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Sometimes you find yourself enjoying some aspect of exploring way more than you'd think you would. What are some things aside from the obvious cool finds that have made you stop and think, "Wow, that's just awesome!"
For me, it's seeing pics of a familiar location posted here on the forums. Knowing that I've never met anyone here in person, yet we've stood in the same rooms, or even interacted with the same objects.
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Knowing with almost certainly that you will be the last one to ever take a shit in that toilet.
Winning is temporary but looking cool is forever! Stay Fresh! | |
When I found a sticker that had been left by an explorer years prior, posted the sticker here, and received confirmation from the person who had left it, that was an almost magical moment for me. It was almost like an omen, verification that I was on the right trail by participating in this hobby.
I also once found an old financial record that had been used by (and contained the handwriting of) a man who had been murdered in that location decades earlier. Standing there photographing that book with his writing in it, in the site of his murder, with the partially-collapsed ceiling looming overhead gave me one of the spookiest feelings I have had in years.
I have since spent a fair amount of time learning about this man and his fight for social justice, a cause that he and a colleague gave their lives for. I consider them to be local heroes, and it is sad that more people in the area don't know about their sacrifice. Because I am still hoping to make something happen in regards to the financial book, I cannot provide any of the specifics right now, but once the situation is fully resolved one way or another, I plan to write about it.
If you have a problem, if no one else can help, and if you can find him, maybe you can hire... Tunnelrunner33! | |
Finding my first time capsule house. There are several posters on here who seem to find them fairly regularly and I always enjoy seeing their pictures and reading about the history they have uncovered. Prior to June, I'd been in many abandoned houses and although some contained cool artifacts, none would be considered a true time capsule. In June, I happened across an abandoned house on the way home from attending a race in Indiana so I made an impromptu stop. It turned out that absolutely everything had been left behind and most of it hadn't been messed with. Calendars, photo albums, toys, clothes, and furniture were all there. The best part was that the house provided me with enough information that I've been able to put together a pretty good history of the family although I still have a few loose ends to tie up. The house is in a very rural and very isolated part of Indiana and I've seen no signs that anyone other than animals has explored it.
https://www.flickr...tos/131085384@N06/ | |
Meeting so many awesome people.
On Sunday just gone I climbed up some rusty, bird poo encrusted ladders onto the roof attached to the incinerator chimney at an old RAF base and simply laid on my back in the sun, in total peace and quiet enjoying the sense of being all alone in the world. Moments like that do it for me.
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I got into exploring originally for photography purposes. I quickly lost interest in that, and got really into climbing. Today I don't even explore all that often, but the close friendships I've formed through this community are incredible. I have a crazy second family of explorers all over the country!
"You have brains in your head. You have feet in your shoes. You can steer yourself any direction you choose. You're on your own. And you know what you know. And YOU are the one who'll decide where to go..." -Dr. Suess | |
I always thought that urbexing alone is the best experience, and going with a group is only for safety. Lately I'm finding more joy in bringing random friends along who have never thought of going into an abandoned building (like 90% of the people) and seeing their eyes widen and jaws drop when they step inside a building. It's cool to give someone a completely new experience like that, and pretty much all of them seems to be more impressed by these buildings than they expected.
On the last explore, an unplanned one during a regular holiday ("hey I know this building nearby, let's check it out!") I was with a friend and his girlfriend. My friend had joined me on explores before but for his girl it was the first time. I was thinking; ok, it's a girl, she's probably gonna go "ewww nasty, this is unsafe" and all and we'll have to comfort her the whole explore through. Once she set foot inside she turned into a female version of Indiana Jones and we were walking behind her like little dogs. She was checking out every corner of the building, climbing shit I'd have second thoughts about, all wide eyed and I heard a thousand "Wow this is so cool!"'s. It literally filled my heart with joy!
[last edit 8/14/2015 2:28 PM by sirpsychosexy - edited 1 times]
www.basdemos.com | |
Posted by sirpsychosexy
and seeing their eyes widen and jaws drop when they step inside a building.
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Really brings back memories of your first exploration, eh?
"Sorry, I didn't know I'm not supposed to be here," he said, knowing full well he wasn't supposed to be there.
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Doing stupid stuff and taking bad pictures to try and impress you folks.....
....SOMEONE PLEASE BE MY FRIEND!?!?
"I'm just not set up to mold hard rubber..." | |
The smells. It was something I never really thought about and something photos and video cannot express. My first building was over 100 years old. I'm sure it had been remodeled dozens of times, but the place SMELLED OLD. It wasn't a good smell or a bad smell, but it was an unmistakable aroma of age.
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Posted by WhiskeyPapa
The smells. It was something I never really thought about and something photos and video cannot express. My first building was over 100 years old. I'm sure it had been remodeled dozens of times, but the place SMELLED OLD. It wasn't a good smell or a bad smell, but it was an unmistakable aroma of age.
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That old building smell is very distinctive. If the place is not sealed up I can usually smell it well before entering. It always brings me back to my first explore.
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When you drive by abandoned stuff with non-explorers, and they say "I wonder what it looks like in there" and you pull up your flickr and say "here".
https://www.flickr...62837453@N07/sets/
http://www.tfpnj.blogspot.com | |
Posted by WhiskeyPapa
The smells. It was something I never really thought about and something photos and video cannot express. My first building was over 100 years old. I'm sure it had been remodeled dozens of times, but the place SMELLED OLD. It wasn't a good smell or a bad smell, but it was an unmistakable aroma of age.
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In my minds eye is a crystal clear memory of what my first ever steps into an abandoned building felt like, looked like, smelt like. I can still picture myself climbing through that window now and looking up a hallway like it was yesterday, one of those life-defining moments for me.
I too love taking people on their first explores, introducing them to a whole new experience. One of my best explore partnerships has come from a chance encounter on Facebook a year ago.
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I was looking for adventure and had no idea I'd meet so many wonderful people.
they call me the hyacinth girl | |
*always have an excuse to travel to different countries. I would have probably zero interest to travel if i wouldnt find out there are so much to explore abroad, too. Vacation plans, yeah, these are sorted, too.
*working in a place where are people who has "an itch" for urban exploring, too.
*it's incredibly easy to sort out romantic relationships - if i meet a guy who is less adventurous than me and does nothing related with UE, than he cannot be a partner. So simple!
*students finds me as an subject of their ue-related thesis.
*making promises for myself and it works when it's related of UE. Of course, there are some other things that moves me to live (books,friends,family) but UE is the most "pushing" one. God, i'm soooo lazy and not motivated!
*learning new languages! That, yeah, that magical moment when you find out an interesting photography with explanation that you're not able to understand so you open a dictionary and try to understand meaning...ha! Magic! And then you add lithuanian and russian explorers on Facebook so you really can learn basic phrases.
*not being concerned about stereotipically feminine appearance. When i was 14 / 15 , i weared high-heel shoes day-to-day. Then i discovered it's not comfy for exploring and walking in general. So fuck that. Only when there are special occasions such torture is appreciated.
*I can remember better specific childhood memories when i see real sticker of Spice girls chewing gum, floppy disks, ice-cream package and so on.
there are a lot more things! etc etc etc 
[last edit 8/19/2015 4:23 PM by telefontubbie - edited 1 times]
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An unexpected joy is to find a calendar or something that dates when the place was last in use. "wow, 1982? It looks like they closed up one day 33 years ago and never came back".
Honest, I was just looking. www.urbexmag.com | |
Sometimes I feel a connection to people who are long dead. Not in a morbid sense, but rather in a historic sense. Seeing someone's handwriting that most likely died before I was born (and that was a LONG time ago). In some way, seeing his handwriting means that the unknown miner still lives if only through this one tag. Will I leave any reminders that will be around 100 years from now?
Other times it's the satisfaction of repelling into a shaft, not knowing what's down there and whether I'll have to climb 100' back up the rope to get out. (and yes we did)
I'm often struck that we might be the last humans to see an area before it's lost forever.
A lot of people I talk to just shake their head at me, but the UE family understands completely. Thanks for making me feel a bit less crazy.
Abby Almost Normal
"Government is not a solution to our problem, government is the problem." Ronald Reagan | |
Posted by PreacherLA
An unexpected joy is to find a calendar or something that dates when the place was last in use. "wow, 1982? It looks like they closed up one day 33 years ago and never came back".
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Yeah I love calendars as well.
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Posted by KD20
Finding my first time capsule house. There are several posters on here who seem to find them fairly regularly and I always enjoy seeing their pictures and reading about the history they have uncovered. Prior to June, I'd been in many abandoned houses and although some contained cool artifacts, none would be considered a true time capsule. In June, I happened across an abandoned house on the way home from attending a race in Indiana so I made an impromptu stop. It turned out that absolutely everything had been left behind and most of it hadn't been messed with. Calendars, photo albums, toys, clothes, and furniture were all there. The best part was that the house provided me with enough information that I've been able to put together a pretty good history of the family although I still have a few loose ends to tie up. The house is in a very rural and very isolated part of Indiana and I've seen no signs that anyone other than animals has explored it.
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While I'm not a big fan of exploring homes (makes me kind of sad), it is cool that you found this place. My first "explore" of a house was crazy: my sister and I were in summer classes at college and we parked on this street across from campus so we didn't have to pay; just on a whim we go in the abandoned house that has been sitting empty for years, got to class and come back to our car and the house had been bulldozed. WTF? There was no sign of construction or anything when we got there.
You betcha | |
Slipping under fences makes you feel good about being built like a razor blade.
https://www.flickr...otos/technomancer/
“I will accept any rules that you feel necessary to your freedom. I am free, no matter what rules surround me. If I find them tolerable, I tolerate them; if I find them too obnoxious, I break them. I am free because I know that I alone am morally responsible for everything I do.” |
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