This last Saturday I helped my local photography group get something off their bucket list... a trip to beautiful Gary, Indiana. There were strict limits set, but everyone adhered to all the safety, social media, and other requirements.

Having taken photos at each of these locations multiple times before, it was refreshing to hear people's take on each place. I made it a point to talk to ever member participating, and all of them said the church alone was worth the trip. It's amazing how jaded I've become. ;)

Anyway, here are my shots from the day. Enjoy.

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Then we headed on over to one of the high schools.

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Then we headed to ANOTHER high school.

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The group was pretty tired by the third location. They were kind of waffling on the last one. I quoted R&M to the group. 20 minute adventure. In and out.

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It was a solid day. The group really enjoyed the opportunity to shoot something drastically different for once. 10/10 perfect day.

BONUS: Urban Exploration? More like Urban SEXploration!

Nice! Was this a “legal” tour? Examples of the strict rules?

I don't know if I've ever seen such perfect decay. Absolutely stunning photography and locations

Posted by rob.i.am Nice! Was this a “legal” tour? Examples of the strict rules?

We had a few in place, one of which was an established membership requirement. Everyone that went was known within the group. We had a participant cap to keep the group number low.

Participants were not told about the locations until we arrived. This helped us weed out the one potential bad actor.

Respirators, jeans, solid footwear, and adherence to our various safety rules such as no tunnels, basements, or roofs were mandatory. Each participant had to have a buddy. The safety word was "banana banana."

We also had a social media blackout and no photographing other members rule.

As for the "legal" part of your question, my counsel has advised me not to say anything more.

Posted by Trout na bout I don't know if I've ever seen such perfect decay. Absolutely stunning photography and locations

Thank you. I hope you can make it to Gary some day to see for yourself.

Christ, I remember seeing that room in #14 almost free from graffiti on my visit there.

JennyUE and I explored the building in #24 in September 2018. She dubbed it "Loading Dock." It was what I like, industrial and decayed and overgrown. But Gary is creepy and it made us freaky, so we limited ourselves to 30 minutes and no tripod. Here are my least bad pictures; maybe someone with more nerve will do this place justice.


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3. Stalactites on the underside of a reinforced cement beam. Is this a mineral leaching out of the cement? I've seen this once before, but that time the object was some type of iron or steel.


4. Scaling surface indicates water-damaged reinforced cement, according to someone on a different explore with a construction background. He said to check the undersides of stairways for this symptom of a weakening structure.


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I think these are some of the best Gary shots I have seen in a while. So refreshing not to see an explorer pose in an abandonment. Of course, on your sofa is allowed.