HRV Ice Cave Illumination Project II

[piddy3825]

Used the fire marker symbol to tie in this ice cave system.  Amazing how far it crosses the map from one entrance/exit to another.
This by far is the wettest, loudest cave system in the game.  The sound of rushing water reverberates like a dull roar and boy oh boy is
that water ever cold.  Although I was fortunate to avoid them, but there be furry monsters in there so bring plenty of torches and some bandages
cause it gets pretty dark and scary as you go

Reclusive Falls enterance/exit  yellow arrow marker

Middle Cave entrance/exit west of Signal Fire green arrow marker

Mammoth Falls Area entrance/exit  red arrow marker

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hope you enjoyed my little spelunking adventure!

[RandomPlayer]

Holy Moly Batman!

that is impressive!  I hate going in those caves, somehow the sound of that ice cracking just gives me goosebumps.  I suffer from Nyctophobia, IRL, so I just avoid them in the game.  I'm 35 and I still have to sleep with a light on.  My wife wears a black out eye mask to bed to help her fall asleep.  It takes some resolve for me just to go thru the transition caves to move from one region to another, so thank you for taking the time to shed some light on this scary place for me!

[piddy3825]

2 hours ago, RandomPlayer said:

Holy Moly Batman!

that is impressive!  I hate going in those caves, somehow the sound of that ice cracking just gives me goosebumps.  I suffer from Nyctophobia, IRL, so I just avoid them in the game.  I'm 35 and I still have to sleep with a light on.  My wife wears a black out eye mask to bed to help her fall asleep.  It takes some resolve for me just to go thru the transition caves to move from one region to another, so thank you for taking the time to shed some light on this scary place for me!

Nyctophobia?  That is a new one for me!  I had to look it up to see what it was!  
anyways, sorry to hear that you're afraid of the dark.  Lots of scary things in the dark that go "bump" in the night.  That's why I have two big dogs and a loaded handgun under my pillow!  Pity the fool that comes skulking around the house after dark...

[ajb1978]

Keep an eye out for a bespectacled crowbar-wielding physicist in a HEV suit, because it looks like you've found your way to Xen.

[piddy3825]

ha ha ha @ajb1978, funny you should mention that.  It does look kinda like that realm in Half-Life.  
It's particularly more funny as I just purchase Black Mesa on Steam the other day.  Been on wish list for a while now and the price was right!  
I'll tell Gordon you said "Hello" if I run into him!

[hozz1235]

Someone has been flying around alot

[piddy3825]

2 hours ago, hozz1235 said:

Someone has been flying around alot

It's pretty amazing what you see when you can break free.  There are so many visual experiences in this game and honestly its a shame that more people can't enjoy this same level of gameplay.   The majesty of design and art really are revealed when gazed upon from up high.  Really the beauty of the game is magnified  when you can float above the world and take it all in from a birds eye view.  

[hozz1235]

13 hours ago, piddy3825 said:

It's pretty amazing what you see when you can break free.  There are so many visual experiences in this game and honestly its a shame that more people can't enjoy this same level of gameplay.   The majesty of design and art really are revealed when gazed upon from up high.  Really the beauty of the game is magnified  when you can float above the world and take it all in from a birds eye view.  

Nicely said, my friend.

[Sito]

I just finished this cave walk. Quite amazing. I started from my cave a bit north of Stairsteps Lake and walked a log down to the river then into the Reclusive falls entrance. I wanted to start there rather than in the middle green entrance so i could do the grand tour up to the fire signal. I knew about the previous 2 entrances but never knew about the signal fire entrance. It is a bit hidden when you are exploring around the signal fire area. It was so easy to navigate without even a second look at your map. I just kind of had it in my head and all the turns fit with what I expected the directions to take me to get to the red exit. Once I got out and walked around a bit to orient myself its like "Oh. Its here? The signal fire is just down there..."

Now that I knew exactly where I was I decided to take the long route home and compare the time and effort, so back up to Mammoth lake cave, grab a bottle of water from my stash there from a previous camping trip, then down the mountain to the north side of the map and the 2 camping caves on that side. After taking a peek inside to see if my hides were still curing and if i left any teas, I looped around to the east and down to the river, then back up my log to get to my Stairsteps Lake cave. Wowsers! That took a long time.  By comparison the cave was a teleport machine.

Nice job @piddy3825 Kudos!

[piddy3825]

Thanks @Sito, it was fun!  You have no idea how many lanterns it takes to brighten up the place!  
And yes time does seem to work differently when you transition the map via the cave network!  I've always been overwhelmed at trying to learn the map at HRV but now with a better understanding on how the ice caves connect it all together, it's slowly starting to make sense and the region is quickly becoming one of my more favorite areas to go camping!

"Don't just survive when you can camp out and thrive!"