I thought I would never go alone, but I really felt like going yesterday, and I'd already been to the place twice with other people, so I went for it. I told a friend about it and texted her the whole time so she would know if something was up if I didn't get back to her, and I brought a first aid kit.
It was nice being in control of where and when I went anywhere and being able to do funny shots of myself without caring about other people. Plus, it was very pleasant being completely alone like that. I tend to be less easily scared than most though, and I can definitely see how people could freak themselves out about that sort of thing, plus, the location was very safe.

Here's the funny shot I probably wouldn't have taken if I hadn't been alone.

Hahahaha, that shot rules, bro!

This whole exploring alone thing is frustrating for me. I really want to give it a try but when I'm on my own I just get super sketched out, whether its getting caught or running into a crazy hobo. I have a friend who I regularly go with and when I'm with him all those worries I have completely go away. Because of that I only explore with him. It is safer to explore with someone so I just keep exploring for when I'm with him but still there are so many places ive seen on my own but I'm too chicken to go in myself. Hopefully one day...

I explore alone 90% of the time. I take so many photos and I'm often conscious of people getting frustrated with how long I take, if I need time to get a shot right or whatever. Even if they're fine with it, it's on the back of my mind and I find that I don't take my best pictures when I'm exploring with people. Also, exploring with people has tragically backfired in the past in regards to ethics. At least I can trust myself! However there are a couple of people who I do explore with from time to time, and they always contribute something from their skill set so it's always beneficial to re-explore a place, once alone and once with a friend.

I like going with my greatest tool, Eagleye888. If there's no Eagleye, then I've got two more very trustworthy friends I can count on. Usually though, anymore than one other without my Eagle and I get a weird feeling, like that someone from the group SHOULD be him, but they're not.

Always up to exploring alone or trying places with different numbers/explorers, but Eagle and I have a good understanding between the two of us. Like, what story to feed the cops, for a recent example.

Think across the pond exploring yourself isn't as risky as for you guys. Done a lot of solo trips. Both have their pus and minus sides means you can set your own pace and take time for your stuff. Other-side of the coin is you have to be more aware of the surroundings you are in and what the issues maybe ! owners, pikey's, security, police !. Always a good move Like mountaineering or hiking to let someone know where and when you will be finished text them, when your out

Posted by pincheck Think across the pond exploring yourself isn't as risky as for you guys. Done a lot of solo trips. Both have their pus and minus sides means you can set your own pace and take time for your stuff. Other-side of the coin is you have to be more aware of the surroundings you are in and what the issues maybe ! owners, pikey's, security, police !. Always a good move Like mountaineering or hiking to let someone know where and when you will be finished text them, when your out

Yes, well... some these posts make me cringe.
Solo is as dangerous as you make it.
-You are in complete control- As stealth as it gets and completely responsible for the outcome.

Sooner or later you will face a survival struggle alone. We all do even if it's the last breathe you take; we all die alone.
Self sufficiently the most important of the survival skills. It's learned by doing.
You'll never learn it depending on others, relying on a smart phone or GPS. Sometimes you are the only one who can save yourself even in a group of people. The sound of talking can travel far and conversation is a distraction even if it gives you a sense of security.
Water, a knife and a walking stick, bush hat etc are survival items/tools, a cell phone less so... someone I'm texting, not at all. That's a distraction.

I deliberately and rarely tell anyone where I'm going... that has included bunkers where there is no cell service. Done more than one night desert hikes were there's no cell service.
So what? You learn to be more alert and careful, to not take risks that serve no purpose, and to limit risks even if you have to walk slower or extra klicks to do so. You learn to know when to hunker down and rest rather than heat stroking out when you unexpectedly get sick while in the midday heat of the desert. You learn not to force yourself to the point of unrecoverable exhaustion because no one will save you.
Thinking a call for rescue will save you is a poor substitute for avoiding the need altogether. You need to learn and know your limits even if help is 20 minutes out and many times it's far longer if you can summon it at all.

Even in crowds I would trade a group for fluidity and the ability to act as the situation dictates. You are your own worst threat.
A partner or a text isn't going to keep you from stepping into a hellhole or causing a structural collapse many times although your fubar may drag them along for the ride.

Alone or in a group, be mindful of every step you take or structural objects you touch.
Falls and structural collapses are your #1 threat when urban exploring!

I bring a teddy bear as my coping mechanism in case I get scared.


In all seriousness, always bring a buddy when exploring. You don't know what may happen: unstable structures, falling objects, getting chased by police officers. If the latter does happen, make sure you can run faster than your buddy.

Posted by kasperatl If the latter does happen, make sure you can run faster than your buddy.

I personally like to flip a coin before hand to figure out who runs and who holds the door. White Walkers are one of the biggest dangers we face as explorers, you know.

Posted by kasperatl In all seriousness, always bring a buddy when exploring. You don't know what may happen: unstable structures, falling objects, getting chased by police officers. If the latter does happen, make sure you can run faster than your buddy.

A buddy won't saved you from your own actions.
Many times results are final. More than one UER member has died as a result of a UE related accident.

Run from guards, not cops... unless your willing to explore the possibility of felony evading/resisting arrest charges.
If in a group and you insist on running from the cops, split up don't clump up.

Posted by blackhawk Thinking a call for rescue will save you is a poor substitute for avoiding the need altogether. You need to learn and know your limits even if help is 20 minutes out and many times it's far longer if you can summon it at all. Even in crowds I would trade a group for fluidity and the ability to act as the situation dictates. You are your own worst threat. Alone or in a group, be mindful of every step you take or structural objects you touch. Falls and structural collapses are your #1 threat when urban exploring!

I have never explored with someone else. mainly because I don't know anyone who will go with me. I am a 39 yr old female. I carry a big knife and pepper spray for protection. But its not so much people I worry about, but structures. Being alone, If a place looks too unstable, I don't go. I don't necessarily know if I'd be safer with another person or not. I think I'm sneakier alone. hehe.

Posted by xraychick I have never explored with someone else. mainly because I don't know anyone who will go with me. I am a 39 yr old female. I carry a big knife and pepper spray for protection. But its not so much people I worry about, but structures. Being alone, If a place looks too unstable, I don't go. I don't necessarily know if I'd be safer with another person or not. I think I'm sneakier alone. hehe.

Being a female is a valid reason for wanting a partner or group I think. Like a male it all depends how you carry/present yourself and what you're capable of when it comes to dealing with strangers.
Being female though generally is seen as a softer target or target of choice by many predators.

I've noticed more than one of my past girlfriends would deliberately make contact with strangers while I would have preferred avoiding or delaying contact.
Distance buys you time to think; a combat tactic.
They seemed to want to diffuse the situation by walking up to the strangers and being friendly. That's not what I consider street smart. It still puts a chill down my spine thinking about it.

As for everything else, survival skills are learned best by learning to depend on yourself. It means understanding your own limitations and not exceeding them. Controlling the risks by choosing your options wisely as they arise.
Going into a building that is unstable isn't worth a broken leg and so on. On this level far too many have a false sense of security in a group. The added distraction of others can be dangerous. More than one explorer has died while with a partner.

When moving you need to be focused on where your next step or handhold will be and any additional resources need to be used to take in everything else especially the visual and sounds.
Not chatting, texting, etc...
The more distractions, the faster you move, the more your vision and perception tunnel; the less aware you are of your surroundings.

Awareness to the ever changing real time picture combined with crystal knowledge and training acquired over time, then reacting appropriately is what creates survivability.

Posted by blackhawk I've noticed more than one of my past girlfriends would deliberately make contact with strangers while I would have preferred avoiding or delaying contact. Distance buys you time to think; a combat tactic. They seemed to want to diffuse the situation by walking up to the strangers and being friendly. That's not what I consider street smart. It still puts a chill down my spine thinking about it.

I think it's really quite situational. While you do have a point about distance, refusing to make contact leaves you looking over your shoulder the entire time if contact is avoidable, or leaving the abandonment entirely if it is not.

However, making contact allows you to possibly clear up any concerns, because if you know they are friendly you don't have to be so worried. Not that I'm advocating blind trust of course, but you wouldn't need to focus on hiding your presence.

Plus, look at it from their point of view. They might know there is a stranger in the abandonment with them. However, that stranger has been stalking from a distance. They don't know your motivation or intent, so it could cause them to preemptively attack you, especially if they've set up a squat in the area and are defending their home.

Of course, I don't advocate making contact unless you are doing so from a position of power. For example, staying out of lunging/grasping reach, being aware of potential weapons and exits, having a friend out of sight in case things go south, and being prepared to fight are all steps I would recommend before making contact. I personally have gone as far as loudly announcing my presence and intentions due to the strong possibility of contact with homeless people, in order to avoid startling them and escalating the situation.

All in all, it's very situational, and I think using your judgement based on your threat assessments, resources at hand, and impression of the person is the best way to go. Average Joe? Contact might be worth a shot. Junkie? Not a chance.

I am like your old gfs..if I see someone, I like to make contact. Unless I get that bad vibe about them. Then I just walk away. I've have ran up on a crackhead smoking a pipe once. He just looked at me, and I turned around and hurried out of there. I talk to people at locations, most that I've run into are skater kids just skating. I've been lucky so far I haven't run up any really bad people. so far...

Posted by Aran I personally have gone as far as loudly announcing my presence and intentions due to the strong possibility of contact with homeless people, in order to avoid startling them and escalating the situation.

I've done this too..I yell; hello anyone in here? just looking around! so far I haven't gotten any responses.

Posted by xraychick I've done this too..I yell; hello anyone in here? just looking around! so far I haven't gotten any responses.

There's no point to making contact unless forced to do so -except- if the person is interesting.
If not interesting it's to my advantage if they leave. Anyone who covers a 100 yards to "talk" to you is trouble. Why do it for them?
Silence gives no information and can be intimidating... let them eat silence.
Many times even when I do make contact it's just a nod of recognition.
Each situation is different. Muggers will sometimes make contact to size you up and may ask for change, a cig or light, if so it's a bad move to give it to them.

Stealth is your greatest asset. I don't give that up easily.
I want to smell, hear, or see the other person first. More than once I watch as people past within yards or even feet of me unaware I was there. In a large complex you may never see them again.
Occasionally I have intentionally scared off kids and tourists inside tunnels and buildings. More than one way to skin a cat.

I have yet to find anyone willing to go with me.

I am not too worried about things, the worst thing I face is my own imagination when passing that dark doorway, or turning a corner. I would be curious to track heart rate during an explore.

With my job I am confident in my ability to evaluate the safety of structural elements. I adhere to my rule that I use at work, always look up before you go up.

There are times that I would like to have someone join me, but mostly I look at it as a solitary hobby for a solitary person.

Posted by blackhawk There's no point to making contact unless forced to do so -except- if the person is interesting.

I don't think that's the case where homeless people are involved, because you are essentially walking into their home. To me, at least, it's a good idea to offer them the courtesy of announcing your presence in order to avoid confrontation. In addition, they may have information on potential hazards or points of interest that you don't have.

I myself prefer to cautiously make contact and give people the benefit of the doubt, but I explore in urban environments, where I don't have to run far in order to reach a public place or draw a bystander's attention if necessary. In a rural environment or other situation where help far away, my approach would probably change.

Blackhawk, I get the impression that you explore fairly secluded locations, not the kind of stuff near main roads and city centers. In those cases, your approach probably has more merit, since it would be unusual for your average homeless person to live far away from the city or the bus lines.

So, like everything in urban exploration, I suppose we'll have to leave the question of contact to personal preference and situational analysis.

Posted by blackhawk Being a female is a valid reason for wanting a partner or group I think. Like a male it all depends how you carry/present yourself and what you're capable of when it comes to dealing with strangers. Being female though generally is seen as a softer target or target of choice by many predators. I've noticed more than one of my past girlfriends would deliberately make contact with strangers while I would have preferred avoiding or delaying contact. Distance buys you time to think; a combat tactic. They seemed to want to diffuse the situation by walking up to the strangers and being friendly. That's not what I consider street smart. It still puts a chill down my spine thinking about it.

This takes me back to to a Social Psych concept I learned in college. Wiki explains the theory pretty well:


"Tend-and-befriend is a behavior exhibited by some animals, including humans, in response to threat. It refers to protection of offspring and seeking out the social group for mutual defense. Tend-and-befriend is theorized as having evolved as the typical female response to stress, just as the primary male response was fight-or-flight. The tend-and-befriend theoretical model was originally developed by Dr. Shelley E. Taylor and her research team at the University of California, Los Angeles and first described in a Psychological Review article published in the year 2000."


Someone earlier had also said something about not seeing humans as the greatest threat, but the structure itself as the primary threat. I tend to have the opposite feelings regarding my exploring concerns. I consider people to be my greatest threat (closely followed by animals, reptiles, and insects - especially on rural explores), more often than the structure. I'm female and I do think this is partly why my threat assessment differs from a lot of others. If I'm in a really rough part of town and I'm a female, alone, with expensive camera gear in my possession, armed with nothing but mace, I almost feel like I'm just begging for trouble, more so than if I was a guy. I feel as though I'm playing some kind of urban Russian roulette. This is my greatest incentive to exploring with others. I frequently put off a location until I can find a friend, usually a male friend, to go with me for this reason. The fact of the matter is, I'm a much more alluring target than my male counterpart.

It sucks, but that's just how it is.

EDIT: clipped Blackhawk's quote to include only the portion relevant to this comment.

Posted by NeuroticMatt I have yet to find anyone willing to go with me.

What region are you located in Texas? If you're in or near the DFW area, perhaps we could work on this.