Urbex (Urban Exploration)

[Goafer]

Urban exploration (often shortened as urbex, UE, bexing, urbexing and sometimes known as 'roof-and-tunnel hacking') is the exploration of man-made structures, usually abandoned ruins or not usually seen components of the man-made environment. Photography and historical interest/documentation are heavily featured in the hobby and, although it may sometimes involve trespassing onto private property, this is not always the case. Informally named "urbexing," the popular activity is engaged with by people of all ages, even the very elderly. Urbex may also be referred to as draining (an alternate form of urbexing where drains are explored), urban spelunking, urban rock climbing, urban caving, roof topping or building hacking.

 

The nature of this activity presents various risks, including both physical danger and the possibility of arrest and punishment. Some activities associated with urban exploration may violate local or regional laws and certain broadly interpreted anti-terrorism laws or be considered trespassing or invasion of privacy.

 

 

I used to go exploring quite often, but I kind of lost contact with the guy I explored with, so I haven't been for ages. Now that I have the drone, I'm thinking of taking that to more derelict sites and seeing what I can record.

 

Some of my previous trips:

 

London Brick Company, Stewartby

 

At its height, Stewartby brickworks was home to the world's biggest kiln and over 2,000 people worked at the plant producing 500 million bricks a year.

 

At its peak London Brick Company had its own ambulance and fire crews, a horticultural department and a photographic department, as well as its own swimming pool inside the factory, and ran a number of sports clubs.

 

More than £1 million was spent on Stewartby Brickworks in 2005-7 in an attempt to reduce sulphur dioxide emissions. By then, there were just 230 people employed at the Stewartby brickworks, with only two kilns and three chimneys in use, producing a total of 135 millions bricks a year. The attempt to reduce pollution failed, and the brickworks finally closed in February 2008.

 

I have visited this site twice and will most likely go back again soon. It's a nice laid back explore (very little climbing involved!), with nice open areas and interesting buildings to look around.

 

Video from my latest visit:

 

 

And some photos from my first visit, many years ago:

 

 

 

 

Took my Fallout bobblehead with me:

 

 

 

Cardington Blimp Hangars

 

The site started life as a private venture when aircraft manufacturing company Short Brothers bought land there to build airships for the Admiralty. It constructed a 700-foot-long (210 m) Airship hangar (the No. 1 Shed) in 1915 to enable it to build two rigid airships, the R-31 and the R-32. Short also built a housing estate, opposite the site, which it named Shortstown.

 

The airships site was nationalised in April 1919, becoming known as the Royal Airship Works. In preparation for the R101 project the No 1 shed was extended between October 1924 and March 1926; its roof was raised by 35 feet and its length increased to 812 feet. The No. 2 shed (Southern shed), which had originally been located at RNAS Pulham, Norfolk, was dismantled in 1928 and re-erected at Cardington. After the crash of the R101, in October 1930, all work stopped in Britain on airships. Cardington then became a storage station. In 1936/1937 Cardington started building barrage balloons; and it became the No 1 RAF Balloon Training Unit responsible for the storage and training of balloon operators and drivers. In 1943 until 1967 it was home to the RAF Meteorological research balloons-training unit, undertaking development and storage (after 1967 this was undertaken by the Royal Aircraft Establishment).

 

In 1993 planning permission was granted for construction of theatrical stagings and the site was used for rehearsals by musicians including Paul McCartney Band on the Run: 25th Anniversary Edition, U2, Rod Stewart, One Direction, Take That and AC/DC. In 1968 some scenes for Chitty Chitty Bang Bang were filmed at Cardington Sheds. Also during the 1960s, much of the film Those Magnificent Men in Their Flying Machines was shot in the vicinity of the village. In 1971 the sheds appeared in the First World War war film Zeppelin starring Michael York. The Star Wars film series has used both Sheds 1 and 2 for filming. Shed 1 was used to represent the Rebel base on Yavin 4 in the original 1977 film, and Shed 2 was also used for the Yavin base in the 2016 spinoff film Rogue One. Shed 2 has recently been leased to Warner Bros. and is used as a studio for film and television productions. Director Christopher Nolan has used this location to film scenes for three of his movies; scenes from Batman Begins, The Dark Knight,[16] and Inception were filmed in Shed 2. Christopher Nolan returned to this location during the summer of 2011 to film scenes for his third and final Batman film, The Dark Knight Rises. The film Sky Captain and the World of Tomorrow was filmed at Cardington in 2004. Rihanna filmed parts of her music video for 'Shut up and drive' there. In Series 14 Episode 3 of the motoring show Top Gear presenter James May used Cardington as the base for his 'Caravan Airship'.

 

This was an amazing trip. Obviously, we didn't go into the shed that is still in use, but we did get into the derelict shed. Not much variety inside, but it was hands-down the biggest room I have ever been in, and the holes in the roof combined with the blue netting made it look like a starry sky. Amazing stuff.

 

My photos (they don't do the scale of the place justice at all):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Water Eaton Grain Silo, Oxford

 

The Water Eaton grain silo, which dominates the skyline from the A34 and the Oxford-Kidlington road, was built at the start of the Second World War.

 

It followed the design of other wartime silos, helping to feed the nation when supplies were short.

 

The grain, including wheat, barley and oats, would be taken mechanically to the top of the seven- storey building and cascade through a series of driers on each floor.

 

It would then be stored in 200-ton bins for use by millers, brewers and cereal manufacturers.

 

The silo closed in the late 1980s, after which the yard and outbuildings were used by several businesses, including a pet food supplier and a car breaker.

 

In recent years it has been a target for graffiti vandals and grown ugly, damaged and rundown, though it still has its admirers.

 

This was my first ever explore and sadly, it has now been demolished. The view from the top was spectacular and it was such an intimidating building.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Barrow Gurney Asylum, Bristol

 

The hospital was first built between 1934-1937 with the first patients being admitted in 1938 along with being commandeered by the Royal Navy during the outbreak of World War 2 as a Royal Naval Auxiliary Hospital.

 

It was used then to treat seamen injured during conflicts or who were suffering from psychological distress and onwards in time until it closed in 2006 to treat mental health disorders, and had been referred to for sometime as being a very haunted colony of buildings.

 

By the 1960s, reports suggest that standards in the hospital had declined, with patients complaining of boredom, grim surroundings, urine-stained chairs and a distinct lack of comfort.

 

In 2005 national survey of hospital cleanliness named Barrow as the dirtiest in hospital in Britain after inspectors found cigarette burns on floors, graffiti on walls, urine stains around a toilet and stains from bodily fluids on the bottom of a hoist chair.

 

Not long after that part of a ceiling collapsed on a patients head and in 2006 the grounds were deserted.

 

Now the site is now completely demolished and plans are in place for a development of luxury housing and a retirement homes.

 

This was quite an easy explore, but had it's creepy moments. We had gone shortly after a storm, so we could hear constant dripping and wind through the various holes in the building. We also had a very weird moment. We were stood next to (about 6 feet) a door that looked like it was keeping people out of a restricted area, so we didn't bother looking inside. We turned away for about a second to decide where to go next and when we turned back, the door was open. Neither of us heard the door move, despite it being quite rickety and it being so close to us. The door was also completely still, even though it must have swung open. On the other side was a ladder leading down to the tunnels below. Suffice to say, we picked a direction and left pretty quick.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Shipton Cement Works

 

In the 1920s the Oxford and Shipton Cement Company built a cement works beside the main railway line and began quarrying limestone from the hillside between the Woodstock branch line and Bunker's Hill. The quarry was bought by Alpha Cement in 1934 which became part of Associated Portland Cement in 1938, which in turn became Blue Circle Industries in 1978. Towards the end of the 20th century the quarry ceased production and was sold to the Kilbride Group, which applied unsuccessfully to redevelop it as an eco-town.

 

The quarry is protected as a Site of Special Scientific Interest because it is important for Jurassic fossils, particularly crocodiles. Since quarrying ceased, the site has also become important for wildlife. Birds including turtle dove, little ringed plover, Cetti's warbler and peregrine falcon breed in the quarry. A lake has formed in the bottom of the quarry, attracting birds including green sandpiper, jack snipe, little grebe and common pochard to overwinter there. The site also attracts invertebrates including damselflies.

 

Another huge site, although it has now been completely demolished. Fairly laid back explore, with some interesting industrial machinery and buildings. It was also fairly close to a nice canalside pub, so bonus.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Aylesbury Odeon Cinema

 

This cinema, was originally opened on the 21st June 1937, with Shurley Temple in "Dimples". The cinema is an original Oscar Deutsch cinema, and was originally a 1 screen Cinema. Inside the Foyer, there were troughs across the ceiling which contained concealed lighting. Seating provided for 954 in the stalls and 497 in the circle.

 

The cinema was tripled during a 1973 Overhaul, it reopened with "The Sward in the Stone" on the 26th August 1973. The Cinema was completley revamped in June 1984.

 

The Cinema Finally closed on October the 30th 1999.

 

Another one which is now demolished. This explore took a bit more planning, as it was in a fairly populated place. We got up nice and early, hopped a fence and got in through a basement window. Easy.

 

The place was pretty terrifying, as it was completely pitch black inside, with the only light being our 2 torches, one of which was almost completely dead. There was also pigeon shit everywhere.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

St Crispin's Asylum, Northamptonshire

 

Until the 1870s the County and Borough of Northampton's pauper lunatics occupied space under a contract with the Northampton General Asylum (now St Andrew's Hospital), a public subscription asylum located to the east of Northampton. With intervention from the Commissioners in Lunacy, who believed the current arrangement to be inappropriate, it was decreed that the county should own and maintain its own premises. Despite extensions and attempts to purchase the existing asylum, it was decided that a new county establishment would be built instead and land was purchased at Upton close to the village of Duston in the countryside to the north-west of Northampton.

 

The new asylum was built to make good use of its position, with extensive views to the south overlooking open farmland towards Upton and protected to the north by the Berrywood itself, owned as part of the estate and providing a visual buffer from the village and road. The grounds incorporated a large farm complex, gas works, burial ground, a number of cottages for attendants and other estate staff, large residences for the superintendent, farm bailiff, head gardener, chaplain and steward. The main building was built to a variation of the corridor-pavilion plan and consisted of two major patient's blocks on either side of the central services and hall, and linked only by single storey corridors and open metal walkways at upper levels. The design reflected the architect, Robert Griffiths' previous work at the Macclesfield Asylum, Cheshire by placing pairs of projecting blocks for acute and generalised cases forward of the building line where the most benefit was received from light and fresh air, linked by infirmary wards, still with good prospect but protected from the worst of the weather and forming a segregation of management class of inmate. Unlike at Macclesfield, the acute and infirmary blocks were united, but still bore a similar form. To either end were located the blocks for chronic, turbulent and difficult patients who it was proposed would gain less from the good aspect, but was to provide good access to their places of work.

 

St Crispin Hospital briefly entered the news when a fire killed a six patients who were resident on Schuster Ward, within the main building.

 

During the early 1990s at the outbreak of the First Gulf War, several closed wards were upgraded ready to admit any injured members of the armed forces should the need arise but this was never required. The hospital gradually contracted as wards became disused, eventually leaving those located within the Pendered Centre and the main building was closed in 1995.

 

The hospital finally closed in 1995 and the buildings are currently standing derelict with only one of the wards having been converted. A housing estate has been built on the lands that were cleared around the main building and a new mental health facility, Berrywood Hospital, has also been built on part of the site. As with many of these projects, the developer, Taylor Wimpey has built a large number of new homes on the site and not concentrated on preserving the original buildings. Due to the 2008-2010 recession the work was again put on hold and the hospital site has deteriorated rapidly leaving them in a poor state of repair.

 

Late on the Wednesday 6 August 2014, over 70 Firefighters responded to an emergency call as fire large fire broke out. The cause of the fire is yet to be determined.

 

Quite a nice explore, although not that great for finding interesting things. Plus, I almost fell through the floor in one of the upper levels. Good times.

 

 

 

 

[dwarf]

Bit of Fallout here, bit of Condemned there, bit of Last of Us here. A staggering body of work.

 

Did the near-death experience put you off for a while? I vaguely remember you posting about it ages ago.

[Goafer]

Bit of Fallout here, bit of Condemned there, bit of Last of Us here. A staggering body of work.

 

Did the near-death experience put you off for a while? I vaguely remember you posting about it ages ago.

 

Nah, not really. It wasn't really near death, the rotten wood floor just collapsed a bit underneath me. There was enough structure there that I'd probably have just stuck my leg through the floor.

 

I mainly stopped because I lost contact with the guy I went with and none of my other friends were interested.

[dwarf]

I'd totally join you but I live bare miles away and I can't use a camera. Would like to learn the basics of photography at some point though.

 

Seen some urbex blogs of overgrown cities (possibly in China) and thought it would be a cool thing to do. Keep up it up bruh.

[Happenstance]

I'm hoping to join @Goafer with my drone as well at some point when we get a chance. We've been searching for new places to go so that should include Urbex style sites.

[bob]

You guys can come and explore my flat if you like.

 

It's not very big, but there are some cupboards that haven't been cleared out in years and I'll make you a cup of tea when you're done.

[dwarf]

I'll be using a different type of drone when I visit you Bob.

[sumo73]

I've been past Millennium Mills in east London many times but would love to see the inside of the building one day.

 

Edited April 29, 2017 by sumo73