I first stumbled into Urban Exploration in 2010 when I bought my first DSLR. I was scanning the likes of Flickr for inspiration and ideas and found some stunning images of dereliction and decay. In the tag-lines I kept seeing the word “urbex”, having no clue as to it’s meaning, I turned to Google and punched in those 5 fateful letters. I hit the enter key and then spent the next few hours marvelling at the new world I’d uncovered, a world and community I never knew existed. I was astounded at the beauty of the photography and even more blown away by reading reports of these explorers’ adventures. I wanted in! I badly wanted to be a part of this and the more I read, the more I wanted. One doesn’t simply join a community like this and expect information to be handed to you on a plate. In the early days I found it hostile and unwelcoming and from watching other newbies get flamed, I quickly learnt that you have to earn respect and quite rightfully earn your place within this community.

I met another local explorer, Markymark who agreed to show me around one of the more popular local sites and to this very day, he’s still one of my regular exploring partners and a good mate now too! I worked hard and visited many locations and eventually earned my place in the community. From an early age, I’d always shown signs of being an explorer, I was always inquisitive and wanted to get off the beaten path but never knew it would lead me to this. 3 years on, I look back and still amaze myself at some of the places I’ve been and some of the stories to tell. In life, I’d much rather be rich in experience than rich financially. Life is for living and Urban Exploring ticks all the boxes for me. I’ve travelled the length and breadth of the UK, I’ve been underground, on the top of skyscrapers and tower cranes, under water, during the day, during the night, learnt how to climb, abseil and SRT, travelled many countries and thousands of miles to see these addictive, unique places.

People sometimes say to me “Why do you do it”? All explorers have their own reasons and we all do it for different reasons. I’d probably say there are three main reasons why I do this; to visit and see places that very few people will ever get to see, to document these places photographically, and for the buzz. I much prefer hitting a site where there’s a chance of getting caught. My senses are heightened, the adrenaline is rushing and successfully infiltrating somewhere gives an overwhelming sense of achievement. Sometimes you sit back in a really epic place and say to yourself, “fuck… did we actually just do that”! Unfortunately, I have to report that it’s not all glory, on occasions, the security manage to do their jobs competently and sometimes, that little bit of luck you needed to pull it off just didn’t happen. More often than not, with a bit of politeness and cooperation, you’re sent off with a flea in your ear, other times you get to find out the real drawbacks of this crazy addiction.

I’d like to finish with a quote from someone I never had the pleasure of meeting but was highly regarded within the community and from what I hear, frequently set the bar for what could be achieved. He was known as Downfallen and sadly passed away doing something else he loved, base jumping. His words ring very true in my ears…

I choose to live my life to a different tune of music, one which is not censored or wrapped up so much with a blanket of over regulation, Health and Safety gone mad (because these days it has), fear and blind compliance to anything you are told to do.. a blanket so thick, that you no longer can hear the music. If I’m injured, you’ll hear me blaming only one person.. myself. It’s acceptance of personal responsibility for my actions… a quality that’s very much lacking in society these days.

Thanks for reading

Chaos