Have you ever looked at an abandoned building, or a do not enter sign in front of a dark hallway that seems to lead to somewhere, or a no trespassing sign and wondered what is in there, or what is there to be found? That is the entire idea around urban exploring, and the culture around it.

around the city, there are many abandoned buildings, or places that have not been touched in years due to closures of businesses or people moving away that just breed curiosity. It is that idea that has led to the development of urban exploring.

the thing with urban exploring is that there is an unwritten rule. Take only pictures, leave only footprints. This means to not vandalize or disturb the place that you’re exploring. Don’t break any locks to get anywhere. It is purely about the exploration and reclaiming the city that you live in and the buildings that have been abandoned by the past.

An example of what Urban Explorers are looking for (Credit: Tama666 via Pixabay)

the entire purpose of it is to preserve what is happened to the city through pictures or video, and posting it online instead instead of vandalizing it and ruining it for people that come next, or cause the building to be torn down. It’s a way to see what the city was like in a time capsule as opposed to what we’ve seen now every day when we walk around.

the entire community around urban exploration is also very secretive about the places that they find, and that they post about. It is not because they don’t want people to explore those same areas, instead they want to make sure that it can stay open to people to explore if they feel like it. There are many cases where someone will post a video online of a place and because of the popularity, it gets boarded up within a week and nobody can explore it ever again.

It isn’t limited to just buildings either. It can be underground tunnels, old steam pipes, or the World War 2 bunkers that were built around Stanley Park and Point Atkinson. It’s a way to reclaim the city from urbanization, and the glass towers that come with it.

when it’s done right, it’s a cool idea. There are some bad actors that will ruin it for everyone from time to time, but for the most part the community is united in sharing what they found and sharing the history of the city with those who watch.