The Bight was the first rooftop that I ever infiltrated. I think that it was probably the location that got me interested in urbex in the first place. I must have been just 16 years old when I first climbed the stairs up from its public 6th floor to the clandestine 7th floor, where the Human Resources department deviously plot their next moves in secrecy.
Ever since then it has remained my favourite rooftop. Though many have surpassed it in height, difficulty of entry, and overall quality, nothing beats the historic charms and sweeping views of The Bight. Even in the snow it has a certain something about it that draws me back every time. On the street below many would say that they feel entranced by the beating heart of the city, but it's up here that I really feel like I can watch it breath, the noise of the street a distant echo but the peaks of the buildings around still stretching ever higher.
Over the years since I first alighted on the roof of The Bight, there have been multiple construction projects around it, and the skyline has morphed and grown. And I have sat here, on the roof, growing up with my city.
On this particularly snowy Sunday afternoon, I took my usual route through the Human Resources department, out the unlocked door past the "smoke away from the door" sign out onto the roof.
It was quiet. The kind of quiet that you only get in the winter time. My father calls it Snow Silence, and I'd be hard pressed to find a more apt name.
The faint echo of the street below could be heard as my feet crunched through the fresh powder up the metal staircase. I noticed some tracks leading to the fire escape, the other (less appealing and less reliable) route up here. They looked fresh. I was a little on edge, and kept my eye out for any maintenance personnel who might berate me for disrupting their service of the elevator motors.
As per usual, I arrived at the top of the staircase and took a look around. I always try to ascend with haste, as I figure that if I'm going to get caught up here, it's probably going to be while I'm on that staircase and in view of the section below, where I suspect the majority of maintenance work gets done based on the industrial appliances there situated. Just a quick snap from the top of the staircase before moving on.
https://youtu.be/GiQxxZG9_6g The roof is peppered with these small cube-ish brick room structures. One of them has the logo of The Bight on it. I've been inside them before, but unfortunately I didn't get pictures and they have all since been locked.
There's a strange chimney structure secured by cables to the roof. I've always wondered what it does, since I've never seen any other similar structures on roofs before and it doesn't seem to let out any smoke or steam. Perhaps it's just for decoration, or it's an Easter Egg for explorers like me.
Looking past the church, you can usually see a grand view of the lower mainland. Today however, a thick blanket of snow and cloud obstructs that view. I suppose the pristine frosted rooftops are worth it though.
https://youtu.be/CoSnZahBsuA This is the only time I've ever seen the Reading Coliseum dusted with snow. Reminiscent of the dust on its ancient tomes, I suppose.
The steam from this neighbouring building billowed up like it was about to leave the station. Maybe the weird chimney structure does this if you whisper "all aboard" three times to it.
The snow rolled in from the water, encroaching on the Harbour Centre. I really liked how the Centre's peak pierced the clouds. Almost looks like it's stepping out from behind a curtain of fog.
Just as I was completing my usual tour of the upper rooftop, I saw a group of 3 on the lower rooftop.
I tend to stay away from the lower rooftop these days. I used to go there, and sometimes still do, but in my younger years I realized that the offices of The Bight Human Resources had windows that looked right out there. And while there is a slightly different view on the lower rooftop, most everything can be seen from the upper rooftop. So of course I avoid my potential detection by HR.
I watched them for probably 2 minutes without them noticing me. They were photographers, or at least I figured they were from their DSLR cameras. Looked to be in their mid to late teens, sporting trendy Canada Goose jackets and jeans with holes in the knees (in the snow!).
Eventually, one of them spotted me. I was just standing there, watching them, so he waved to me. I waved back. He said "Are you taking photos?" I said "yeah". They started to pack up, so I figured that, having spooked them, I should introduce myself properly like a normal friendly person.
I walked down to the lower rooftop and met them. I was right. They all looked to be about 16 or 17. The guy who has waved to me was named Hubo. His friends were Razel and Dmitri. The first thing that they asked me was if I had an instagram, which surprised me a little, since I'm personally into urbex mainly for the exploration and not the photography (to each their own, though). I told them that I had an instagram but it wasn't an urbex instagram, it was just my personal one. They asked if this was my first time coming up here and I told them that I'd been coming up here for years. We started walking back together and since I mentioned that I was going to try some more rooftops they asked if they could tag along. I said that would be fine.
Exiting the roof my way requires passing through Human Resources again. I have bumped into HR employees several times doing this, but never have I had a problem, for acting like I belong usually does the trick. This time, there was an employee who walked towards us. I gave her a quick wave and pulled out my phone to "busy myself". She was an old woman in a dark blazer; never a good sign. She said "Hello", and I gave a quick "Hi" without looking up before walking briskly past her and picking up my pace. Her tone made me nervous. It was the tone of an inquisitive authority: exactly what I try to avoid.
The others did not do as I did. They froze. One gave a nervous "hello" back and continued talking to the woman. I did not look back, but I could tell that she was about to grill them. "Are you with The Bight?" she asked. At that moment I made the decision to scram. I didn't feel good about it, but leaving those kids behind was the only way I was going to make it out, since they clearly were being held up by the woman.
I turned the corner and, out of sight, started running. I slowed my pace when I reached the stairs so as not to attract too much attention, and speedwalked through The Bight's public areas until I reached a safe zone. I looped back and tried to find them, but without having exchanged any contact information, I was unable to reconnect with that group.
Hubo, Razel, and Dmitri, if you're reading this I am sorry I had to leave you behind, but I couldn't risk getting caught myself. I'm a flighter, not a fighter, and my amygdala called the shots on this one.
I think that photography is increasingly becoming the motivation for urban exploration. I know that personally I have had trouble finding friends to explore with unless they were photographers. I suppose that today, exploring for the sake of exploring has perhaps a slightly negative connotation to it, like we're loners looking for a place to be alone, while exploring for the sake of photography has a more positive connotation, implying a level of artistry and creativity. So it's probably easier to get friends involved via photography than via a "sense of adventure". Nevertheless I continue to explore for the sport of it, and take pictures and video as proof of my achievements more than anything.
A few months after these pictures were taken, I went back up to take some pictures with a friend. We noticed that one of the two ways up (that I know of) was blockaded entirely by a newly alarmed door, and that the other route was being renovated. I haven't been up since the summer of 2017, but I am fearful that my beloved first rooftop is no longer accessible.
Below is my favourite photo from The Bight. So beautiful up there on a sunny day. It was taken on the 1st of April, 2016.
I've uploaded below a few more photos from my many previous trips to the roof of The Bight. Lots of memories up there.
P.S. I'm looking to work towards Full Membership. If any of the mods or users around here have any tips for me that'd be appreciated. I'm just trying to build up enough of a corpus of posts here first, but I'm not sure how much is enough to apply successfully.
