Natural Areas Near Ormas
from Parkstone’s The History of Damensea
Although Ormas has many fine parks inside the city, there are three lovely natural areas within a day’s ride (not including the royal lands) for those wanting an adventure. (The royal lands are lovely too, but they require permission from the king or queen.)
A two-and-a-half hour ride south of Ormas and half an hour east of Merriltown, Column Caverns are a system of sprawling, limestone caverns created by an underground river many, many years ago. These beautiful caverns are best explored with a witchlight since no sunlight penetrates the caverns and the path nature created through them is not always smooth. However, the flowstone draperies, dripstones, columns, and other rock formations are intricate and magnificent to behold. The final cavern is particularly stunning—the mirror-like lake reflects the ceiling’s many dripstones, making the waters appear bottomless despite only being around knee deep.
A two-and-a-half hour ride east of Ormas and half an hour past the royal forest, Glass Lake is a sparkling and clear freshwater lake near Morwynne Castle that drains into Morwynne River. The water is also often cold because the lake is fed by underground springs, so the lake is an excellent destination to visit during summer if the beaches near Ormas are too crowded. The lake is also filled with many types of freshwater fish, so those who enjoy fishing delight in visiting as well.
A three hour ride north of Ormas and an hour and a half past the royal bay, Blacke Woods is a vast and ancient hardwood forest dominated by massive oak trees. The forest is bursting with wildlife, so it is the best place near Ormas to hunt deer, wild boar, pheasants, hare, and other game. In fact, most of the venison and wild boar eaten on Longnight, the hare eaten on Plantfete, and the pheasant eaten on Harvestfete in Ormas come from Blacke Woods.
Real World Inspirations
- Column Caverns = Luray Caverns in Virginia, USA
- Glass Lake = Glass Lake, New York, USA (except not in mountains)
- Blacke Woods = Oak-Maple Forests