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Urban Exploration is something I've been reasing up on and I would love to hear what others think about the subject.

Urban Exploration is the Exploration of Abandoned places, Old closed Cemeteriesm, Ghost hunting, and even exploring places like sewers and tunnels. In most cases it requires the Explorer to trespass onto properties. However many have adopted the moral code, "Take only Pictures, leave only footprints." This can also be a very dangerous hobby and possibly one that can grow expensive if continually caught by the police.

Is anyone here an Urban explorer?

Here in St. Paul, you can get permits to explore the old tunnels under the city, if you have someone else with you who's been exploring them for a few years.

I've never done it...

That's cool that you can explore the tunnels under St. Paul!!! that'd be interesting! ~grins~

That's not exactly the same thing from what I understand. apparently it isn't as much fun when you have permission. lol

There are some really amazing sites out there that have awesome photos of Abandoned buildings.

They range from old borken up cars to empty hospitals. It all depends on where you get your kicks I suppose.

Here are some of those sites for those interested.

http://www.abandonedbutnotforgotten.com/index.htm
http://www.infiltration.org/resources-pennsylvania.html
http://urbanexplorers.net/

I know alot of people have been caught in Chernobyl over the years....

Sounds like a good old fashioned adventure to me.

Though breaking the law does'nt sound so smart.

This would be something that I would have great interest in. I love exploring abandon places, like ghost towns and old sanitariums. But I would first get permission from the land owner first, would not want to do the tresspassing thing.

i personally am not an urban explorer, however, i think the concept is very interesting. some things just...deserve to be photographed. i think, though, that you should Completely make sure the place youre exploring is abandoned though. as trespassing isn't a good thing at all.

Welcome to Detroit the Land of Abandon

This sounds something like the grave robbers of American Indians. People are still doing this today. Stealing bodies from graves and put them on display in museums.
This is wrong

whoa, sounds like something i wanna be a part of, i never even thought about it until i read this....

might have to look more into it and go off on adventures :)

Some cities have tours of old sections of the town or city...but going at it alone would be more fun...but you should still have a plan...if you do it.

This sounds awesome! People think of exploration as in ancient ruins, Egypts pyramids, and places like that. Just imagine the findings from such mundane places as a sewer line!?

If you watch the TV show...Cities of the Underworld on the History Channel...you will find there are tons of places in major cities...that are underground.

About your urban exploration I do that I find to be fun & intresting to do.

I say this because you never know what you might find.

And those are some lovely sites thanks for posting them.

Crimsondemon,
This is NOTHING like grave robbing as the morals of the explorers are to TAKE NOTHING.

"take only pictures, leave only footprints."

And the bodies in the museums are DONATED.

There are a few groups in my area that do it. Unfortunately becuase of a few vandals and shit heads ecerything is pretty much posted now so if you explore you get arrested for tresspassing.

I say that the people who act stupid are what make it so hard for us to discover things that now we can't because of them.

Plymouth England has lots of underground rail passages from the war…. Due to heavy bombing from the germens on our city, we used to have amo dumps on the moors and those passages run all the way into the city , out side the city even the coast… huge smugglers places too… abandoned forts and castles… ye him surprised I never died looking for air pockets in a half submerged castle in a river that changed it’s path over the century from development … yeh rats were an issue too.
Ok if you see mice as they don’t live near rats… as soon as the mice disappear we new what was coming.

That would be most intresting to explore when I have a chance to visit over there.
Thanks lavisbre.

We have abandoned subways under neath a large portion of of the down town area. The shit heads I was referring to went down ther eand began assualting homeless people with air pistols and abusing them. Total idiots. W e also had an abandoned hospital that people kept starting on fire, so they tore it down.

Thank you tego can you find a link so we can read on about the hospital.

we love to explore different things here in Missouri from the caves to the Underground tunnels left behind from the civil war and the freedom train for the slaves to travel safely from one place to another there are alot of interesting finds when you do this.. :) sometimes even scary LOL I love the feel of Fear to push myself to that limit ...of what is too much fear or dangerous.. :)

I think the abandoned subways would be one of the more interesting places to see. The hosiptals are just plan creepy. The beds left to rot and the curtains still hanging...very spooky if you ask me!

I agree on the abandoned Hospitals that would be just too freaky for me and make me think of worlds end or like the living dead LOL just ewww scary for will and creepy.

The subways sound like they would be very intersting to check out.

That would be the adventure though.

it sounds like fun, i think i will look around and see if i can ind out anything around my area about it.

That is a good idea angel I will to.

The thing mostly about Urban exploration is that there really aren't groups or organizations for it, you know?
Mostly from what I've seen the groups consist of mostly friends.

You can look around your town or find records and if your city is big enough maybe a website with some photos taken already.

There are Safefty tips on almost every website. They are mostly common sense things, but still something you need to look up on if this is something you are seriously getting interested in.

http://www.infiltration.org/observations-abandoned.html

I'd start there and work your way about. =]

When I was a teen...a friend and I would explore old ruins around our county...mostly old coal towns from the 1800's...My father being a coal miner...it was interesting to see how they lived and worked back then.

Alwas have been -- love doing in --- I'm way in the mountains -- really old churches and grave yards from the early 1800 ,, things the monks still have -- and never use ..

I don't know what it is, but there just simply something wonderful about the past and it makes me so curious to know why everything was left behind.

To add a paranormal twist...one place we explored was supposedly "haunted".There was a pit filled in with dirt...supposedly 100 feet deep and a miner died by falling in.My light was the brightest you could get at the time...brand new batteries...and it wouldn't light up more then maybe 3 feet in.Scared my friend...I found it intriguing...I crawled about 3 feet in and he freaked out.

Can we get some links on these historic sites.

There are no links to these sites...this happened before the internet.Im telling what happened from memory...and there is nothing about them in local papers or anything...just word of mouth and hearsay.

Here are two that could be very expensive but well worth it if you gain anything useful. The supposed 'internment camps' for FEMA to enslave everyone in a police state.

Second is the UFO base in NM called Dulce.

Get some scoop there and you are business!

Thank you gentlemen for this responses.

I find this to be very interesting thread and we are gonna have to go venture out to other places and do some exploring in some old mines I see ... humm I am intrigued... Thank you for the info.

I agree darklady.

Very welcome! Thanks everyone for sharing your stories.

I did a bit of exploring today, but nothing major. However I will be posting some images in my journal later if anyone would like to have a look at those.

i personally am not but i find this to be a very intruiging subject and i am glad to know about it.

Its very thrilling too. I had a wonderful day today waqndering around a few places. I haven't entered any place yet, but I did take some exterior photos of the houses and the things discarded about the property.

There are photos in my journal.
Here.

It sounds interesting but I am not breaking the law

its not always breaking the law. A lot of abandoned places have tours and a few people suggest getting permission. I guess its just that most urban explorers don't see the thrill in it without trespassing.

I have been doing this since i was a kid, LOL.. i have seen some old buildings, and some being built. There are some truly unique places out there, ya just have to look

And looking is most of the fun!

I understand that many of thsoe who posted are offended by the idea of trespassing.

I was not intending on offending anyone. It was only to see how many others found in interesting. They don't have to want to try it and I'm not asking you to.

Urban exploration is about preserving forgotten history. Urban explorers do NOT vandalize, Do NOT steal, and they Do NOT "party".

Yes, never heard it called Urban explore before but yes non the less.

I have been doing this since I was a small child then with my mother, and Yes she did get picked up by the police one night and its still on her record as a felony trass pass. Not good when job hunting let me tell you.

Now I really only do it to take photos ether for my self or for Art..

I love to explore thoes forbiddin places.
Only rules,
Don't get cought.
don't take.
always bring tape recorder,video,and camra.
And if there is a reason to run..
never,ever fall down.

Yes!

I grew up around old train yards and loved to explore the abondoned stations, cars, vehicle, etc.

Even more fun was "Schloss-hopping" in Germany, checking out old, abandoned castles.

I love to explore and imaging what life was like in these old settings.

Their are guided tours of the tunnels under Portland, Oregon where many young men were "shanghaid" onto sailing vessels in the 19th century.

You can tour the sewers of NY and Paris, I've heard.

Explored all the tunnels under Santa Fe. Also the abandoned prison before it was torn down. That place was spooky. Lots of art on the clammy walls, desperate pleas, prayers and poems. We could hear whispers floating on the stale air around us.

In college, we scanned old newspapers for the location of horrid crimes of passion: father kills children, kills wife, buries her in backyard, police dig up the property --- that kind of thing. The homes were not always abandoned, but when they were, we broke in, held seances, made a vampire movie in one.

It is a risky hobby, I must say. Which is why you try not to get caught. lol.

I have a couple of friends who travel the world doing this,Id say for about 10,15 years now.I think,next time I am invited,I just might have to go.I would love to be able to do it.

When I went to Alcatraz 8 years ago with a friend. She wanted me to go into the parts of it that were roped off and not safe but I chickened out because I didn't want to get caught but now I wish I did. I might of saw something interesting.

stuff that you are all talking about sounds fun but scary at the same time..

I could spend a few life times just exploring and taking photos of the world and still not see all there is to be seen.. A pitty really..

It can be dangerous too. Sometimes the buildings aren't very sturdy. Sometime the tunnels are capable of collapsing. That doesn't stop them from doing it though.

no, you just have to have a sure foot and understand what you are getting your self into..

It doesn't always matter how careful you are. If the place is that badly off you shouldn't go into the place, but there's always going to be that one person that does it and gets seriously hurt or killed.

It is a very fun hobby. My best friend and I started with old abandoned houses when we were teenagers. We moved on to mainly sites that were considered haunted.

Now I go with my daughter and her friends to show them the ropes.

That sounds awesome! I hope everything goes well for you and your daughter!
Please be careful!

i do alot of this, though its mainly due to boredom, and the fact that i have to walk everywhere or ride a bus..
i tend to just go off on my own and look for stuff.
my most recent find is and old pawn shop that closed down and is "declared to be unfit for being in" it has an apt building on top of it, and is pretty kewl once you like dont run into the drugies that use it for a safe place to get high.

That's another thing that you have to watch out for. The squatters can be nasty. Not to mention potentially eager to silience the fact that you know they are there and what they are doing.

I've done some of it. I've even been in an abandon missile silo.

I have never been for exploration in the urban setting because I like exploring in the wilderness better I think it is a little more real People used to live there long ago when we didn't build homes and live in the with everything domesticated

i personally am not an urban explorer, however, i think the concept is very interesting

Have done some while visiting in San Diego. One needs to be careful with homeless people and druggies taking up residences in anyplace they can.

It is fascinating though, depending on area and buildings.

would love to do this with someone who knows where to look and go

I live in San Diego. That would be interesting for sure.

I have never tried it, but there is an abandoned hospital here that I would LOVE to wander through.. I may have to get up the courage and go!

I think it would be very interesting to explore the underground tunnel system in paris.

Ive done something similar, but I live in a rural part of South Jersey. My has been doing her geneology for years, and in the days before the internet she would go to cemetaries and copy the names and dates from stones. My dad also like to take long walks in the woods, were there were a few old abandoned houses (many pre-Revolutionary War era) and buildings, so we would explore there. I would love to Urban Explore a place like Philadelphia, where the history is so extensive and rich!

Remember everyone! If you want to try this there are risks! Be sure this is something you are truely passionate about!

i think we all did it when we were kids, didnt we?

We used to explore some old ruins behind St Paul's Monastery in Pittsburgh when I was a little kid. There were old broken down walls and grown over Stations of the Cross - very gothic.

Now, I would be more apt to ask permission, but more than willing to explore ruins.

we still have cemitarys that are spooky during the day just because the way some of there buildings look like..

i work in security and we get these idiots blundering all the time.including the aspestos parts where they are at high risk.

I've never done it but sounds very Kool

I can imagine Catseye. Those sort of places shouldn't even be considered, but Those are the kind of idiots that say, "No pain, no gain."

I supernatural hunt from time to time, but i rarely have reliable people to do it with... It sucks cause it is definatly a fun way to spend a night.

I couldn't agree more on that one!

I spent one of the most saitfactory days ever in a trip to Tarrytown NY, just up from the village of Sleepy Hollow, exploring and spending the day in the Sleepy Hollow cemetery- given the opportunity to do it again elsewhere, I would jump at it. I have heard alot about the supposed druid caves in NY, that are supposedly on ley lines with strong magnetic influences said to attract both ghosts and aliens alike- I would dearly love to explore those myself, but i have such a hard time with claustrophobia, I don't know if I could. But cemeteries are a great source of information, lore, and sensations both during the day and night, that I find fascinating.

I love urban exploration, it's one of my main hobbies. I have pictures in my profile of my favorite place to visit- The Oxford Regional Centre (abandoned insane asylum).

I definately have to see! =] Any tips or tricks for those getting into the hobby?

This is very interesting. I have dabbled in ghost hunting but not at places I didn't have permission to be. I was thinking about going out to a particular cemetery after they were closed but its right off the street so you can get near it easily. Some abandoned places would be easily accessed but we have been planning on hanging out in Redlands which is very haunted as well as considered a major location of devil worshippers. I am curious to find out what exactly they are meaning as there are suppose to be more there than many other places. I am figuring they are just meaning Wiccans as I know there are many in that city but eventually if lucky I will find out. Good luck on your pursuits...sounds fun and exciting.

This is what is called snoopin' and poopin'.

This is actuallly what snipers do. Sneak into places and observe. You kill if you have to or you get the shot.

I have done a little Urban Exploration around here there are a lot of tours you can go on and the cementaries are open during the day. I haven't gone out at night much, but it is fun :) And can be delightfully scary :)

I would love to do that! I did not know that it actaully had a name though. A friend of mine has went into old houses before but she did take some stuff. I don't how I would feel about taking things that wasn't mine.

Some people feel its fine to take things. Something to remember the place by or to "preserve" its history. For the most part though Urban Explorers don't take anything but photos. That's part of the problem. People comfuse the curious with thieves and vandals.

Here are some awesome Abandoned Photography sites I thought I'd share!

http://www.paulpolitis.com/bwgallery/abandoned_places/

http://www.lostamerica.com/

http://www.opacity.us/

http://www.dobi.nu/photos/

Probably why it'd be handy to have a camera along... and limit what you take with you (no backpacks or sacks). People immediately treat you differently if they see that you aren't carrying off stuff, and are there trying to learn.

Trying to get information on an old mental hospital near the downtown Los Angeles area from the 1930s and 1940s. It is long abandoned but still has furniture and even files and cabinets from decades ago. Parts of it were used for an independent movie over a year ago. Hoping to be able to check it out sometime.

I can see your point about not carrying back packs and things, but you also need to be prepared. Extra light, batteries, first aid. Its just smart to have at least one person with a bag full of goodies.

I definetely agree that you should be prepared. I'm a wilderness nut and often go hiking to see what I can find. I've also been an extreme cold weather survival and retrival expert (the people that track and find lost people on mountains) and I have seen more then 1 person die because they weren't prepared. But since I also enjoy nature I can agree with the philosophy of taking only pictures and leaving only footprints behind. Very good especially if you aren't supposed to be there in the first place! But I beleive the past wants to be found, and besides, no one really owns the earth anyway...I don't care what any paper says

Yes I am I started as a squatter and went from there I have hung out with some hard core UX er's that have been on the roof of grand central station among other places...it is an awesome thing that so many places are "unexplored"right between our every day world.

Finding abandoned buildings that you can actually get in and around is not that easy. You have security cameras, security personnel, locks and chains, not to mention getting caught trespassing can cause some issues... so do some legwork before you actually try to explore anyplace and be safe and smart about it.

Being prepared is key. There's also that WONDERFUL thing called common sense. Though most people never use the skill.

No it isn't that easy. Since its "Urban" exploration there are usually houses and people close by.

I find the whole thing to be extremely interesting. There is simply too much to see and little time to see it!

I have been on "ghost hunts" before. Not as "scientific" as I would like and therefore would love to do more in the future..

Urban Exploration is a one of my favourite hobbies. I live in the Metro Detroit area so visiting the abandoned warehouses, factories and the like are amazing. But to get to more interesting places such as cemetries and insane asylums I have to drive a ways away. Which I don't mind. It's a very dangerous hobby. But that's half the fun in it.

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