Lore:Aalto

Aalto
Type	Region
Continent	Tamriel
Province	Skyrim
Appears in	Skyrim, ESO

Hot springs of the Aalto

The Aalto (or Alto), also known as the Eastmarch Geysers, is a geological formation that makes up the central area of Eastmarch, in the province of Skyrim. The volcanic tundra interior of Eastmarch is a no-man's-land of bubbling sulfur pools, giant camps, crests, slopes, and mines. The entire Hold is dominated by sulfur pools where very little grows, as the volcanic terrain limits farming and development, and seems sunken in compared to the higher elevations of the Rift and the towering Throat of the World.

Alto Wine is a common wine found across Skyrim. It is made from Jazbay grapes, which grow in the Aalto, and it was once considered treason to pick one of these grapes without express permission from the Emperor himself. Reven's Warrior mentions a privately owned vineyard in the Aalto, which produced wine. Alto Wine was at one point rare and extremely expensive, and the Emperor required the Elder Council's permission to have a glass of it once a year. Although growers in Skyrim were successful in improving the fruit's survivability, it came at the cost of flavor.

Gallery

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  Aalto circa 2E 582

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  Bonestrewn Crest atop the Aalto ca. 4E 201

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  The Atronach Stone

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  Shadowrend in a sulphur pool

Notes

• The location of the Aalto has been retconned slightly: in the original Warrior book shipped with The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, Jazbay Grapes were said to only be able to grow in the Aalto, everywhere else they wither and die. The Aalto was intially described as having been located in "north-central" Skyrim in a volcanic valley of glaciers, but The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim later retconned the regional placement where Jazbays grow to the volcanic tundra of Eastmarch.