Nature

.. baja norte ..

/ Sunshine / 1 Comment

Salt Water 3

Do you like a quiet, deserted beach for reflection, some surfing, maybe some conversation with a friend?  Let me tell you about the newest one that I have found.  Okay, I really didn’t just find it… I watched it being created from flat sim surface to this great, remote style beach.  It is similar to the coastline of the Baja Peninsula and the creator has tagged the sim as “Baja Norte“.

Jac Mornington really strives to make a natural environment and Baja Norte is no exception.  The beach is very multi-dimensional with the feeling of a windblown dunes with turtles coming up on the beach to nest as the waves lap against the shore.  Jac has put in a boardwalk to allow access across the water to an out island with a look out area that is perfect for relaxation.

Salt Water 2

Salt Water 4

In the center of the beach, up on the rise, there is a beach shack offering a respite from the sun and heat.  And just over the rise, you will find a fishing dock fully outfitted with a fishing boat or sailboat that you can jump in and take for a ride around the sim.  It is a tight fit but you can fully glide across the water in either boat along the edges.  Just watch out for the Maoli mesh surf waves that are rolling in.  Jac has placed two different types of surf waves out. A fun low rumbling wave that is fairly realistic for many real life surf beaches, and a larger wave that crashes in as well.  This adds to the natural environment as most surf breaks would have varying types of waves to experience.

Salt Water 6

salt water 1

While on Baja Norte, you will share the environment with a seal colony out by the lighthouse.  Be sure to look out beyond the surf for the whales breaching and cavorting, it is very relaxing to watch the magnificent creatures roll through the water.  The sounds of nature will surround you so be sure to have sounds on as well… and just enjoy your visit.

Salt Water 5

Jac has done it again with this sim; it is a beautiful spot for capturing pics, surfing, boating, and just relaxing.  Visit Baja Norte soon, as we never know how long this beautiful sim will be around.

❤

Sunshine

~Swish…Swish…Swish~

/ Sunshine / Leave a comment

I have never seen a river that I could not love. Moving water . . . has a fascinating vitality. It has power and grace and associations. It has a thousand colors and a thousand shapes, yet it follows laws so definite that the tiniest streamlet is an exact replica of a great river. — Roderick Haig-Brown

As I shared in my last post, our sim was primarily recreated in the last month.  Our love of nature needed to be shared outwardly and with all, and now we have done that.  I’ve enjoyed inviting people over to see the changes, showing them what we have to offer and taking them out for a paddle in a kayak!

Kayaking…, a new activity for me in SL, is truly my fave addition to our sim.  Now, don’t get me wrong, I love love love the beauty of the sim most!  But…for something to do and something that can be shared…kayaking rocks!

We offer the Galiko kayak rezzer in our stream.  Here you can rez a kayak for one, a kayak for two and even a kayak for tinies!   Now, the realism of these kayaks is just awesome.  The sculpt is wonderfully done and the options are great for the rezzer system.  The animation is very realistic as well.  And if you listen closely (with sounds turned up), there are even  sounds that will put you right into the activity -swish, swish, swish – as your paddle moves through the water.

Now all that said, getting started with the Kayak isn’t the most intuitive as there are a few things you should know.  I set up a notecard giver to give quick hints, but in case you jump in and forget the notecard, the first thing to do is – click on the kayak to get your paddle (delivered to inventory) and then if the menu is gone, click on the kayak again to display the menu.  There is a button that will provide a guide and the menu provides buttons to help you change the color of the kayak (all components), turn up the volume, or you can just GO FOR IT and hit !

Once you do click on , your kayak will be on the move and off the rezzer platform.  You will guide your kayak using the right and left arrow keys only.  The speed will drive the direction in which you float and is controlled by the up and down arrows.  As soon as you click the up arrow to 1 or 2, you will start moving slowly forward.  Be careful, don’t hit that rock!  *wink*   It will take you some time to get a feel for the guiding and how the speed impacts that.  Of course, if you are in a “tight” area, you’ll keep the speed lower, and open water…well… let ‘er rip!  The max speed with the up arrow is 5, but you can hit pg up and be in full velocity!  The down arrow reduces the speed and if you go below 0, you will be backing up…sometimes quite necessary to get out of a hairy situation!  Oh, and if you just wanna stop, hit the pg dwn key and the speed will go to 0!

On our sim, you can canoe through the river/stream and the perimeter of our main sim before heading over the sim border to our surf sim.  Open water here, so enjoy dodging the waves!  Beware of shallow water areas as they are tricky and present a bit of a challenge at times!   Just be patient and you will find that it can be a most pleasant mode of travel…and the viewpoint is incredibly different!

Now if you have your own kayak and want to put it in the water at Sol Mañanero, just find the rez area on the beach, launch and explore!  I hope you will take the time to enjoy our little world from the surface of the water…it can be a fun, funny, beautiful, calming, peaceful, challenging, enjoyable experience…all rolled up in one!

’til next time…explore, enjoy, find the beauty in Second Life,

~Sunshine

~ Metamorphosis ~

/ Sunshine / Leave a comment

met·a·mor·pho·sis, the definition…

  1. change of physical form, structure, or substance especially by supernatural means  
  2. a striking alteration in appearance, character, or circumstances
  3. a typically marked and more or less abrupt developmental change in the form or structure of an animal (as a butterfly or a frog) occurring subsequent to birth or hatching

Before The Metamorphosis Began...

 

So, a few weeks ago, Jac and I were discussing our sim, Sol Mañanero.  We were commenting on how much we enjoyed the natural planted areas and talked about some of our favorite spots – real life and Second Life.  As we were conversing, it became evident that another change was in the air for our sim.  Jac asked me “Do we really need a commercial area?”  I replied,  “Well, when we first moved here, it was not in my top 10 wishes, but it made sense at the time…so if we don’t need to have one, I’m good with eliminating it.”   So a little time goes by (hours), and it was decided…Sol Mañanero would get back to nature.  We would have a natural beach break, no commercial, lots of plants, water features, etc.    

Within just a few days, we removed all the shops and every other prim along the shoreline and all of the public area on the sim.  We (ok…Jac is the primary terraformer and planter) got to work and started re-creating our world.  This world was to be more personal to us, designed to provide a beautiful place for people to visit and enjoy while featuring what we enjoy.    

Sol Mañanero (May 2010)

 

Jac didn’t do much to disturb our home, just the grounds around it.  Rocks have become a more important part of Sol Mañanero and these have added so much depth.  The elevation of our home and other parts of the sim really seem to be better displayed with a rocky shore line and hillsides.  We now have a beautiful, wild, jungly area that reaches down near the shoreline.  We have new waterfalls, and enhanced river and streams.  There are trails to follow so that you can enjoy the sights and sounds of nature including flora and fauna.  Butterflies, hummingbirds, herons, egrets, seagulls, and cormorants are all to be found near the beach and water areas.  We have put in a stables with a beautiful green grass meadow up on one of the higher elevations, as well (my major contribution was creating the stable from parts of our home) .    

Sol Stables

 

Sol Mañanero still offers an awesome surf break with the surf waves on the sim to the west (Playa Sol Mañanero) and if you love to dive, we still have a great area for diving as well, just under the waves.  On our main sim, you will find a few sweet little places to curl up and relax or even float in the water by the primary/central falls.  You can walk the trails and explore a bit.  The Sol Stables are reached by walking along the southern water’s edge to the most east side and then up the switch back trail.  Here you will find our llamas grazing with our horses.  Feel free to bring your own horse or if you peek into the stables, you will see that we have horses available as well. Our horses accommodate both one or two avatars.  Back down near the central waterfall nearest our entry point, we offer a kayak rezzer just down the trail.  Here you can rez either a single or double kayak and head out to explore the sims via water, so very peaceful. Truly our sim is great for an activity-filled date or outing – surfing, diving, kayaking, horseback riding, walking and relaxing – all perfect for that time spent with a friend!    

Sol Mañanero Beach (May 2010)

 

River Through Sol Mañanero

 

The Central Falls of Sol Mañanero

 

Birds at the Falls

 

Kayaks in the Stream

 

Kayaking Around The Southern Shoreline

 

We had a little “open house” party on April 25th to show off what Jac had gotten done by then, but every day … there is a change he shows me and a few that I can show him.  I can not tell you how much I’ve loved this metamorphosis … it is breath-taking in so many ways.  This is our home…Sol Mañanero…and this just simply fits us…for now *smiles*  

You should visit… and see the changes.  When you do, be sure to let us know what you think!  

’til next time, keep exploring and finding the beauty of Second Life!    

~Sunshine