FF2: Filling in the Suburbs

[krigl]

Driving towards Finland this time, but actually only reaching the small town of Verkhnetulomsky, and checking it out.


One last shot from the village of Tuloma. For some reason, whenever a modder decides to mod a place in Russia, it is full of amazing detail like this. In other places, sometimes there is great detail, and sometimes there is very little. I don't really get why authoritarian Russia inspires modders so much - perhaps there is an abundance of assets somewhere for old ugly broken buildings, tanks and picturesque cottages?? - but it saddens me that because of current events HOR may never see the light of day. Just imagine what creative mappers might have made with all the new assets... Of course, these are the very least of our worries these days.


Now we're following the Tuloma river westwards towards Finland.




The landscapes in the region are very nice too. SCS Baltic Russia, ProMods' Russia, RusMap, Southern Region... all are really cool places to drive in. I just wish that... ...they were somewhere else. I don't feel at all comfortable here...










Approaching Verkhnetulomsky. Upper Tuloma is what I guess that means.


We're actually going to deliver this machine to a woodyard here, and not to Ivalo. Silly me.




The whole small town is situated behind the dam wall.




Crossing the Tuloma.


Trust me, I'm an engineer...






God and the Motherland will prevent that 1000-year flood from ever happening.


Even little details like the way this narrow gate opens fill my heart with joy.


Alright, THIS is going to Ivalo in Finland. Maybe it will be filled up with timber and pulled back here by someone else? I'd like to think so.


Off we go.


Poetry in motion.


Found we needed some fuel (and to check out the last bits of the town, as we won't be back), so heading back to Verkhnetulomsky.




Not a jobsite, looks nice though.


And here's the petrol station - can you see it? So awesome!!!
We'll get to Finland next time.
Anni

[krigl]

In this set we leave Verkhnetulomsky and make our way to the border and into Finland.


All fuelled up and ready to go. What a great location!


No animals were harmed in the making of this image...
Hmm. Perhaps I could have approached this differently.


We emerge from the petrol station to the sounds of tearing metal and crunching glass. My deputy starts crying again, and it's me who's driving.


Having a friendly chinwag amongst the litter.


Onwards, then.


Goodbye to the Tuloma River.




Look, you wanted to overtake me, I get it. But why then slow down?


River crossing under construction. Hello again Tuloma, maybe.








Getting close to Finland now.










Queuing on the Russian side.




Coach passengers stretching their legs and doing tai chi to loosen up.




And now back into Finland and the EU.




Ahhhh....


Okay, okay. Everything's in order, I promise.


And we're in Finland, back in the lands of the free!! Let's go!


Oh. Err.....
Next time - we reach Ivalo, return to Murmansk and set off north towards the final big city on this tour - Nikel.
Anni

[krigl]

Today sees us finishing the drive through northeast Finland to Ivalo, and then returning to Murmansk to view the last parts of the city before leaving it for Nikel.


Westwards through Finland.






Love the colours.




And here's Ivalo.


We were here not too long ago when touring northern Finland, so it's time to head back to Murmansk.


Let's make the delivery first.


Alright then.


Back in Murmansk, this time with a nicely painted, fully maintained rig.


We've crossed the River Tuloma and are heading to the northern part of the city via the opposite bank.


Back over the Tuloma via the second bridge.


Local cottages, I guess, for those not living in tower blocks.


A view of the chemical plant.


Didn't find much that was new further on, so returned to the chemical plant to pick up something or other.


Ah yes, heavy metals, to take to Nikel.




Back over the Tuloma yet again.


And it's goodbye to Murmansk.




Heading northwards to Nikel.


A tractor leads us slowly into a village on the route: Sputnik.


Small town jokes in Russia: my village was so small it didn't even have a tank.


Next time - we complete the journey north to Nikel.
Anni

[krigl]

Continuing to Nikel in this set.


A man with a horse and cart pulled over for speeding in Sputnik. Meanwhile, a tank stands, engine idling, in the background.


The local stream.


A... 4x4 test track?


Some kind of army firing range? This village is unpleasantly militarised. Again, you don't see stuff like this in Finland, or Belgium, or the UK, yet those places also have armies and bases. What is it about Russia that makes modders place military stuff everywhere? 10 years ago I would have said, oh okay, cool. Today I'm like, er.... nope.


Probably in lieu of a military or police chopper, I suppose.


Well, kinda glad to be out of Sputnik.


A sign for Kirkenes. We're getting closer.




Cool-looking junction.


A snowy mountain peak!


Rugged northern feel.


Passport control, and we're nowhere near the border. Gotta keep tabs...




Nicely made, adds interest to the trip.


The village of Titovka. I think the river might be the Titovka, too.


Rustic cottage.


Rest stop... and motel, maybe? Makes the SCS Budget Hotels chain look like the heights of luxury...




Junction. We took the western route. The left hand route is the northern one, which is a shortcut to Finland that avoids Nikel. And the middle one goes west, but a barrier prevents further travel, plus a policeman guards it. Something top secret down there, maybe.


Nearing Nikel, but the city can't be seen yet.


I thought the vehicles in the left-hand lane were parked, but they were just spectacularly failing to zip.


And here's Nikel. The reason you can't see its mighty chimneys from further away becomes clear - it's in a valley.


Overview of Nikel, dominated by its factories. I recommend checking out images of the place online as well as Wikipedia - its a truly horrible, polluted place which owes its existence primarily due to the discovery of a certain metal in the area...






Well, I'm sure they'll make good use of the heavy metals we're about to deliver.... next time.
Anni

[krigl]

This time – we arrive at Nikel, check the city out and the area around, and then start our last journey north to the Norway border, eventual destination Kirkenes.


One delivery of Heavy Metals to Nikel coming up.


McDonalds?? Don’t they mean Vkusno i tochka?


Another nice intersection here.




Lovely day today. Air smells a lot fresher since the smelter closed down, amirite? Trees looking a lot less dead too. Let’s buy some shoes. Etc.




Okay then, time to deliver, and then pick up our final truck, and tour the area a bit.


We begin our tour, and the first thing we see are more tanks – three this time – plus an artillery piece, is it? Reindeer on a rampage? Could be.






I guess the Olympic symbol on this poster refers to the Sochi Olympics of 2014. Coca Cola have quit Russia now just like McDonald’s, but Coke is still the second most popular cola drink in the country due to the fact that it’s still on sale… imported from various places, including, apparently, Afghanistan. Sauce: https://en.thebell.io/coca-cola-quit-ru ... elves-how/


At this point cars and lorries go over the line in the centre of the road – I was surprised into going off-road for a moment.


Climbing the hill we came in on.


Down to the crossroads with the mystery road. I want to check it out.


The policeman just stood there and left us alone, but I decided not to continue. Using the ‘console camera’ I found that the road turned and then stopped in the forest. Maybe there’s a pot of rubles buried at the end?


View from the ‘short cut’ road that allows you to drive from Murmansk to the border without entering Nikel.


Straight on will take us to the border, left is back to Nikel.


And we went left, because we need to stay in a ritzy hotel and then pick up a cargo for Kirkenes first thing tomorrow.


Morning or evening? I’ve forgotten.


Cargo picked up – some kind of loader for a farm in Kirkenes.


Leaving town.


Final view of this lakeside paradise.


First checkpoint on the way out of Russia.




And some last stunning countryside.


And the second checkpoint…
We’ll complete this tour of ProMods’ northwest Russia in the next set.
Anni

[krigl]

This is the final set from ProMods' northwest Russia. Nikel is behind us, and we're heading for the border with Norway carrying a loader to a farm in Kirkenes.


At the second checkpoint out from Nikel. That broken sign and broken van...


Crossing the Titovka River.




Zone of the Border Control! Uuiieeep! Uuiieeep! Uuiieeeep! Allarmm! Shtoppp!!!! By the Whiskers of Kurvi-Tasch, Shtoppp!!
3rd checkpoint.




4th checkpoint. Surely ze Ambassador is trolling us with zis Rocher.


5th checkpoint. The actual border checkpoint.


The traditional queue to get in and out of Russia.


And we're through!


Norway awaits!




And we're through!


Goodbye Russia. It was kind of cool, and the PM scenery was great, both the urban areas and the countryside, but I'm glad to have it behind me.


Norway, Norway, Norway...


Last leg now, up to Kirkenes.


Living there would make me uneasy, not entirely sure why.




There's a jobsite down there, a quarry I think. Might have to check it out when we finally get here in Part 5 of the tour.


Some things never change. 2000 years ago fast Roman chariots were getting stuck behind ox carts.


Oh for goodness sake. Oh wait, I'm driving a 750, this is not unsolvable...


Eat my dust, peasants!!


And we've arrived in Kirkenes.




Nice! Looking forward to touring northern Norway around mid-December, with any luck.


Before that I'm heading back over to Texas for Part 4 of that tour - eastern Texas.


That's it in here for a while. Thanks for checking out my shots!
Cheers! Anni

[krigl]

Alright... I lied. Well, not quite. But I've just spent a couple of nights on a houseboat, and during that time I watched quite a lot of 'owner operator' videos - both real and ATS - and got inspired. I've been wanting to do something more realistic for a while, and to actually play the game as well as just tour and take screenshots of mainly scenery, so I've decided to add something to the 'mix' - shots from a new profile I've created where I'll be using 'realism' mods and generally driving and 'screenshooting' in a more 'realistic' way as I build my 'career'. It's going to be a kind of a 'side thing' which I'll do whenever I get bored with touring, for example now. It will be in ATS for now, starting on the west coast and perhaps I'll start one in ETS 2 later, starting in southern Europe. It's going to be more about driving than screenshots for me, so there will be fewer images per trip, and a lot less time spent faffing around setting up shots. At the same time, it will have more of a realistic feel, I hope, with images taken of the truck only when I have reason to be outside the truck, and the rest taken from inside. I hope people like the format...


I'm starting out in Medford in the south of Oregon as a novice driver with $1,593 in the bank and no truck to call my own. The general idea is that I work for some kind of agency that sets up jobs for me, and perhaps also some freelance work on the side. Today I'm driving an International LT day cab with 400hp and a miserably small 140 litre tank for Dollar Tree.


Cargo: Used Packaging. Total profit will be $109 after driving 206 miles to Walmart Logistics Centre in Eugene, Oregon.


Just out of Medford. Using a bunch of mods, including Grimes's early autumn, and a realistic economy/realistic fuel consumption mod. How realistic they are I cannot say, but anyone who cares can ask me for the exact details if they like. They're on Steam Workshop.




The move by SCS to add a used truck feature to both games is what prompted me to actually start playing properly again, even though the feature seems flawed right out of the box, with heavily damaged second-hand trucks costing much more to repair than it costs to buy a new bog-standard truck. While that might be realistic - I don't know - it doesn't really motivate one to actually bother buying a second-hand truck, especially as hired drivers refuse to use heavily damaged trucks. Still, it's a step in the right direction, and it rekindled my enthusiasm for actually playing the game.




Needed the loo, so stopped off before we reached Eugene at this rest stop.




They had great restrooms and some nice trucks parked up, but no hot food.


Did a walk around while munching on a baguette from a vending machine.


Let's finish off our first day's drive, then.




Started clouding over as we reached Eugene.




Soon it was tipping down.






We got parked up at Walmart - could be better, but I'm really out of practice. First job done.
We'll head back to Medford next time.

[krigl]

My employer fixed me up with a drive back from Eugene to Medford, this time behind the wheel of a somewhat stronger machine - a 505 hp Western Star 49x with a 300l tank. I'd thought I was going to run out on the way up from Medford to Eugene - no such worries this time.


Arranging my stuff in the cab before starting off.


Checking things out.


Everything seems in order.


We're not going to Klamath Falls today.


This time we're hauling home accessories between Home Depot warehouses, but I'll be making $165 - nice.


Bit of a grey day today.


Stopped just south of Eugene on the opposite side of road to yesterday. The vending machine sold horrible coffee, but better than nothing.


I know you're used to using the bushes, but the toilets are just over there.


Southwards to Medford.




And we're back. There's Dollar Tree.


And our drop-off point. Time to collect those sweet, sweet greenbacks.


Hey there!


Great stuff. Thanks for looking in!!
Down to Redding in California next time.
Krigl

[krigl]

This time - Medford, south Oregon down to Redding in northern California, delivering curtains from Home Depot to Walmart Logistics.


For some reason they provided a 500hp 389 sleeper cab for this job, but I'm not complaining.




They told me that I can't crash on the bed, but if I do, then to take my shoes off and not leave any crumbs.


Nice! I guess the usual driver was sick, or something.


Heading out of Medford.




Visibility is kinda sub-optimal, but looks pretty fine outside.


We didn't need to stop at the scales when we crossed the state line, but just past Hilt we found a compulsory agricultural inspection place.




Had to show our papers.


Quick check of the rear tyres before moving on.


Off we go.


Quite rugged terrain as we head further south.




Passing Weed.




Bridge coming up.




Accident at the Redding exit - had to detour.




Mercifully, there was another exit just down the road which led straight to the delivery spot, so nothing was lost. Here's Redding.


Final check at Walmart Logistics. I wanted to drive back to Medford the next day, but I was allotted a job heading down to Oakland. Well alright.
Krigl

[krigl]

Driving from Redding down to Oakland today in a 455 hp Peterbilt 579.


It's my first double trailer, so soon after joining the company. It seems I've been making a decent impression at least. All my jobs so far have been on time and damage free.


Unfortunately, I fell foul of California's ridiculous low speed limit and got a ticket for speeding which wiped out all the profit from this AND the last trip, plus a little more. I can see why this economy mod is labelled 'hard mode' now. The fine wasn't bigger than normal, but I'm making so little.


Nice view of the airport as we leave the Redding jobsite.







On the highway now, heading south.


Rest stop.


Rustic facilities, no decent nosh, though.


Looking good. This was still before the fine.


Passing Sacramento.




Impressive bridges.




Houses on a hill... The cops got me around here.




A little coastal driving, and then Oakland appears.


The big cranes and all the spray make an impression when you arrive. That bridge there heads across the bay from Oakland to San Francisco.


Gatehouse. My papers are ready to go. After all, I had to show them to the police earlier. Not happy with that, and neither are Swift. No doubt someone took a shot of their vehicle pulled up by the cops and is enthusiastically preparing it for online viewing with a gloating title right now.


Well, we were still on time and the cargo is in perfect condition, so it could be worse. But 2 trips' worth of money lost is a bit of a setback. I'll just have to be more careful in future, otherwise my dream of becoming an owner operator will never be realised. And that would be sad.




So, that was my first doubles job. Next time - still can't get back to Medford. Truckee is a bit closer, though.
Cheers! Krigl