Trails Stone Collection. In short: as you explore, keep an eye out for the painted stones scattered along the various trails; touch them as you find them to obtain a copy. There are 108 stones to collect, each with a lifestyle message painted on it – but I’m not sure if all 108 are put out together or whether they are rotated in groups; during my visits I only found stones numbered between 30 and 60. Certainly, putting them out in groups perhaps offers greater opportunities for re-visits by those wanting to collect and entire set.

A small hint here is that many of the stone can be found on or near the Cedar Trails trail signs.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

The paths through the park are numerous and present lots of choices for the keen explorer, together with passages to various points of interest – look-out points offering good views / photograph opportunities, a meditation / yoga area, waterside camping area, swimming areas, and more.

The park offers a mix of trees – Norwegian spruce, Ponderosa pine, wild pine and the mighty Redwood –, plants, flowers, and underbrush. All of these, coupled with the mix of elevated landscape, gentle slopes and rocky cliffs, outcrops and peaks make Cedar Trails marvellously attractive; a landscape lending itself to a range of EEP settings other than that provided as the Shared Environment.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

If there is one possible negative to be had it is perhaps with the lack of additional horse rezzers. Cedar Trails presents multiple places where one can dismount and perhaps take a seat – but doing so will cause any of the locally-rezzed Teagle horses to be deleted after about a minute.

So, if you are using one and wish to resume your ride, there is no way to do so without walking back to the Landing Point.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

But that said, and as noted, walking is a perfectly acceptable means of exploring Cedar Trails – and possibly preferred given the beauty of the setting. Keep an eye out for the little details – an otter having fun, a log drifting on the current from a waterfall, the birds overhead, the tunnel to the swimming hole – and possibly the coolest rubber duck around.

Those wishing to socialise during a visit can sit down to a table-top game at the RV camp area, which sits just off of the main Landing Point and neatly set to present the idea vehicles here have just arrived via the local road tunnel.

Cedar Trails, September 2026

Neatly done given the overall limitations of terraforming on the Mainland and highly photogenic, Cedar Trails is well worth visiting and exploring. Props for photography can be rezzed on joining the local Group, if required. However, given auto return is off please do remember to clean-up anything you put out!

So – happy trails!

Cedar Trails, September 2026

Slurl Details

2026 week #39: SL CCUG meeting summary

Hippotropolis Campsite: venue for CCUG meetings
The following notes were taken from my chat log and audio recording  of the Content Creation User Group (CCUG) meeting of Thursday, September 24, 2026.

Please note that this is not a full transcript of the meeting but a summary of key topics.

Table of Contents

Meeting Purpose

  • The CCUG meeting is for discussion of work related to content creation in Second Life, including current and upcoming LL projects, and encompasses requests or comments from the community, together with related viewer development work.
    • This meeting is generally held on alternate Thursdays at Hippotropolis, in a mix of Voice and text chat.
  • Dates and times of meetings are recorded in the SL Public Calendar.

Official Viewer Status

  • Default viewer  26.3 – 26.3.0.31203661088, August 10, promoted August 17 – quality of life improvements; performance improvements; bug fixes – No Change.
  • Second Life Lua Editor RC / Beta viewer with Linux support 26.4.0.35914774337, September 24 – NEW.
    • Lua scripting support (on regions with Lua scripting enabled).
    • Improved communication between the Viewer and the newly published Second Life VS Code extension.
    • Offers an experimental Linux viewer build.
    • Includes the latest WebRTC Voice and viewer-maintenance updates.
  • Second Life Chat Modernisation viewer 26.3.0.35248298254, September 22 – NEW.
    • Recent conversations follow you seamlessly: a direct message you receive on SL Mobile can also be available when you return to desktop, and vice versa; Recent direct message history will be available on logging-in; existing desktop chat logs are preserved – previously saved local history isn’t being replaced or removed; conversation history feels continuous: on desktop, your existing local history and newer message history are brought together into a single conversation.

General Viewer Notes

  • There will be at least one more RC update to the 26.4 Lua Editor / Linux viewer 26.4 before that is ready for promotion to de facto release status.
  • As the 26.4 viewer will see the return of official support for Linux, the Viewer Download / Alternative Viewers pages are to be updates so that Linux is “easier to find” as 26.4 reaches release status.
  • The next major viewer release – 26.5 – is currently in initial development. This will not be the Graphics Care Package, but – and subject to final confirmation – is liable to comprise in part:
    • The game_control updates to allow things like X-Box controllers and similar to be used with the viewer.
    • The Chat Modernisation work currently in the project/alpha viewer listed above.
    • Further anti-phishing protection work.
  • The Graphics Care Package (GCP) viewer is progressing, but the focus currently is on getting the server-side support for the additional glTF and EEP (Environment Enhancement Project) parameters (e.g. in the case of the latter, more tone mapping and HDR controls) into place before that can once again start moving towards a project/alpha version.
    • This work also includes looking into issues such as reflection probes in a region resetting themselves for no apparent reason, causing a brief white-out of the scene in the viewer whilst they do so.

General Discussions

“Water” and Linden Water

  • No update on glTF Transmission work (which will give the surface appearance of water on a prim, but not the attributes of Linden Water (and so is not “water on a prim” as people have been referencing it).
  • Being able to replicate the attributes of Linden Water on a prim / mesh object volume or surface has been a long-time ask within SL.
  • So, rather than try to achieve this, given that Linden Water is essentially a specialised and somewhat “legacy” solution for rendering “water”, Geenz would rather:
    • Enable the use of  glTF capabilities such as transmission within in-world objects to give them the appearance of “water”, but without all the additional complexities of replicating Linden Water.
      • This would require scripted support to give an object the full set of “water” attributes – fogging/haze, etc.).
    • Extend these capabilities, together with things like glTF volume to Linden Water, and so essentially just have a more general “water system” within SL which is more in keeping with how “water” is handled by other platforms/games.
  • This would:
    • Be a longer term goal (so not happening in the immediate future), and does have a number of caveats associated with it which have to be addressed.
    • Avoid the complexities of developing a highly-specialised solution to allow the current Linden Water system/attributes to be replicated within prims, etc.
  • However, if an interim solution is required to bridge the gap between what is available and what might be available in the future, it was suggested that the simulator engineering team is approached to see if something can be done with the platform’s physics system so that it might be used to simulate some Linden Water characteristics (buoyancy? swimming?) on collision with in-world objects identified as “water”.

In Brief

  • Weather effects – physically-based atmospherics have come up for some internal discussion, but there is not official work planned in this areahave come up for discussion.
  • PBR particles; are currently more of an “if” than a “when”.
  • Terrain “exclusion surfaces”:
    • This came as a request for something akin to the water exclusion surfaces, but which would visually hide the region terrain surface.
    • These would have to be a form of exclusion volume, rather than a surface (due to the visual limitations of exclusion surfaces), and so whilst not “hard” to do, Geenz would rather defer any thought on such an item until after water exclusion volumes are a thing.
    • Doing so could enable a single object to be able to mask Linden Water or terrain – or both – depending on the switch set.
    • Please note:
      • “Excluding” terrain does not mean the ability to build tunnels, etc., “through” the existing SL terrain. This would require significant updates / changes to how the terrain mesh works / is rendered, which is not a project anywhere close to being on the road map.
      • So, any terrain exclusion would be purely visual, as noted.
  • The above led to a general discussion on the differences between Linden Water and terrain (for example, whilst both are “planes”, water is “flat” (e.g. “two-dimensional”) whilst terrain is deformable (e.g. “three dimensional”), etc.).
  • Geenz reiterated the current plans for mesh improvements:
    • Adding support for custom skeletons and blend shapes for avatars – but not (at least initially and subject to future decisions – physics bones).
    • LOD (level of detail) improvements – particularly for clothing, where the preference is often not to optimise with LODs, but simply provide a notecard aimed at defeating the rendering system (by advising users to massively increase the RenderVolumeLODFactor debug setting, despite the fact this can severely impact their entire SL experience or the sake of a single attachment).
      • As has been previously mentioned, one option for LODs is to have a automated generation system which will either create LOD models of content without any associated LOD models at upload, or which with replace poorly optimised LODs which do not meet specified parameters at upload.
      • The tl;dr of this work, once implemented, will effectively be: “if you don’t want auto-generated LODs, then include your own optimised LODs at upload”.

      • Geenz further noted that this work will also mandate auto-LODs if mesh imports are updated to allow mesh objects with more than 65K vertices.
      • This conversation rolled into a more general discussion on Land Impact, the need for a better convex hull decomposer, removing Havok from the viewer, etc. However, the key point at the moment is that options / approaches / ideas are still being looked at / investigated, rather than any solution moving towards implementation at the moment. As such, more information will be made available as LL start to move is a specific direction.
  • The above ran over into the development of region imposters (essentially a low-impact means of rendering surrounding regions “on the horizon” from the camera position), viewer-side work being done within the Sharpview viewer on this.
    • This looped back to how the necessary data can be obtained
    • Short version of the latter: at least a portion of the data would have to come from LL, so potentially the best solution would be the provision of some form of API). However, even for this, there are Terms of Service and other policy aspects which would have to be addressed by the Lab for this to happen, and these fall outside the purview of most User Group meetings.
  • Linden Lab factoid: LL have been running analytics on client systems connecting to Second Life, and in terms of computers / laptops, it appears than systems able to handle PBR rendering decently are in the majority, with the majority of very old hardware which cannot management PBR at all being in the minority.
    • This does not mean LL is going to stop otimising for performance wherever possible, it was offered purely as a general observation.

Next Meeting

Time in a curious museum in Second Life

The Museum of Curious Laws, September 2026

So, a brief Exploring Second Life this time around – but hopefully a quirky and fun one, featuring a rather unusual and a little small destination.

Museums are a popular form of expression in Second Life – and rightly so; Second Life is recognised as a valid tool for education, and museums are an ideal means of self-learning. Developed and curated by German resident Novadien, The Museum of Curious Laws (Museum der Kuriosen Gesetze) does exactly what it says in the name – presents a series of laws from around the world which are decidedly curious – and in doing so presents an opportunity for visitors to educate themselves as to what might or might not be a recognised law somewhere in the world, or perhaps more of an urban legend or something similar.

The Museum of Curious Laws

In presentation, the museum offers a “law” in the form of a large poster-style information board (in both German and English) with the law and its country / location of origin. some of these board go on to offer some of the reality of the situation, some provide clarity on what has come to be misunderstood about a law – such as with the Japanese “Metabo” Law of 2008; some level the question open as to whether or not it might be real.

In all cases, greater clarity to be gained by clicking on the Law Case File beneath each poster. This will provide a notecard delving into the law and its basis in reality or – as with the so-called “UK Parliamentary Death Ban”, the more urban legend nature of a “law”.

The Museum of Curious Laws

The Museum is not overly large – it sits on a 1024 sq metre parcel and has just two open-plan floors. However, this makes it an ideal visit without becoming too repetitive or onerous. Instead, it sits neatly into the area of quirky curious, which both helps it live up to its name and make for an engaging little visit.

Slurl Details

Of Trailblazers and Trails in Second Life

Cedar Trails, September 2026 – an SL Trailblazer Atlas ride

SL Trailbrazer Atlas is a Group / resource founded and operated by Lara Toge (Ghostly Dismantled) specifically for those who enjoy horse riding in Second Life. It operates through multiple channels – the Group, an in-world resource centre, on Discord (invite only), and via a dedicated website.

In all truth, I only recently became aware of SL Trailblazer Atlas, and given horse riding has been a favourite of mine to which I recently has cause to return (see: Of a Grumpy Troll and Two Loons in Second Life).

SL Trailblazer Atlas HQ, September 2026

The core aim of the Atlas is to provide all horse riders in Second Life with information on:

  • Places where people can enjoy horse riding along trails and paths, either using their own horse or (where offered) via a horse rezzer.
  • Detailed information – maps, trail notes, landmarks, length of time required to complete a ride, level of difficulty, potential hazards, etc., – on the trails and paths, to make sure riders are as informed as possible.
  • Where applicable, and local riding events organised by the region holders / estates hosting the trails.
  • The opportunity to leave a Trip Advisor-style mini-review via the website on any trails travelled.
SL Trailblazer Atlas HQ, September 2026
Every trail rider in Second Life knows the frustration: you set off to explore somewhere new, only to run straight into dead ends, missing rez zones, or unexpected ban lines. I built the SL Trailblazer’s Atlas to fix this; creating one trusted, central place to find great trails, not just any trails. Most of all, it is here to highlight those breath-taking hidden gems that always get lost in standard search results.

– From the SL Trailblazer website

The best route for initial engagement with SL Trailblazer Atlas is the in-world resource and the website.

Cedar Trails, September 2026 – an SL Trailblazer Atlas ride
As a quick guide:

  • The in-world resource centre provides:
    • An A to Z of maps of all currently-recorded trails across Second Life. These are a mix of single regions and multi-region estates, broken down into alphabetical groups.
    • Each map shows an outline of the trail(s) available at each location, and is clickable as an information board.
    • Clicking on a map will deliver a folder providing: a texture map showing the trail(s), a landmark to the start-point for a ride; information specific to a ride – areas that are off-limits to riders, potential hazards, whether there is a local horse rezzer available, etc., (potentially subjective) comments on region crossings; general information on the host region, generally provided by the region holder / admin.
SL Trailblazer Atlas HQ, September 2026
  • Among its resources, the website provides:
    • General information on the group and all resources.
    • An A to Z of recorded trails, similar to the in-world breakdown, but obviously not delivered to inventory)
    • A calendar of riding events.
    • Information of navigation HUDs available through the Marketplace which lend themselves to trail riding in SL.
    • The reviews pages mentioned above.

Additionally, the in-world Group and the Discord server provide the means for general conversation and feedback.

Lunamere, September 2026 – an SL Trailblazer Atlas ride

In use, SL Trailblazer Atlas delivers on its promise. While some of the in-world maps on the information boards are in an odd ratio, the textures provided through the folder on each location are – in the case of single-region riding – adequate to help in making your way around. However, if you do need to reference a map, I would suggest pulling up your chosen route via the website and flip between the map there and the viewer.

I took the opportunity to use the Atlas to find a couple of trails to ride – Cedar Trails (which has an upcoming Exploring SL article which will be appearing in these pages very soon) and the Lunamere estate (also due a write-up from me in the future). The former was perhaps the easier ride, as it is in the Great Outdoors, and so more amenable to horse riding, but I trying enjoyed both.

Cedar Trails, September 2026 – an SL Trailblazer Atlas ride

If you’re into horse riding in SL as a rider, a group organiser or stables owner, I really do recommend utilising the SL Trailblazer Atlas or contacting Lara in-world or via the website (who is also looking for assistance in running the Atlas!) if you haven’t already. Also, if you’re aware of a riding trail that isn’t recorded as a part of the Atlas (or indeed, one that is no longer available), then please do let Lara know via the website submission form.

Related Links

A Stillwater Coast in Second Life

The Boathouse Café, Stillwater Coast, September 2026 – click any image for full size

In July I wrote about two neighbouring locations designed and held by Sorcha Tyles – The Boathouse Café and Outpost Bay. Now, both of these locations have now gone from Second Life.

However, in their place Sorcha now offers Stillwater Coast, a location offering touches of both in a completely new setting.

“Choices” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026
A Scandinavian-inspired getaway where nature prevails and seagulls call. Listen to the waves hitting the rocks, grab a coffee at the Boathouse Café, and find cosy spots to relax along the beach.

– Stillwater Coast Destination Guide entry

Whereas the previous two locations mentioned above were on small island parcels located side-by-side in the same region, for Stillwater Coast, Sorcha her moved back to a Homestead region, bringing with it advantages and disadvantages.

“Beach Days” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

The advantages are clear: more space, greater opportunities for expression and the chance to also off small nodes to previous regions designs Sorcha has presented under the Dutch Pavilion brand.

The disadvantage is that being a private estate homestead, Stillwater Coast sits on its own, reachable only via teleport, whereas The Boathouse Cafe and Outpost Bay were located in an estate with open waterways and a link to the Mainland continent of Satori, thus presenting themselves as a sailing / boating destination (even sans any local rezzing zone for the return trip.

“Marshmallow mornings” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

Which is not to say Stillwater Coast is in any way lacking; rather the reverse – with its wide-open spaces little coastal road, beach and trails up onto the meadows and grasslands, it offers plenty of opportunities for doing exactly what the Destination Guide entry states: wandering and relaxing.

The Landing Point sit at the extreme north-west of the island, almost right at the end of the little road as it piggyback out along a finger of land between the lighthouse – something of a motif for many of Sorcha’s designs, going all the way back to the original Dutch Pavilion –  and the rest of the setting.

“Grazing” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

Neatly set within bus stop, the Landing Point offers also a view back along the north coast to where what might at first appear to be a boathouse sticking its nose out over the water and, beyond it, a smaller island.

The first isn’t a boathouse, but a little cabin that happens to have been built out over the water and with piers and decking on three sides. It is open to the public and watched over by a cat and a goose. The smaller island is Sorcha’s private home, so please don’t try hopping over and exploring.

“Time to scoot?” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

The Boathouse Café sits towards the middle of the main island and has something of an exterior upgrade from its previous home.

Whilst it is still operating out of an old warehouse formally owned by L. Jenkins, the “new” Boathouse Café sports a different design and a bright red covering of paint on its walls in keeping with several of the other buildings on the island.  A cobbled outdoor seating area replaces the wooden deck from the previous version, and the inside has a warm, homely appeal.

“Gone (from) fishin'” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

Further outdoor seating can be found on either side of the café , where bench tables sit out on the meadow grass and the land slopes down gently towards the little cabin mentioned above to one side and a converted barn at the water’s edge on the other.

The space between café and cabin appears to have been laid claim to by the local sheep, most of whom are grazing contentedly – although one does seem of have settled down into earnest conversation with a rabbit. The slope down towards the old barn, however, appears to be the preserve of the local cows.

“Coast watch” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

This really is a place for wandering an appreciating; the Scandinavian aspects are all too clear from the building (including the use of turf up on a roof for winter insulation) to the paucity of trees which gives the island a slightly Icelandic feel, whilst Sorcha has added plenty of small touches to bring everything to life.

Down at the Landing Point, bicycles can be grabbed for a ride around, together with a little touch of dear old Blighty with fish’n’chips shop on the local pier. Those who visited Outpost Bay and who wander the beach here might recognise the little changing huts on the sand – a nice reminder of the former setting.

“Outside the barn” – Stillwater Coast, September 2026

A genuinely delightful setting with little touches of autumn, rich in birdlife, lots of opportunities for photography and plenty of space for taking it easy.

Sorcha confided in me she dressing a complete region on her own rather than working with someone proved to be something of a challenge. Personally, I think she’s more than succeeded in creating a memorable place to visit and appreciate.

“I’m ready for my close-up” – Stillwater Bay, September 2026

Slurl Details

2026 week #39: SUG Leviathan Hour

The Simulator User Group meeting place at Longfellow

The following notes were taken from the Tuesday, September 23, 2026 Simulator User Group (SUG) meeting. These notes form a summary of the items discussed, and are not intended to be a full transcript. A video of the meeting by Pantera is embedded at the end of this summary – my thanks to her for providing it, and to Erik Mondrian for the chat transcript after my ISP suffered issues and disconnected me from the world.

Meeting Overview

  • The Simulator User Group (also referred to by its older name of Server User Group) exists to provide an opportunity for discussion about simulator technology, bugs, and feature ideas is held every other Tuesday at 12:00 noon, SLT (holidays, etc., allowing), per the Second Life Public Calendar.
  • The “Leviathan Office Hour” meetings are held on the Tuesdays which do not have a formal SUG meeting, and are chaired by Leviathan Linden. They are more brainstorming / general discussion sessions.
  • Meetings are held in text in-world, at this location.

Simulator Deployments

  • The Nectarine update was deployed to the BlueSteel RC in week #38. However:
    • It has a bug  that causes it to leave a bad zero-coded block on some ObjectUpdate messages. This shows up in the viewer logs and effectively is a form of packet-loss if the viewer tosses the data, or ignores the final block of data there.
    • Leviathan has been working on a fix for the issue, and if it passes QA, it will deployed to BlueSteel as an Nectarine update, with the updated code also being deployed to the remain RC channels.
    • This bug can occasionally impact the 26.4 viewer (currently available as a Release Candidate viewer), he expects this to be included in the in-development 26.5 viewer – and a Pull Request (PR) will be made available for TPVs wishing to pull the fix into their code.

Game Control

  • Game_control has been re-based on the in-development 26.5 viewer code base. a new pre-release viewer version, but further work on the viewer code is required.
  • This means game_control could be included in the 26.5 viewer when it services – however, the code has not yet been merged into the development branch of 26.5.
  • Leviathan is looking for feedback on the current pre-release builds of game_control, particularly:
    • Whether the default mappings of actions to buttons correct; are there any actions that should be made mappable that are not yet available; and what features are missing that MUST be in the initial release.
    • However, time is limited for getting suggestions in.
  • There is still work to be carried out to ensure that game_control doesn’t impact the current SpaceNavigator 3D mouse support.
  • A discussion on keyboard mapping to game_control (currently, it is not possible to map keyboard keys to arbitrary gamepad buttons).

General Discussion

  • When it surfaces, 26.5 will likely be the last major viewer release for 2026; Olive (which will follow Nectarine) will likely be the last simulator update for the year.
  • Region crossings:
    • Pepper Linden’s region crossing updates also introduced a subtle protocol change which had been previously tried – and had to be rolled back.
    • This does not mean Pepper’s fixes do not work; rather that there isn’t a lot of confidence that they are ready for full deployment. Right now, it isn’t clear  whether the existing system can be fixed or if LL need to move to a new QueueEventGet protocol.
    • More internal discussions are required on this, but Pepper’s work has renewed a desire to get more region crossing fixes into the works.
    • This sparked conversation on region crossings and vehicle use.
  • The latter half of the meeting was devoted to region / simulator capabilities – number of avatars support, number of objects, resource overheads, region pricing, and – yes – “megaregions” (those larger than the current 256×256 sq m size) + more.
    • This was a fairly wide-ranging discussion, and so please refer to the video below.
  • The above was intertwined on some history of SL provided by Leviathan Linden touching on the early attempts at social engineering (e.g. originally limiting the build height to 768 metres and limiting flying height to encourage people to remain near the ground and socialise more).
    • Again, please refer to the video for more.

Date of Next Meetings

  • Formal SUG meeting: Tuesday, September 29, 2026.
  • Leviathan Linden: Tuesday, October 6, 2026.