My journey around 366km radius rocky moon (travel log)

17 days ... this is turning into a truly epic adventure! Luckily (or through careful planning) this planet is coming up with some terrific terrain to prevent it becoming tedious. Have you got any estimate as to how many more days you think the journey might take?
 
Yeah have said it before i'm surprised how varied it has been. Some days it feels like i'm in a different moon. But did research before (not to much) so knew it had a lot to offer. Not too difficult, but good challenge. Don't know how to put it but its been good ride, and starting to get the vibe (or feel or how you put it) of this moon.

I'm clearly past half point, so maybe total will be around 30 days. Depends how many long days i take. I try to keep it fairly straight, there has been so many thing to look (sort of mini targets each day) that it has given me no reason to do big detour.
 
Day 18:
Today was flat day. Nice to drive. Didn't do it in one go as i hoped it would turn into day as i progressed:
(spoiler alert - it didnt)
cXH15YL.jpg

And by flat, i mean many times like this:
3Er7Ojx.jpg

But finally arrived to crater:
(lets call it West Crater)
gQPxQh8.jpg

Wanted to drive to middle between 2 craters, not an easy road:
(i'm sure there would be an much easier way, but that was shortest and funnest :p )
fMK0WCp.jpg

Next 2 pics are taken in same spot:
(East Crater)
iaYi70P.jpg

(West Crater)
1xzPZgS.jpg

End of day 18 surface map:
(i think i will wait to see these craters in daylight, main star is just barely under horizon)
gJnr3dT.jpg

Day was 90km (total is 1387km). Good use of flatter roads.
 
Day 19:
Today is daylight (as expected). Pic of East Crater in daylight:
lfk2GSP.jpg

And deceided to descent into West Crater:
(only a quick descent)
c149n7F.jpg

After craters it continues as it was yesterday. Mostly flat:
uF6uWDF.jpg

But sometimes little rolling parts:
(these are bad to drive, but i just like the look of these little hills; and love the rocky grey look - there were many moments where i just stopped and admired grey landscape)
e2N6UZI.jpg

Typical todays terrain:
(moon does look very good in daylight)
yVHViSV.jpg

As i approaced north, colors like these started to appear more and more:
(not only blue parts, but you can see white is different too than in previous pics)
5GiHCRe.jpg

Some of the more colorful patches:
OVkbrpU.jpg

Little blue rolling parts, loved this pic:
(and ended today here)
YOVTfJl.jpg

End of day 19 surface map:
tBFNJA8.jpg

Day 19 was 170km (total is 1557km). Good progress today.
 
Day 20:
Today star was low on back, but still daylight:
(it was very slippery day - mix of ice did driving quite difficult and very slippery. It is definitely ice - it even blows up ice rather than dust when you brake)
KOPmIhY.jpg

More rolling parts:
ZscNNi2.jpg

Long flat sections can end very suddenly with dips like this:
(looking back at this shot)
9DD5kwF.jpg

But finally arrived to big crater. Most of it is under the shadow, you can see what some have called crater "nipple" at the center:
nxHuPH5.jpg

Descended into crater, and climbed on top of that "nipple". Climbing was quite the work with slippery surface, just barely made after multiple attempts:
(also love the blue glow of the upper crater rim)
xXfrtoi.jpg

Spot the SRV at the top:
6x7qVAB.jpg

End of day 20 surface map:
(next target i think is crater at the center)
gSI5EUK.jpg

Day 20 was 120km (total is 1677km).
 
Yeah that is only gameplay days - somewhere before i thinked 30 would be enough, now i think its going to be more toward 35 (i was too optimistic before). Depends how many long days i take. But as i have said - its maraton, not a sprint. :)

Don't know when next "day" will come, but atleast its long weekend. :)
 
Day 21:
Todays start was in daylight. Looking back:
(SRV at the top)
IQaYAbS.jpg

Same spot, but camera much further away:
(tried to reproduce it without success, and i don't even remember if that shot was the furthest i could get the camera - has it happened for anybody else? )
eaLqTJ8.jpg

Climbed down the crater cliff, and drove out of the crater. Look back to whole crater:
(main star was low on back, so i was basicly driving away from the daylight a whole day)
cLNc3Y0.jpg

It was mostly flat today (yes i call that flat :p ). And it might look like grey stone, but it was very slippery - lost count how many repairs i used, i love how ice planets look but i havent gotten used to driving on ice. Still daylight here:
lXdK5Ir.jpg

This tiny crater looked nice:
bfsytpk.jpg

Then after that bigger crater on my left:
9c6PxAo.jpg

And then huge crater in front, liked how there were many tiny craters inside it:
(and i think it can be called nighttime now)
i8yfQWv.jpg

Right after crossing it arrived to another litte crater:
4w7S8Y6.jpg

Then after little bit of drive arrived to this crater, and ended day here:
dffgjck.jpg

End of Day 21 surface map:
(thinking how to proceed here - spots 1,2 and 3 interest me, but don't know if just lighting of surface map or some different surfaces - one way is to just proceed to 1, but what interest me most is 3 so thinking if 3 then 2 then 1 is doable; or just 2 and 3 and then continue ahead)
PrIPmD9.jpg

Day 21 was 150km (total is 1827km).
 
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Day 22:
Today was nighttime:
(galaxy acted as my most trusted directional waypoint today since i was so close to north pole)
hwQ3WNP.jpg

Another crater, really liked this one:
sFVARbr.jpg

And this one, really liked crater wall:
AFk5HQd.jpg

Then at one point noticed wave scanner began showing upper lines, and i knew upper lines meant some sort of civilization POIs. Stopped my SRV, and scouted ahead with camera. Yes, there was a ship ahead:
M7hsMp3.jpg

It was NPC Federal Dropship. Pilot was sleeping, and searched her faction was 7653ly away inside the bubble (distance to nearest deep space port is ~3500ly ). My second contact with civilization in this trip:
(didnt want to wake her so continued my journey)
9EZxJVw.jpg

After that arrived to crater i marked with "2" in previous surface map. Darkness doesn't help but no sign of different surface, must be just surface map reflections:
(took also closeup inside the crater - nothing different)
oerOSI1.jpg

Deceided to skip "3" and just continue ahead. Just as i climbed out of the crater, noticed another upper lines at my wave scanner. Investigated, and it turned out to be crashed SLF figher:
GoCPjed.jpg

Then not long after that another civilization POI, this time data point:
(and there were 2 other data points after that - not grouped together, but there were some distance between them)
HHaXyu0.jpg

At one point terrain started to get more mountainous:
dpw14dX.jpg

Ended here - it was long drive today:
R8Xuy61.jpg

End of day 22 surface map:
(next goal is craters/cliffs at south, this should also get me out of icy bits)
26umXWJ.jpg

Day 22 was 220km (total is 2047km). Crazy day with all the civilization signs. Also my exploration rank % rised to Ranger 27% today - started this trip with Ranger 26% and it needed 2047km to rise to 27% :)
 
Day 22:
Today was nighttime:
(galaxy acted as my most trusted directional waypoint today since i was so close to north pole)
https://i.imgur.com/hwQ3WNP.jpg
Another crater, really liked this one:
https://i.imgur.com/sFVARbr.jpg
And this one, really liked crater wall:
https://i.imgur.com/AFk5HQd.jpg
Then at one point noticed wave scanner began showing upper lines, and i knew upper lines meant some sort of civilization POIs. Stopped my SRV, and scouted ahead with camera. Yes, there was a ship ahead:
https://i.imgur.com/M7hsMp3.jpg
It was NPC Federal Dropship. Pilot was sleeping, and searched her faction was 7653ly away inside the bubble (distance to nearest deep space port is ~3500ly ). My second contact with civilization in this trip:
(didnt want to wake her so continued my journey)
https://i.imgur.com/9EZxJVw.jpg
After that arrived to crater i marked with "2" in previous surface map. Darkness doesn't help but no sign of different surface, must be just surface map reflections:
(took also closeup inside the crater - nothing different)
https://i.imgur.com/oerOSI1.jpg
Deceided to skip "3" and just continue ahead. Just as i climbed out of the crater, noticed another upper lines at my wave scanner. Investigated, and it turned out to be crashed SLF figher:
https://i.imgur.com/GoCPjed.jpg
Then not long after that another civilization POI, this time data point:
(and there were 2 other data points after that - not grouped together, but there were some distance between them)
https://i.imgur.com/HHaXyu0.jpg
At one point terrain started to get more mountainous:
https://i.imgur.com/dpw14dX.jpg
Ended here - it was long drive today:
https://i.imgur.com/R8Xuy61.jpg
End of day 22 surface map:
(next goal is craters/cliffs at south, this should also get me out of icy bits)
https://i.imgur.com/26umXWJ.jpg
Day 22 was 220km (total is 2047km). Crazy day with all the civilization signs. Also my exploration rank % rised to Ranger 27% today - started this trip with Ranger 26% and it needed 2047km to rise to 27% :)

Out of actual rep so a virtual rep++ from me today.
 
Yea, I need to do this one of these decades... perhaps at the end of Beyond when some of the new planetary upgrades are supposed to arrive.
 
When this is done i try little bit of ice planet driving. Not doing whole planet (or not even half), but just little bit here and there. Love how they look, but havent got used to driving on ice.

btw has this camera distance glitch that happened to me at day 21 happened to anybody else?
 
Day 23:
Today nighttime again, and started normal:
6QkSwpX.jpg

Then at one point arrived to deep canyon:
XmJ6Kv7.jpg

(and look to little bit right)
yr2IAUZ.jpg

Need to gross it, so descended and at first started going to the right:
A4tj6Bg.jpg

Only little bit more:
(but it was impossibe, atleast for me)
AJwTXaQ.jpg

After failing to climb on right, started to drive to left:
(need to gross to the right, but steep cliffs everywhere)
y0loM4H.jpg

After some narrow drive noticed opening ahead:
pwVoiN9.jpg

And finally out:
(that shot is look back to canyon where i navigated out, next advanced on top of the cliffs to the left/ahead)
7mcGuTc.jpg

After little bit of flat arrived to this canyon:
(luckly its not steepest here so crossed straight ahead - have to tell it was much harder than it looks in this shot)
RAPGVhY.jpg

After that another flat section, and arrived to this crater:
hrWQhVX.jpg

And ended my day here when i arrived to this canyon. Looks like deep one - don't know how i will gross it, but let that be another days topic:
(need to go straight ahead)
u52jgC3.jpg

End of day 23 surface map:
tDIa0e3.jpg

Day 23 was 110km (total is 2157km). I think its safe to say i'm out of icy bits - todays drive was much better, much better grip.
 
Day 22 was 220km (total is 2047km). Crazy day with all the civilization signs. Also my exploration rank % rised to Ranger 27% today - started this trip with Ranger 26% and it needed 2047km to rise to 27% :)

So, the distance traveled in the SRV actually counts for increasing exploration rank? Now that was something (amongst the many things that) I didn't know until now!

It's settled then, I'm going for a full triple circumnavigation of Achenar 3. Who's with me?

...

...no one? C'mon guys, really?

[wacko]
 
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