Urban Exploration

There is more to urban exploration than taking a walk in the city.

There are 339 posts filed in Urban Exploration (this is page 16 of 57).

Thomas Muther, Jr. Explores in the Nude

Thomas Muther, Jr. is a frequent poster to the Flickr urban exploration group I moderate. He is pretty much the only nude male posing and – he is setting up the camera, posing and taking the photo on his own. His own model.

As a woman moderating the group I’m glad to see Thomas posting his photos. Without him the group would feel very sexually biased to me. But, I do wonder what other group members think. Likely most of them are male. Most urban explorers are still male and most of the people coming to look at nude people are coming to look at nude females. I’ve never asked him what kind of feedback, if any, he gets.

I could make this story quite lengthy, but to cut to the chase, after hitting me with a volley of questions–during which seven (7!!!!!!) other police cars pulled up–I was informed that a woman out walking her dog had seen me and reported the “incident” to the police. I was then belatedly informed of my rights, handcuffed, and taken to jail for “indecent exposure.” As they were putting the handcuffs on me, I was utterly dumbfounded. The only thing I managed to verbalize was, “why are you putting me in handcuffs?” which seems a reasonable question. Their reply? “Because that’s what we do to people who break the law!” If I’d had my wits about me, I might have rejoindered, “So, you put people in handcuffs who jaywalk?–or go 5 miles over the speed limit?”–but I was completely flummoxed. Thus, I ended up spending the night, and all the next day in jail. I finally managed to contact my sister who wired bail, and I got out late the next evening. With such a horrific charge hanging over my head, I hired an attorney (at $3500), as being a sexual predator registry for the rest of my life didn’t appeal. The charges were dropped after his intervention, so there were no long term consequences, but it was not a fun experience. The ridiculous over zealousness of these police cost me more than just the $3,500, obviously. Being in jail against your will when you’ve done nothing to deserve it really sucks (as opposed to being in jail for civil disobedience–which I’ve done three times . . . an entirely different feeling). Oh well. 🙁 Compared to the injustices committed by various trigger-happy police over the last months, I guess I shouldn’t complain.

Save the Bees!

ontbeerescue

Ontario Bee Rescue (and Facebook page)

Ontario Bee Rescue was established in the summer of 2014. The objective is to maintain a list of beekeepers in Ontario that are willing and able to assist in the rescue of honey bee swarms. To maintain professionalism, only registered beekeepers are eligible. If you are a registered beekeeper and wish to be on our swarm capture list, please notify us through facebook or our website. We are working closely with OBA to ensure that honeybees are saved from being destroyed by exterminators and pest control companies. Spread the word – Save the Bees

A Note to Curious Explorers

Four women stop to explore an abandoned property, on impulse. They post the video to YouTube and are condemned for what they have done. The comments go too far. As a woman explorer myself I wonder why there are so many videos just like this (from males) and they do not get this kind of response.

This is what I posted:

The comments are too extreme. I’ve seen a lot of men/ boys posting the same or far riskier stuff. Why so much backlash when it’s a group of women who really didn’t vandalize or steal anything?

I’m not voting your video down or asking you to take it down. I think you took a few risks more than you needed to but I do understand the curiousity to see an old place. I’m glad you did not take anything. I explore in rural Ontario and the only thing I leave with are my memories and photographs too.

Anyway, mainly ladies, if you explore a condemned property and become injured it is not fair to the property owner(s) as they would be responsible for whatever happens to you while you are on their property. A place which is condemned is not just an empty house. There was very likely structural damage to that house. It is good you were unable to enter it. Floors may have been unsafe from dampness, etc. You were not prepared for that kind of risk to yourselves. Though, it was good that you stuck together and did not have just one person on her own.

One other thing to be aware of are the outside dangers on an abandoned property, especially when the ground was covered with snow. Stray animals are one thing, chances are you would at least see them or they would not approach a group of people. But, the bigger risk is the covered ground because you can’t see what you are walking on. Possibly broken glass, nails which could go through your shoes. Also, wells and other holes which are not marked or covered securely/ safely.

I still enjoy finding an old place and documenting it with photographs. I don’t use video because I prefer still photos so I can get a better, close up look at all the elements of the property. I usually explore with another person and I almost never enter any buildings. Mostly because the places I like to see are very derelict, beyond safe. Please be careful if you explore other places. Find out more about old architecture, history and safety while exploring.

A History of Toronto’s Underground Explorers

I don’t think of the drains and tunnels of the sewers often. Usually just when I notice a manhole cover on the street. I look for names and dates on those but I’m not jumping in to see what lies under them.

Following is a clipping from The Toronto Star newspaper. I’m happy I do know about most of the people mentioned in the article. I’ve reposted it here to preserve the information as an archive of Toronto’s underground explorers.

 

Toronto has nothing to compare to Paris’s Sewer Museum (yes, there really is one), but the past decade has seen a growing appreciation of our sewers by the “urban exploration” community. While you may have stood on a manhole cover, these folks opened it and jumped in.
Toronto’s own late Jeff Chapman (a.k.a. “Ninjalicious”) published his first printed issue of Infiltration, “The zine about going places you’re not supposed to go,” in 1996. Though Toronto may not live in the imagination of people around the world, Chapman made this city’s sewers famous for his global readers. His work lives on in Access all Areas, his book published just before his death to cancer in 2005, and at infiltration.org.
Similarly, Michael Cook, then a student in human geography at York University, started vanishingpoint.ca in 2003, a lush and wistful website that continues to explore drains and more in Toronto and beyond, exchanging bureaucratic sewer designations for romantically named journeys (the Wilson Heights Storm Trunk Sewer becomes “The Depths of Salvation”). These writers make Toronto’s sewers seem as magical as Paris’s, whether it’s a late-Victorian brick tunnel in Trinty Bellwoods, or a mid-century concrete tunnel in North York.
Less clandestine is the recently released anthology by Coach House Books called HTO: Toronto’s Water from Lake Iroquois to Lost Rivers to Low-flow Toilets. The essays within parse through the layers of water under Toronto looking at wastewater sewers, storm sewers and, of course, the buried creeks – some notorious, others forgotten.

 

Shawn Micallef is senior editor at Spacing magazine and contributed “Subterranean Toronto: Where the masquerading lakes lay” to the HTO anthology.

Source: Getting to know Toronto’s sewers | Toronto Star

The old rivers, creeks and such do interest me. Those forgotten and lost waterways. Not so long ago in our history we just took all our fresh water for granted. As if it would always be there, mysteriously replenished without any effort on our part. Now water is an issue. Getting water, cleaning water and keeping water are all important. Those long lost streams of water are being looked at again. But, some are too polluted, too misdirected to be useful now. The greening of our water supply is something I like to read about. Not greening with algae but greening as in making it work again.

Then there are all the old drains. Some are antique, over 100 years old. People may wonder about what is down there: lost treasure, old pipes, stagnant water, etc. I admit I would like to see the old pipes, the old drains and mechanics. Did some long ago worker leave a name in a little corner niche? Did they add some extra trimmings, fancy workmanship and decorations to anything they did? What little unknown secrets are there under every city?