Diomita Maurer’s Blog

When I saw the first reviews of Black Bayou Lake on scoop.it SL Destinations I knew I had to see this sim. It is the newest creation of Serene Footman and his partner Jade Koltai. Serene Footman is the creator of places like Furillen, Dunkirk – La Digue du Braek, Khodovarikha and Isle of May, all of which I visited and wrote about (read here: Furillen, Dunkirk – La Digue du Braek, Khodovarikha, Isle of May). All these sims have one thing in common: they are built according to a place in the physical world – and so is Black Bayou Lake.

Impressions of Black Bayou Lake in Second Life (1)

On Serene Footman’s website you find a detailed description about Black Bayou Lake:
“Black Bayou Lake (link to wikipedia) – the inspiration for our sim – is located in Ouachita Parish, Louisiana. The lake is part of an 800 acre nature reserve – there is a factsheet about it here – which seethes with wildlife: there are many species of bird, insect, reptile and fish, along with a variety of trees such as cherrybark oak, cedar elm, ash, hickories, willow oak, shortleaf pine, loblolly pine, mockernut hickory and post oak. It’s a stunning place, which attracted us because we had not yet tried designing a sim that consists mainly of water…...”

Black Bayou Lake – National Wildlife Refuge, Lousiana (sources: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Bayou_Lake_National_Wildlife_Refuge, https://flatfooting.wordpress.com/2014/10/01/black-bayou-lake-national-wildlife-refuge/, https://furillen.org/black-bayou-lake/)

Black Bayou Lake in Second Life is a virtual interpretation of the nature reserve in the physcial world. The most outstanding feature both places have in common is a long wooden footpath that visitors can use to explore and to even walk out onto the lake. The swamp with it’s unique flora and the bare trees is another feature they share. Even some of the huts that are scattered on the sim look similar to those found in the nature reserve.

Impressions of Black Bayou Lake in Second Life (2)

I didn’t change the windlight setting that was provided. The atmosphere is very foggy and mystic, you can almost sense the humidity. I walked along the whole footpath, enjoyed the views, sat down here and there, listened to the birds singing (don’t forget to turn on the ambient sound!) and took a lot of pictures.
When I left the wooden footpath, I fall into the swamp several times. Luckily that’s not dangerous in Second Life, nonetheless you’d better watch your step.

Impressions of Black Bayou Lake in Second Life (3)

Visiting Black Bayou Lake was a great experience that I really enjoyed. I looked up a lot of information about the Black Bayou Lake National Wildlife Refuge. It did not replace a visit to it in real life, but together with some pictures of the real place it felt as if I were there. I assume just the smell and the damp heat is what I missed *winks*.

Thank you Serene Footman and Jade Koltai for sharing your creation with the public!

Landmark for Black Bayou Lake
https://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Gainesville/144/204/21
Serene Footman’s website
https://furillen.org/black-bayou-lake/
Black Bayou Lake on Wikipedia
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Bayou_Lake_National_Wildlife_Refuge
Description from a visit at Black Bayou Lake
https://flatfooting.wordpress.com/2014/10/01/black-bayou-lake-national-wildlife-refuge/
Black Bayou Lake Factsheet
https://www.fws.gov/southeast/pdf/fact-sheet/black-bayou-lake-national-wildlife-refuge.pdf