Urban Explorers in Sheffield- Novices and Experts

[ediesedgwick 10]

Anyone an urban explorer in Sheffield?

28DL etc are very good for ideas, pics and leads, but not for local explores.

I live in the city centre now, which is great cos I'm used to doing rural explores (done Thornseat Lodge, Wilkin Hill, Claremont House, Hepworth Refractories et al) but the ones I've had mi eye on in the centre are just so risky..

I know that's part of the buzz like but I mean TOO risky.

So sad that a lot of the good 'uns have been long gone... Osbourne House, Ranmoor Halls, and of course the infamous Middlewood (which looked <removed> amazing before they knocked it down. I was too young when it closed, must have been about 12 and found it too scary.

 

Anyways.. anyone up for a wreckie whether its int centre or surrounding areas let me know!

Edited April 18, 2012 by rad
swearing

[Locksley 10]

I'd like to say I'm an UrbExer although I'm not fantastically adventurous with my explores lol, usually easily accessed stuff. http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk is my usual haunt for finding local stuff, also found them to be a lot friendlier than some on 28DL.

[fozzybear210 10]

Love looking on the urbex forums and would love to get into urbex properly. I'm ex army so have done plenty of risky recces and been in plenty of risky situations. If you're interested, gimme a shout. ps I'm also in s35

[V.Rossi 10]

I'd absolutely love to join you, ever since I found 28dl I've wanted to get into it but to get the trust of the guys on there is near impossible.

[alchresearch 214]

I'm more or less retired now. It was always going to be a hobby with a short life span.

 

Pretty much everywhere has been done and there are too many people on the lookout for too few sites.

 

The "underground" feel of the whole business is long gone now that the forums are nationally known and scoured by the media. Gordon Burns (of Krypton Factor fame) called my mob a "thrill seeking action group" in one news story! Ironically I was the first to find and report the assault course they used!

 

Security and site owners are on the ball - especially with pikie metal thieves.

 

Police no longer turn a blind eye to it and start throwing any arrestable offence they can at you (burglary, being found in an enclosed space, vagrancy, anti terrorism).

 

But there's still the occasional gem. A couple of colleagues have recently done a Warship docked in Merseyside and a lost mine has just been found with some amazing intact internals, and I managed to find an abandoned stately home back in February.

 

My best Sheffield one was the Arts Tower roof!

Edited April 18, 2012 by alchresearch

[ediesedgwick 10]

I'm more or less retired now. It was always going to be a hobby with a short life span.

 

Pretty much everywhere has been done and there are too many people on the lookout for too few sites.

 

The "underground" feel of the whole business is long gone now that the forums are nationally known and scoured by the media. Gordon Burns (of Krypton Factor fame) called my mob a "thrill seeking action group" in one news story! Ironically I was the first to find and report the assault course they used!

 

Security and site owners are on the ball - especially with pikie metal thieves.

 

Police no longer turn a blind eye to it and start throwing any arrestable offence they can at you (burglary, being found in an enclosed space, vagrancy, anti terrorism).

 

But there's still the occasional gem. A couple of colleagues have recently done a Warship docked in Merseyside and a lost mine has just been found with some amazing intact internals, and I managed to find an abandoned stately home back in February.

 

My best Sheffield one was the Arts Tower roof!

 

I see where you’re coming from. I’ve only been doing it a year and I don’t use 28dl anymore, due to the rudeness of certain people on there and the fact that unless you’re an absolute veteran of the site then you get an earful from admin about anything and everything.

Security is really tight for many sites, particularly city ones- but if there’s a few that you’ve not explored then you’re always going to be like ‘oooh what if’ if you don’t end up doing them and they get knocked down.

I know its sexist but police/ security are more lenient with girls. I just play the old “I’m from Hillsborough college, I’m just taking pictures honest!” card. Then start rambling on about an imaginary project. Usually works, if not I batter my eyelashes and do seal pup eyes.

This one time, in Loxley, two men hurtled down the hill in a car with lights on full beam, just as me and my friend were getting in his car to go home after a quick night time explore and they ordered us to get in their car! Was so so scary. They said they were police but they didn’t have badges and were being reyt aggressive and asking us to move away from the car cos they thought we were up to no good, they looked like crackheads…

Swear to god, they followed us home. I got home and dived under the covers, paranoid as fooook.

Spose that’s the nature of the game

[alchresearch 214]

Try http://www.urbexforums.co.uk/

 

A national forum (but with a strong Yorkshire bias!) and much more friendly.

[Yog Sothoth 10]

I've done a bit. I'm a climber and ex-caver, so not fazed by physical risks. I have to be careful because of my job - it wouldn't do to be arrested in a Sheffield building, but then again, my job allows me the luxury of some perfectly legit explores (Psalter Lane Art College being one, before it got pulled down - it's all on my blog, just google it, and is also on one of the forums).

 

Because of that, I'm more into tunnels, deserted railways, places where you're less likely to bring the law on your heels.

[BarryRiley 10]

I remember exploring Middlewood Hospital before it was all converted in to flats. It must have been in around 1995. It was fascinating. There were still abandoned chairs with arm straps littering the corridors and in one section were a collection of partially burned patient records of some sort.

[BHRemovals 10]

sounds a n interesting way to spend a day

[bladezman 10]

Hey everyone, I'm interested in doing something like this after seeing some amazing shots from inside the Hallam Tower, the views from the top looked amazing.

 

So if a few of us are up for it we should give it a go.

I say this having no experience at all though so would definitely be following the lead!

 

Anyone got ideas for locations?

[JoeS 10]

Try George Barnsley's Cornish Works on Cornish St.

 

I do quite a bit of Urban Exploration myself, went over to Europe to have a look at stuff over there last year - fairly unreal.

 

Some photos in link below.