Terraforming Teton

[jacqulina]

wow awesome work you have done beautifully done,awesome pics

[Air6]

Very beautiful pics.

[keithsed]

Each time I check this it gets better.

Keith

[Giligone]

Excellent detailing! All the downed trees and rocks and plants. Wow, so good! I guess the trains go pretty slowly through there huh? hehe. Excellent work. 

[Rayden]

Beautiful job Pvarcoe, the transition from the snow line to the tree line, the little snowy canyons perfect. Those shots of the railway, awesome mate!

[bat]

wonderful railway!

[dedgren]

Rail along the lake and through the mountains...I've died and gone to heaven.

Makes one wish we had single track rail available.  It would be a huge undertaking (new bridges from scratch, all the crossings and such), but imagine a lone rail line snaking through the same area.

Ahhh, we can all dream...

Great work!

[Serkanner]

This is my first visit to Teton, and I must say I am very impressed what I have seen on the previous four pages.

You have managed to make a great looking map look even better. So far I agree with your choice of terrain modds as I use the Italy one myself as well 

Needless to say I am looking forward to the next update and the developement of the winding railroads.

[petercintn]

I purchased a roundtrip ticket for the opening of the line.  Hope the food is as good as the view!

[pvarcoe]

Update 9, replies, mountains, and a couple of extras.



Thanks folks for all the replies!
I am covering two updates worth of replies here, so your name may come up a couple of times.
It is pretty humbling to get such continually great feedback.
This SC4 community is super!


dedgren - Hi David, and thank you. I am using the higherSnowPatch file that is supplied with the meadowshire terrain mod. I am also using the MeadowshireCliff file, the MissouriBreaks Rock texture file, and the OlympicBeach file. And I agree, it's a lot of fun experimenting with cycledogg's files.
bat - Hi again Bat. Thanks for checking back in.
petercintn - Heya Peter. I appreciate that very much. I'm quite enjoying your diary too.
rw0381c - Welcome here rw0381c. Stay tuned for more.
Giligone - I have included a shot this update that should answer that question. And Thanks!
thundercrack83 - You are welcome, glad to help. Hoped you liked the first rail shots.
nedalezz - Welcome and thanks nedalezz. I am looking forward to developing the valleys a bit.
Badsim - Wow! Welcome Badsim. Your work is unbelievable, and I much appreciate the compliment.
keithsed - Thanks Keith.
beskhu3epnm - You are very generous with the praise. Thanks Besk.
Livin in Sim - Hi Liv and welcome here. heh, I've never heard that phrase "purtier than a speckled pup in a red wagon" before, but I like it. Thank you.
Yoder7652 - Thank you Yoder, and welcome here.
Alek King of SC4 - Thanks Alek. I have driven through the Teton valley, but never actually been into the mountains there. It's gotta be nice.
Darmok - Thank you John. Good to see you back.

A small update with railway shots occurred about here.

jacqulina - Hiya Jackie. Thank you for the kind words.
Air6 - Thank you Air6.
keithsed - Keith, you gotta be one of my most regular visitors. Thank you for taking the time, It's much appreciated.
Giligone - Thanks Giligone. To be honest, I struggle with the detailing end of things. I'm never quite satisfied, but as David posted a few pages back, sometimes you just gotta allow for some limitations in this game.
Rayden - Thanks Rayden. That rail line was quite a challenge.
bat - Hi Bat. Thank you very much.
dedgren - Thanks David. Yes, a single line rail would be just excellent. But I suspect, that one won't likely happen anytime soon.
Serkanner - Thanks Serkanner. I agree, cycledoggs terrain modds are great.
petercintn - Hehe, you better bring a bagged lunch, just in case.



Ok, on to the pics.
Giligone was asking about which Teton peak was which.
Hopefully you can tell by this next shot.

At the tail end of this update is a link to a full size region shot with names of peaks, valleys, and other notable points.
All the names are real and in the correct position, as much as possible. We will continue to develop this and refer back to it as the diary progresses.



Many of the mountains in this area are quite steep and jagged. The trees form interesting patterns up to the tree line.



The next two shots zoom in for better detail. I must admit I never get tired of seeing the results of the tree controller.






Some of the eastern peaks are a little more rounded off, and the lack of steepness seems to  result in more moisture and denser forests.



The next few shots show more detail again on the interaction between snowlines and treelines.
Not much dialog here, just enjoy the pictures.











Back across the valley to the west, one of many mountains stretches in several directions.



That concludes our look at mountains for the time being.
As we begin to develop the region further,
we will get plenty of opportunity to visit the mountains, and explore the valleys.


As you may recall, the last(although brief) update looked at the southern rail line.
After the global warming calamities of the 2020's, physical contact between this valley and the outside world was broken.
Flood waters formed Jackson Lake and completely obliterated the State Highway 89 south.
The rail line was built to reconnect the valley and the small town within.
Jackson was the only town of any size at the time, about 8000, and a full third of the town was destroyed by the flooding.

The map below shows the rail line and the location of the town of Jackson.



The next shot is a satelite image of Jackson and area before the flooding.
The landform shapes are very recognizable when compared to the in-game region shots.
That's a real testament to the accuracy of the NHP maps.



Lets close this update with a small sized region shot.


Clicking on this link will load a large regionshot with the names that I mentioned earlier.


Next update, we will continue with the rail, and ride it right to the town of Jackson.

Thanks for checking Teton out!

[bat]

Wonderful using of trees! Great "snow pictures"! Fantastic update! Looking forward to the railway and the town of Jackson!

[Giligone]

Yep, I'm convinced. You aren't actually playing sim city. Instead you are taking photos from an airplane then making them look just a smidge animated in photoshop.     hahaha, but seriously, wow. Beautiful, stunning. Those people of jackson are a lucky bunch. I would love to live there!!  I probably dont need to say it, but I will, keep up the stellar work! 

[Rayden]

Great update Pvarcoe, I love your care for details, al those trees placed so well, the further ahead planning of infrastructures, naming places, shows that you are carefully planning before building like most people do. Keep it up mate.
Btw, if you want I can lend you my chopper to take some great aerial photos. It is equipped with 2 cameras, a fixed one and a rotating one, 5,000mm lens, infrared for night shots, and all the latest tech.  [linkie] 

[Alek King of SC4]

yep some more beautiful examples of these awesome terrain controllers, these things are so intelligent in placing trees in just the right slopes, ravines to create such a insane look.

[NikNik]

I have lurked five pages long, and I am getting emotional now. What an incredible wonderfull place this Tenton is. Darn, what a beautiful mountains and valleys. The water under the railway bridges is maybe a bit too blue, but I can live with that thinking the water must be freezing cold.

I love your work!!!!

Nik-Nik

[seemurray2]

Those are some beautiful mountains!  Great choice of mods, they work really well together.

[dedgren]

A beautifully wrought (and written) update.  With pics this wonderful, some would be content to simply rely on them alone.  Phil, you've crafted a piece that moves the reader along right from the start.  Information is organized logically and never intrudes on the majesty of this visually stunning landscape.

Thanks for you effort on this great MD.

[Serkanner]

I am very glad I found this diary in time to keep up with the progress and feel the true thrill of anticipation when visiting the site to discover if a new update is available ...

Today I am not disappointed ... not at all, as we have been treated with yet another great update of this region. Thanks for a great set of pictures and the huge region shot ... it was worth the loading time. 

[keithsed]

The next two shots zoom in for better detail. I must admit I never get tired of seeing the results of the tree controller

.


What tree controller are you using and how do you have it configured?

All I can say is MAGNIFICENT!          and all the other smileys that describe what you've done.

Keith

[emilin]

That region shot is insane!