Routes 16, 17, and 18 are known as “Cycling Road” due to it’s popularity among bikers and cyclists. Many of those you might find on Cycling Road also happen to be trainers and you’ll have to fight your way towards Celadon City. One thing of note is that it is an uphill route so you must always have the up direction pressed otherwise your character will automatically ride south. This becomes tricky when you are trying to avoid trainers along the way. I made my way along doing pretty okay– most trainers were a breeze due to my over-leveled Blastoise. Once I got the the end of Route 18, I went through the building to Celadon City. What I didn’t realize was that there was another Snorlax blocking my path and I’d have to use the Pokeflute to make him wake up. One problem: I deposited the Pokeflute into my PC back in Fuchsia City so I’d have to ride all the way back to get it. I did that, woke up the Snorlax and made quick work of him (since I already caught one earlier) and made my way into Celadon City. Once there, I healed up and continued to make my way towards Route 9 and the Power Plant.

Power Plant

In order to get to the Power Plant, I needed to use my new Surf ability. Once exiting the Rock Tunnel, I made my way a bit north so I could have access to the river that ran east/south. I hopped on Blastoise and made my way around and jumped off when the Power Plant was in sight. My one goal here was to catch Zapdos and boy was that difficult. It is recommended that you decrease his health as well as put him to sleep in order to catch him. Also, you need to use an Ultra Ball or better to have a fighting chance. My one issue was that I didn’t really have a well-rounded team to do all of these things. Once I made my way through the Power Plant, I saved and made my first attempt at catching Zapdos. After throwing 10 Ultra Balls (all saying I missed the Pokemon), I gave up and re-loaded my game. I went through my current team and realized that Weepinbell did have Sleep Powder, but was severely under-leveled (level 25). My plan was to put Weepinbell first in my party, encounter Zapdos, put him to sleep, switch to Blastoise, weaken Zapdos and then catch him. Well, my plan went perfectly and Zapdos was caught after 3 Ultra Balls. I made my way out of the Power Plant and skedaddled towards my next stop: Routes 19 and 20 (which are accessed by heading back to Fuchsia City). On the swim towards Seafoam Island, I avoided as many trainers as possible– my Blastoise is way over leveled and I did not need the experience. Once I hit Seafoam Island, I made sure my team was ready and entered the Seafoam Island cave/dungeon.

Seafoam Island

The Seafoam Islands are a mysterious and challenging location situated between Cinnabar Island and Fuchsia City. This sprawling cave system is nestled within a pair of islands in the middle of the sea, accessible only by navigating the treacherous waters of Route 20. The islands are characterized by their intricate network of icy caverns and powerful ocean currents, creating a maze-like environment filled with puzzles and obstacles. Wild Pokémon inhabiting the Seafoam Islands are primarily Ice and Water types, such as Seel, Dewgong, and Psyduck. The most notable resident of these islands is the legendary bird Articuno, which resides deep within the caves. To reach Articuno, I had to navigate a complex maze of pushing boulders into holes, dropping down through those holes and using Surf to make my way along the underground sea. I won’t outline the step-by-step on how to solve the puzzle, but I used a guide from GameFAQs that was super helpful. Once I got to Articuno, I had the same plan as for when I caught Zapdos– move Weepinbell to the front to induce Sleep and then use Blastoise’s water moves to weaken Articuno enough to catch him. I made sure to save beforehand and went right to it. I did not have to reset as things went according to plan– it took 4 Ultra Balls to catch Articuno and then I was on my way. Next stop: Cinnabar Island!

Cinnabar Island

Cinnabar Island is a small, yet vibrant island located off the southern coast of the Kanto region, accessible via Route 21 from Pallet Town and Route 20 from the Seafoam Islands. Aside from fighting Blaine for the Volcano Badge, there are a variety of things to do here. First up is the Pokemon Lab which is situated on the northern side of the island. Trainers can visit the lab to resurrect ancient Pokémon from fossils. The lab is divided into multiple rooms, each dedicated to different research projects, such as Pokémon cloning and fossil restoration. It was here that I dropped off my fossil from Mt. Moon and the Old Amber. The scientist tells you to “go for a walk” before resurrection is complete– all you have to do is leave the building and come back. After the lab, there is Pokemon Mansion. Since the Cinnabar Gym is currently locked, you need to go through the mansion to get the Secret Key. I again used a walkthrough from GameFAQs to figure out where to go for the key. I also took some time to catch a Grimer and Muk as they are Blue exclusives. There was also a Magmar I could have caught, but I decided to go back later since I spent quite a bit of time not finding one. Armed with the Secret Key, I made my way to Cinnabar Gym.

Cinnabar Gym

Cinnabar Gym is renowned for its intense heat and fiery challenges, as it specializes in Fire-type Pokémon. In order to get to gym leader Blaine, you must either answer trivia questions about Pokémon to bypass trainers, or just fight the trainers. I decided to brute force my way through things and fought all of the trainers to get to Blaine. Blaine was not difficult as his fire-type were no match for my now level 52 Blastoise. In just a few short minutes, I had my seventh badge and TM 38 (Fire Blast). Also with the Volcano Badge, my Pokémon’s special attacks are boosted. After beating Blaine, I healed up and headed back to Pokémon Mansion to eventually capture a Magmar before moving on to Viridian City to take on Giovanni again.

Generation I Living Dex Percentage: 37.75%
Generation I Living Dex Count: 56/151
National Living Dex Percentage: 8.78%
Played Time: 15 hours and 55 minutes