Category: Exploring Second Life

Update, April 2025: Chef de Champs has closed. SLurls have therefore been removed from this article.

Flicking through my notes in the week, I came across La Clef des Champs, by Rose Siabonne, a place I’ve visited a number of times, and which I’d actually convinced myself it was somewhere I’d revisited fairly recently. I was therefore utterly surprised when my notes revealed that “fairly recently” actually meant “nigh on five years ago”!

How time flies when it comes to Second Life 🙂 . Ergo, I suggested to W that we bounce our way over and have a look to see what might have changed. So off we went.

I first visited the setting back in May 2018, when it occupied a Homestead region. However, within a month of that post the setting had relocated to a quarter parcel on a Full private region, prompting me to drop in once again. By December 2019, and after a short absence whilst Rose focused on a homestead design she called Hors du Temps (May 2019), La Clef des champs returned later that year, this time covering an entire Full region and prompting my further visit.

Now simply called Clef des Champs, the setting remains on a Full private region, with the majority of the landscaping within this iteration by BeautifulDisaster Requiem, although touches by Rose ensure all the spirit and feel of the past iterations of the setting are very much still in evidence. However, one change from my previous visit is that the setting now appears to include a number of residential rentals; these appear to be confined primarily to the east and southern sides of the region, and so don’t interfere with public explorations, whilst as long as people keep their eyes open, the risk of invading privacy is equally remote.

The landing point now sits in the south-west corner of the region, on the edge of a little hamlet which is very mindful of parts of France (and includes a boules court!). Primarily designed by Rose, this offers a little café in which to pass the time, and one or two little touches those familiar with earlier iterations of Clef des Champs might recognise (and which help with a sense of continuity between iterations).

From here, a walk northwards winds its way over grasslands and (via boardwalks) across the local wetlands before turning eastwards. These wetlands are fed by falls dropping from the region’s central highlands and offer a home to local waterfowl whilst a houseboat permanently moored close the the foot of the falls (“permanently”, given the boardwalks now appear to block its exit to open water) and several places to sit located around the edge of the waters all provide excellent vantage points from which to observe the waterfowl  – or simply has a cuddle.

Having passed the wetland, the eastward path skirts the feet of the central rocky plateau, passing over a little stream to carry on around the landscape, presenting paths over to the rental properties to the south and east in the process. Screened by trees and shrubs from the rest of the setting, the latter are easily avoided by keeping to the flower-covered banks of the larger stream reaching outwards from the plateau’s falls.

A fallen tree trunk here provides a convenient bridge to cross the waters of the steam and reach the steps and trail leading up into the rugged hill. At the top. multiple places to pass the time might be found – including within the hilltop folly –  and a rope bridge might lead you to a hot tub sitting on the south cliffs as they form a curtain between the inner lands of the region and the public beach.

When circumnavigating the main upland plateau, do keep your eyes peeled for the romantic cavern hidden within the rocks at its base. Do also keep an eye out for the teleport pads dotted around (not that they are hard to miss!). As well as offering shortcuts to areas on the ground level of the region, they also provide access to the Autumn and Winter sky platforms, each of which offers its own little retreat.

Between the plateau and the screen of rocky cliffs to the south, the landscape is cut through by the meandering, if fast-flowing, stream as it makes its way back towards the west to eventually exit into the waters beside the little hamlet. As it does so, it passes through a verdant land of tall trees, flowers, grasses and woodland where trails equally meander, and at least one camp site awaits discovery.

Throughout all of this, the landscaping is highly amenable to photography and lends itself nicely to a range of EEP settings – I’ve used my own for the pictures here – and the soundscape adds depth to the setting. There are also multiple places to sit and pass the time; some of which are mentioned above, but more of which await discovery.

There was some redecorating (seasonal changes) going on during the second half of my re-visit, so its is possible some details may change between this article going out and you reading it – but if so – then that’s another reason for visiting, no? 🙂 .

As is fairly obvious from this blog, I enjoy exploring Second Life and writing about the places I discover either directly as I bounce around or via the Destination Guide, or am led to through the kindness of others dropping me a  landmark or SLurl and / or a suggestion. There are certain criteria I tend to apply to places I visit when considering them as a potential blog post; some of these criteria are pretty obvious (do I like what I see? Is this a place with a broad-ranging appeal?, etc.); others perhaps less so.

While there are some exceptions, I live within the estate and feel comfortably , I rarely review residential region or those that are largely residential focused – not unless they offer a good extent of public spaces thing to do and / or reasonably clear delineation between public and residential spaces. There’s a simple reason for this: I don’t want to be responsible for upsetting people’s privacy in regions that are largely residential by suggesting people go a-wandering in them and end up trespassing to the annoyance of those living there.

But, as noted, there are at times exceptions to thus broad rule of thumb. This is one of them – but as a long-time resident of Second Norway (4+ years now) and knowing Vanity and some of her staff, I’m comfortable in writing about it. Specifically, it relates to Second Norway’s new Havfolk Fjord, a two region area of the estate that has been redeveloped to provide underwater rentals and open spaces for those within Second Life’s Merfolk community to explore and in which to set-up home if they desire.

The Norwegian word for “mermaid” is havfrue. For “mermen” or “mer people,” the term is havmann (for males) and havfolk (which refers to merfolk or mer people in general).

Havfrue = Mermaid (literally “sea woman”); Havmann = Merman (literally “sea man”); Havfolk = Merfolk or Mer people (literally “sea people”)

Welcome to our Havfolk Lands at Second Norway! The Mer Community helped form the Blake Sea way back in the day. We are very pleased to introduce our own Mer Lands at Second Norway and hope all of our residents will enjoy this added dimension to the Role Play here.

– From the Second Norway announcement about the opening of Havfolk Fjord

With a small island serving as the Landing Point at its southern end, Havfolk Fjord presents ten rental parcels (at the time of writing) of various sizes across the sea bed and within an environment decorated by Second Norway resident (and operator of the Knapper village MyStory community within Second Norway) BenjaminButtonss on behalf of the Second Norway management team.

Linked by “paths” along the sea floor where ancient ruins  and sunken ships might be found and fish food obtained (yes there are little fishes scattered around , giving you the opportunity of finding Nemo and given feeding him), the rental parcels range in size from 3744 sq m / 484 LI through to 11040 sq m / 1431 LI, making them suitable for most pockets among merfolk (and maybe underwater explorers?), whilst the sea floor within the region offers a certain, if limited, given the need to conserved Land Capacity for residential use), “landscaped” seafloor ready for exploration via submarine or by scuba diving as well as offering merfolk the chance to rent space for a home. Meanwhile, the open waters on the surface offer space for boating and sailing.

The Landing Point island offers – literally, given the pier at one end of the beach – a jumping off point for explorations. However, on visiting, I couldn’t help but feel it might benefit from a little rez zone so visitors could conjure up a little boat or underwater craft to take to the water for a spot of sailing or exploring. But that said, the idea behind the updated regions of Havfolk Fjord is interesting, and I do look forward to seeing what develops on the seas bed there!

In the meantime, if you are within the merfolk community and looking for a suitable home, feel free to jump over the the Havfolk island and dive in for a look-see; details of all rents can be found within the information boards located within each of the available parcels.

SLurl Details

Rolvsoya is rated Moderate

• Havfolk Fjord Island landing point
• Havfolk Fjord undersea landing point

I recently had the chance to visit Evermore the Folklore, a full private region leveraging the Land Capacity bonus, held by Persephone Smythe (LeriaDraven) and landscaped by her and Elfie (WeeWangle Wumpkins). It’s a curiously delightful setting, mixing together a range of elements to offer a blending of the natural, the whimsical, the mystical and the fantastical, with just a hint of things that sit well with the approach of Halloween

Welcome to a dream inspired by the world of Evermore and Folklore. Take my hand, wreck your plans, and let’s go to the lakes were the poets went to die. We are so enchanted to meet you and hope you enjoy your time in this era!

From Evermore the Folkore

To be honest, I have absolutely no idea if the reference to Evermore and Folkore concern to Taylor Swift albums or something else – so please forgive my ignorance on that; but to be honest, the meaning of the references barely matters when it comes to exploring and appreciating the region – it genuinely speaks for itself.

Visits begin to the north-west side of the region, on the platform of a little train station that once served a (very modest) little hamlet – it’s little more than a couple of little cottages overlooked by the local lighthouse up on a bluff. Small it might by, but the hamlet has it own industrious-looking wharf and boat repairs warehouse / fishing centre.

The north coast is fairly rugged for the first part of its run, albeit with a couple of sandy points. However, once past the lighthouse it drops down to a sandy stretch of beach backed by gently sloping grasslands occupied by a small farm. But as gentle as the beach might appear, the wreck of a trawler and the remnants of what might have once have been a set of piers and moorings suggest the sea here can be a little unkind to the unwary.

From the little hamlet it is possible to follow the winding railroad tracks as they pass through a tunnel and appear to set out across the countryside – only to come to a abrupt end, indicating that whilst there might well have once be a little service between the hamlet and its fishing wharf and somewhere else, those days are long gone. No matter, because the tracks point the way to both the lighthouse atop its headland bluff and to the farm – the route to the latter being via a covered bridge passing between headland and rocky hills. The bridge is old, but clearly safe – as testified by the highland cattle meandering across it!

The tunnel use be the train burrows under a small hill which also has a footpath climbing over its back to lead the way inland. It is here that things start to get more mystical and fantastical. Crossed by rutted tracks, the land is a mix of low-lying grasslands, rugged hills and headlands, a broad body of water served by the sea to the east, where it gains access to the land between two high thrusts of rock; and a gorgeous waterfall-carved horseshoe of rock into which the water of the falls drops. Up on the rocky cliffs above, meanwhile, stone fairies dance, an almost Ent-like Autumn Guardian weeps silent tears into his cupped arms and an ivy shrouded piano awaits someone to sit so it might be played for the spirit of the lake as she stands over the waters below.

And that’s just the start of the region’s mysterious and captivating elements. Ruins high and low await discovery, each with their own attraction; gazebos offer places to sit on land and over water; grassy paths run under the bough of tall trees, mixing with sands and giant mushrooms, whilst coves hidden between the rocks await discovery.

But of all the elements awaiting exploration, the great castle is perhaps the most obvious and demanding. Straddling the rocky uplands where the sea enters the region, its tall towers and  high windows command views right across the landscape, whilst inside it offers an intriguing welcome. But beware – here, quite literally, there be a dragon!

With mist wrapped around its legs and bat circling its towers, the castle is an imposing sight, standing tall over the little farm and over the damaged remains of a lone tower topped by a statue of the Lady of the Lake as she holds aloft Excalibur (presumably), and lighting arcs all about.

Statues abound throughout the setting, from the village to the hills and towers, adding to the beauty and mystery of the region. Several (understandably) are to be found within the graveyard sitting down below the flanks of the castle’s hill. Whether this be the burial ground of those who have occupied the high towers, I’ll leave you to decide; it is, however, the place with that little twist of Halloween to be found.

Throughout all of this there are multiple places to sit and pass the time, whilst local fauna and creatures add their presence to the mix, bringing more of a sense of life and beauty throughout, and in some cases as sense of mystery (just where has the puppy’s owner gone, leaving behind the little fellow, their bags and books – and a bag of fresh groceries?

All of the setting appears open to exploration, although there is one gated A-frame cabin on the region’s west side; while it is not specifically marked as private, the sign outside – which might well be meant in harmless fun – suggest folk don’t rick crossing the gate. As such I took this as a gentle hint to keep out, and didn’t wander further so as not to invade privacy, if so.

Rounded out with a well considered soundscape and with more to discover than I’ve mentioned here, Evermore the folklore is well worth visiting.

SLurl Details

• Evermore the Folklore (Cartius, rated Moderate)

Update: Ameland has closed and Dutch Pavilion has relocated – see: A return to Dutch Pavilion in Second Life. SLurls have therefore been removed from this article.

Sorcha Tyles is a long-time acquaintance in Second Life; as an artist she is rightfully highly regarded for her Second Life landscape and avatar studies; as a former gallery owner she offered many (including myself) the opportunity to display their work. Now, as a the holder of two parcels within a Homestead region she shares with a close friend (I believe the other two parcels within the region are private), she offers two small and similarly-themed settings where people can visit, relax, take photos, chinwag and enjoy a dance or two if the mood takes them.

Separated by a channel of gently flowing water, Dutch Pavilion and Ameland are two sides of the same coin of creativity, and  given that travelling between the two can easily be enjoyed via rowboat, they make for a pleasant joint visit.

Both sit as low-lying sandy islands, Dutch Pavilion the slightly smaller of the two, with the sand meeting the sea to the north to form a shallow-beachy bay held between two rocky headlands, and behind which sits the Pavilion itself, a delightful structure of brick, steel and glass fronted by a terrace with outdoor seating guarded by both flowers and rocks.

Relax, hear the waves and have a cup of coffee at the café, while chatting with friends or just hangout at the beach and recharge! Discover the hidden spots and go fishing while watching the sun set…or start the day with breakfast by the fire.

– Dutch Pavilion About Land description

Grass and scrubby dunes guard the back of the café, while the Landing Point for those arriving by teleport sits over to the island’s east side, close to a former lifeguard station which now serves and an information kiosk. If the café is a little busy, there are various places to sit out on the sand – one of which is alongside the fire pit mentioned in the location’s description (above) where breakfast might be enjoyed, and another in the lee of one of the north side rocky headlands, complete with an upright piano for company. Deck chairs and towels are side out on either side of the beach’s sweep – but do watch out for the local scorpion!

There are some gentle touches to be found around the setting – notably on the dunes behind the café, with lots of touches of detail that bring the setting to life. For those wishing to take photos, rezzing rights are available by joining the local Group (as is the case with Ameland) – but do please remember to pick your bits and pieces up after!

Sitting to the east of Dutch Pavilion is Ameland, which could be reached via a simple teleport (by, say, camming and double-clicking or via LM or using the teleport signs on either island) – but where’s the fun in that? Particularly when you can take a rowboat from the beach and then – after excusing yourself for disturbing the local sealions – row your way across the intervening channel and make landfall along the Ameland’s shoreline.

Welcome to Ameland, loosely based on the real Ameland. Enjoy the calmness, listen to the waves, the birds and find tranquility. Enjoy the free pancakes at the pancakehouse 😉

– Ameland About Land Description

For those unfamiliar with it, Ameland, it “is a municipality and one of the West Frisian Islands off the north coast of the Netherlands. It consists mostly of sand dunes and is the third major island of the West Frisians” (via Wikipedia). For her iteration, Sorsha offers some light touches from its physical world namesake (such as the lighthouse), with the focus of the setting being the pancake house sitting under the shade of a large monkeypod tree.

The Landing Point for the setting for those who do TP in, is to the south of the island, and a track smoothed into the sands of the island runs from here around the west shore, passing the little deck where fishing can be enjoyed and a rowboat obtained for crossing to Dutch Pavilion, before looping past the dunes on the north side of the island to roll up to the back of the pancake house, curling a set of playground swings in its arm as it does so.

The pancake house takes the form of an old farmhouse with seating on both floors indoors, as well as out on the stone-laid terrace set before it. The pancakes are plentiful and offered with a range of fruits and syrups (including one I’m rarely without, often taking it with my coffee: hazelnut – if you’ve not enjoyed a hazelnut latte (assuming no nut allergy!), then I’d be tempted to say you’re missing out!).

As with the Dutch Pavilion, dancing might be had here for those so inclined, whilst drinks and nibbles can be enjoyed out on the benches places on the sands. It is also along the sands of the shoreline that multiple places to sit and pass the time might be found, either on your own or with a friend or two, while the more active can always grab a bicycle from the rezzer close to the rowboat dock, and take it for a peddle around the sandy track – just please mind the bunnies hopping around!

Both Dutch Pavilion and Ameland are very engaging and pretty, ripe for photos and ideal for relaxing within. They are each offered under their own EEP settings (and lend themselves to personal EEP settings, as I used with my shots of Ameland), and both are finished with a gentle soundscape. So, why not hop over and see for yourselves?

Note: This is coming on very short notice as a place to visit, as this setting will be closing on September 14th, but I really wanted to write about it.

Occupying a Full private region leveraging the Land Capacity bonus, Hailey’s Mystical Forest is a fantasy / romantic setting beautifully created by Hails (Hailey Enfield), a long-time resident of Second Life who started out on the Teen Grid and who graduated to the main grid where she continued to create through landscaping regions. She also has one of the most engaging outlooks on life, which I hope she doesn’t mind me sharing here, as it really is inspirational:

There are a thousand different possibilities for anything, our lives could be infinitely different, and we don’t know how it would look if it was different, because all we know is this. There is no certainty that you will live until tomorrow. There is no certainty that the universe will last as long as we think it will last. . . And that’s amazing.

– Hailey Enfield

Within Hailey’s Mystical Forest, she has given us one of the wonders that were it able to do so, the universe itself might create as a garden for beings to wander. Split between two levels, the region offers a mix of public and private spaces (the latter limited to the sky platform, so no risk of interrupting things when exploring the ground level).

Spend Romantic time with that special someone or relax in a serene setting surrounded by fantasy; mountainous forest terrain and enjoy some solitude. To see the world In a grain of sand, or heaven in a wildflower. Enjoy the lush meadows.

LGBTQIA+

– From Hailey’s Mystical Forest About Land description

This is a setting that makes extensive use of Elicio Ember’s creations in the forms of his glowing  mushroom trees, fungi, moulds, lotus blossoms, and plants all used to great effect among Alex Bader’s tall Scots pine and across the undulating landscape. Given the nature of these plants, travelling through the region using the shared environment (World → Environment → Use Shared Environment) as recommended at the landing point is an absolute must. I was lucky in that my visit to the setting took place mostly during its night-time period, which brought the luminous nature of many of the plants to the fore.

The Landing Point is slightly elevated above most of the landscape, stone steps (from Alex Bader’s excellent Zen Garden building kit, which is also used extensively within the region) providing a way down to the gravel paths that meander around the trees and between rocks and plant life, branching here and there to offer multiple routes of exploration. Signposts along some of the paths will point to places of interest, such as the natural hot spring sauna / bath and the beach, but for the most part, it really is a case of following your nose and the paths and seeing where they lead.

Along the paths it is possible to find places to sit and pass the time, be it in the natural rock pools, on the modern stone benches at a camp site or on blankets and logs found on a hill-top. Exploration will also likely introduce you to the setting’s plethora of kitties (like me, Hailey is a lover of cats and the region’s name helps preserve the name of one of her former kitties). Most of the felines will quietly observe you as you pass, although one does appear to have the duty of keeping an eye on one of the the forest’s pandas!

Those who find their way up to the top of the settings’ north-eastern rocky promontory can take a ride on a zip line (by Cube Republic) across the landscape and between the tree to where an ancient meeting place sits of the flat top of another hill. Also tucked under the lee of the northern promontory and best reached via the setting’s east-side beach, is a small hideaway where the romantically-minded can enjoy a cuddle / snuggle / more.

The sky platform can be reached by climbing down the ladder sitting within a hollow tree stump at the Landing Point (and watched over by another cat!). This will deliver you inside the trunk of Elicio’s massive Tree of Life. A path exits the tree, quickly branching to offer a choice of routes.

As already noted, this platform, whilst a continuation of the forest, includes (at the time of my visit) two private residences to the south-west and west, so I’ve advise that if you make the trip up, to keep away from these to avoid trespass, and instead head eastward to the Japanese Water Temple. long the way you’ll pass another tree-trunk teleport to get back to ground level (or if you prefer, you can return to the Tree of Life and use the water portal there, you’ll just need to accept the Experience to do so), and also pass another of the setting’s pandas. This one is wandering the grassland in front of the temple, where further seating spots can be found.

Per the note at the top of this article, Hailey’s Mystical Forest will be closing on September 14th (would that I have discovered it earlier in order to write about it much sooner!), so opportunities to visit are limited. However, I really did want to get something down in writing, both as a small measure of preserving its memory and to encourage folk to pop along and appreciate Hailey’s creativity.

So, please be sure to take the time between now and the end of September 14th and pay the region a visit!

SLurl Details

(until the end of September 14th, 2024)

• Hailey’s Mystical Forest (Lil G, rated Adult)