The Flattening of Osmium, Rhodium, Palladium....et al...

At the bottom of the south Mainland was a place of incredible
beauty. It was the largest contiguous area of mountains and
pure forest. The mountains where the highest and the woods
were deep. It It was like Big Sur in California. Wonderful!
I used go there often.

These sims were always available for rent and after an event
the land would revert to it's original beauty.

Back in April someone held a small weekend event. Weeks
afterwards the structures were still there. Most of the mountains
of these 6 sims were still there, though now the trees had
mostly been unceremoniously removed.

Then came June. The Second (Gay) Pride 2007 event. On
June 17th, 2007 all trees were removed and all mountains
completely flattened.

And that's the way it remains, here almost September 2007.
Just a desert of flattened sims.

Those wonderful mountains were the quietest, greatest
park on the mainland. It was like Central Park in New York
or the Golden Gate park in San Franscisco. An "island" of
solace on the mainland where there were no structures,
advertisements or anything except views, trees, peaks,
valleys...an incredibly cool place, a place with no parallel
anywhere in Second Life. It was like since October 2006
(when I signed up).

The Sims (and owners) are:

Rhodium (Dee Linden)
Iridium (Pride Festival)
Osmium (Pride Festival)
Palladium (Dee Linden)
Platinum (Dee Linden)
Ruthenium (MIT)



I'm going to send a copy of this to Dee Linden and
the Pride folks.

I realize it's their land and they can do what they want,
but I also feel that Linden Lab could afford to give the
residents a wilderness park like those sims used to be.

I'm just doing some venting and also wondering if there's
anyone here who remembers those mountains and woods.

- Infrared Wind

Never heard of them. I only looked at the thread because I had no idea what it would be about, but it reminded me of an old comic book the Metal Men.

Shortly after I joined SL I just happened to fly over the area while the Gay Pride stuff was still in place..I remember thinking that this must be the area reserved for large events (I had read you could rent large areas for special events short term). I remember thinking how flat and featureless the area looked..but just thought LL had intended it should be this way to accomodate the various events. I had no idea it had once been hills and forests, what a tragedy. When Corsica first appeared on the map I advised people to enjoy it while it was an open free landscape..for it wouldn't last..it's changing fast.

I believe it would be in LL's interest to create areas of undeveloped natural landscape where anyone can enjoy..this applies to both land and waterways.

enjoys

I am gay and proud but even I would rather have nature then any gay pride event.
Heck majority could still be proud and celebrate sexuality with a forest and mountains.

how can it be like central park and big sur? they are nothing alike! its like saying nevada deserts are like the ice caps of antartica

They are... because both areas are free and unspoilt by man (except they are free for a different reason from central park, which i would expand on but that would turn this thread into a discussion).

I didn't go to that area and see the beauty but wish i had, and hope it is restored.

imogen

there are about 50 totally empty mountain sims in the new continent. i suppose you could do your yoga there.

Do you have a name of one of them?

Appreciate it... =)

in world, search up 'land sales'.
then have a fly around.

Not going to happen. I started a group a couple of years ago, when the forest area around Waterhead was new, whose purpose was to find a way of working toward this exact goal. The same thing was mentioned at the time, that it would be in everyone's interest (LL as well as residents) to have several sims that were kept as undeveloped natural area. Only problem is, LL isn't interested in providing undeveloped public forest sims free of charge; the only way it could happen (back then anyway, and I suspect now as well) is if the sims are privately owned and residents are paying the tier fees for them.

Edit to add: I do remember the rental forest sims the OP is talking about. It was a really pretty area, I hope the forests get restored at some point.