Urban Exploration

[the maple epee]

Am I the only Urbexer in this godforsaken subforum? Just curious...

[Epee_Pox]

I enjoy finding abandoned bits of infrastructure here in the city, but I wouldn't identify as an urbexer. I avoid like the plague any group identity that gives itself trendy little names.

[the maple epee]

Heh, I've never thought of it as a 'trendy little group identity', more just a way to identify what I do, but if that's what it's taken as, you gotta admit it's a cool little group...

[Timo]

No, considering I live in a very small city and don't have a car to get anywhere, I haven't done it before. I don know what it is though

[tehcow]

any chance of an explanation without using the words 'google' or 'wiki'?

[Gav]

I've deleted the text of this post because I think it was too harsh.

In case anyone is wondering, I really regret looking this up.

Why anyone thinks that giving going for a walk and poking your nose where it may (or may not) be welcome requires a new term is beyond me.

IN any case move along. Nothing to see here.

[the maple epee]

I think Gav looked up the definition of Urban exploration in the wrong place?

[the maple epee]

Well, I should probably explain.

Urban Exploration is the term given to the practice of exploring abandoned and/or off limits sections of our world. Examples of places you would find the average urban explorer would be:

Abandoned houses, hospitals, schools, warehouses, asylums, missile silos, powerplants, subway tunnels, hotels, etc.

Active locations like hotels, hospitals, factories, constructions sites, subway tunnels, steam tunnels, skyscrapers, etc.

A more eloquent explanation is provided on Infiltration.org, a site dedicated to urban exploration:

"On many urban exploration websites you'll see a disclaimer to the effect of "this site is for entertainment purposes only, trespassing is bad, do not try this at home." It's tempting for me to throw one of those disclaimers on this site too, just to be on the safe side, but I can't quite bring myself to do it.
I don't think there is anything wrong with urban exploration, at least not the type described here and on 95 percent of the other sites on the Internet, and I can't pretend I do. Genuine urban explorers never vandalize, steal or damage anything — we don't even litter. We're in it for the thrill of discovery and a few nice pictures, and probably have more respect for and appreciation of our cities' hidden spaces than most of the people who think we're naughty. We don't harm the places we explore. We love the places we explore.
While it's true that some aspects of the hobby happen to be illegal, it's important not to confuse the words "illegal" and "immoral". Laws against trespassing are like laws against being out after curfew: people get into trouble not for actually doing anything harmful, but simply because the powers that be are worried that they might.
Nor is exploration illegal simply because it's dangerous. The liability-conscious may disagree, but in my opinion, the hobby is no less of a personally assessed risk than smoking, driving or even riding a bike.
I find it sad that most people go through life oblivious to the countless — free — wonders around them. Too many of us think the only things worth looking at in our cities and towns are those safe and sanitized attractions that require an admission fee. It's no wonder people feel unfulfilled as they shuffle through the maze of velvet ropes on their way out through the gift shop.
Urban explorers strive to actually earn their experiences, by making discoveries that allow them to get in on the secret workings of cities and structures, and to appreciate fantastic, obscure spaces that might otherwise go completely neglected.
When you step away from the TV and think about it, humans are naturally curious creatures. We can't help but want to see the world around us; we're designed to explore and to play, and these instincts haven't disappeared just because most of us now live in large cities where parking lots have replaced common areas, malls have replaced city squares and the only public spaces that remain are a few grudgingly conceded parkettes.
This isn't the way things should be, of course, since cities should be for citizens, but urban explorers aren't generally fighters. We don't seek to smash the state, just to ignore its advice on a subject it doesn't really know much about. When we see a sign that says "Danger: Do Not Enter", we understand that this is simply a shorthand way of saying "Leaving Protected Zone: Demonstrate Personal Accountability Beyond This Point".
Urban exploration is free, fun and hurts no one. It's a thrilling, mind-expanding hobby that encourages our natural instincts to explore and play in our own environment. It encourages people to create their own adventures, like when they were kids, instead of buying the pre-packaged kind. And it nurtures a sense of wonder in the everyday spaces we inhabit or pass by that few local history books could ever hope to recreate. I've had some of the best moments of my life while exploring, and I can't recommend the hobby enough.
So, no disclaimer. Not for your entertainment only. Please do try this at home."

[Black Sunshine]

To each his own, but to this girl it sounds like a great way to get a cap busted up in your a%$.

[oiuyt]

To each his own, but to this girl it sounds like a great way to get a cap busted up in your a%$. ;)

Especially if you come poking around MY "abandoned" missle silo....

-B

[the maple epee]

That's why you tiptoe past the crackheads in the subway.

[Allen Evans]

In fact, once, while poking around an "abandoned" gold dredge site outside of Ester, Alaska, I was the recipient of a warning shot from a guard. To add insult to injury, he let his dogs loose on us after that.

AE

[Fencergrl]

Although I wouldn't identify myself as an urban explorer, based on the description I've done it. That's not unusual for me, as I tend to naturally explore the world I'm in... I can't help wandering about.

The areas I have explored were not considered "off limits", they were just not in use. Perhaps not living in the land of lawsuits might have something to do with this.

Here's one example.... When I was in my late teens I studied construction. The trades school was in an old prison/ detention centre. The cells in the basement were used for partitions between the students in welding class. The shop and cafeteria were both used for their original purposes. I don't remember what was on the second floor.... offices? Classrooms? However the third floor was rumored to be solitary confinement. This seemed appropriate as this floor was not in use.

Upon realizing there was a third floor, I wandered up to explore and see what it looked like. I later discovered there were all sorts of buildings and portions of building on "campus" that were no longer in use and were fun to explore during my lunch breaks. At no point did I consider what I was doing to be "wrong". Everything was accessible and nobody ever damaged anything.

[neintoon]

When I was in my late teens I studied construction. The trades school was in an old prison/ detention centre. The cells in the basement were used for partitions between the students in welding class.

What were you in for? And do you think that being able to study a trade helped to reform you? Just curious since so many people think of prison as a place to punish rather than reform.

[Fencergrl]

LOL... Do I seem reformed to you??? I was "in for" carpentry and ended up in design many years later.