- Joined
- Aug 27, 2013
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- 66
- Reaction score
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Visited with Slipdrix.
Hands down, this was the most challenging explore I have ever done. Going in completely blindly, we had no idea what to expect at all. Getting in through the fence was no problem; we found a spot within minutes. In the no mans land, we run through the mist straight across into the darkness of the blast furnace. It's eerily quiet, and god almighty it's unnerving. We nose around the ground floor of the site, getting ourselves acquainted with our surroundings, looking for ways in. Yet all the stairways have been severed from high up.
To quote an old report from Battersea:
"If you can't find a way in, you're blind. The challenge is finding your way off the ground floor [sic]"
Those words perfectly summarise access to this place. We continue walking round, finding some stairs that aren't severed. We gingerly make our way up, ever attentive and somewhat fearful of being caught (one can only assume a place like this has the toughest security imaginable), only to find a locked door. Halfway down are some horizontal pipes we could use to make our way across to the furnace, something Slipdrix thinks would be a good idea. I'm not so sure; I'd probably fall off if I hear the bellow of an angry guard or worker!
We keep looking. We don't walk far, until we see the first sign of activity; a worker in green overalls and a hard hat. A guard? I didn't want to know, so we ran and hid in a little corner. Though he was some distance away, had that been a little narrower we'd have been spotted. With the nerves reaching high levels, we wait and don't move a muscle. We hear footsteps, but they vanish. We peek round the corner and he's gone.
Back to where we were, and with darkness closing in, we find an access point; a flight of stairs with the handrails and steps removed. Oh god almighty, this is the most difficult climb I have ever endured, hanging onto small girders, pulling myself up and using a sloping stairframe to push myself up. I was extremely close to falling, but we make our way up. We were in, and had free roam now.
I've done HF6 in 2014, but to conquer something of such size and epicness on my own home turf feels like a coming of age.
So now even though I'm still unsure about security, I find myself basking in the majesty of this steel cathedral, looking around me with nothing but sheer awe and amazement. Rarely do I feel so alive as times like this.
Unfortunately the downside of Redcar is that whilst it is so beautifully photogenic, it's also the most exceptionally difficult place I have shot in. So many places were plunged into complete darkness, with others being bathed in harsh, orange light, making photography a real challenge. It may well be different in the day, but we were here at night.
Onwards and upwards. We completely underestimated the height of the blast furnace, making our ascent arduous and tiring. Photography was made even harder with the thick fog, getting thicker the higher we went.
From time to time, we'd also see CCTV at random points; none of this was a problem however, so we continued at leisure.
By the time we reached the top, we got into the conveyer belt in the hope that we'd reach the power station. A blind man leading the blind, we ended up at the bin store which unfortunately was completely pitch black apart from the control room. Despite the dangers, I suggested we only turn the torch on when in enclosed spaces for fear of being spotted by security. It's not like we could turn the lights on to an entire gigantic building easily either.
We continued along the conveyer belts, running past the presumably live warehouse, where we'd seen cars go to and from. Were they security? Maybe, but if they were they didn't patrol that often. At times we stood in the conveyer belt and watched their movements whilst we rested. The grounds were lit up with floodlights, leaving us in the relative safety of darkness.
Look at the picture above. The TV still left on into the night, displaying "no signal." The lockers still full of workers possessions and the fridge even with some drinks left behind, this was a poignant time capsule for the workers who've lost their jobs from here. Such was how recently the place closed, even the clock was ticking, albeit at the wrong time.
By now it was around 1am, and time to leave. Walking back along the conveyer belt, we decided we wouldn't be able to get into the power station tonight sadly. Getting out, I managed to get down again despite fear of falling. Slipdrix, however didn't want to do what I did and panicked. Except I was down, so I ran away and hid to wait for him. He didn't like that, and kept calling for me to come back. I was really on edge by that point, but I daren't move. Eventually I had no choice, and had to tell him what to do to get down safely. Tensions were sky high between us then, but we got out safely in the end. Security also patched up our exit... with a crowd safety barrier, which we used as a ladder over the palisade. Ha!
All in all, although some of my pictures aren't up to standard, this stands as one of the greatest explores I have ever done. Possibly my greatest achievement exploring, even if it's not groundbreaking in the grand scheme of things. I'm so glad to have pulled it off, when I honestly thought I wouldn't.
Thanks for reading as always,
TBM x
Hands down, this was the most challenging explore I have ever done. Going in completely blindly, we had no idea what to expect at all. Getting in through the fence was no problem; we found a spot within minutes. In the no mans land, we run through the mist straight across into the darkness of the blast furnace. It's eerily quiet, and god almighty it's unnerving. We nose around the ground floor of the site, getting ourselves acquainted with our surroundings, looking for ways in. Yet all the stairways have been severed from high up.
To quote an old report from Battersea:
"If you can't find a way in, you're blind. The challenge is finding your way off the ground floor [sic]"
Those words perfectly summarise access to this place. We continue walking round, finding some stairs that aren't severed. We gingerly make our way up, ever attentive and somewhat fearful of being caught (one can only assume a place like this has the toughest security imaginable), only to find a locked door. Halfway down are some horizontal pipes we could use to make our way across to the furnace, something Slipdrix thinks would be a good idea. I'm not so sure; I'd probably fall off if I hear the bellow of an angry guard or worker!
We keep looking. We don't walk far, until we see the first sign of activity; a worker in green overalls and a hard hat. A guard? I didn't want to know, so we ran and hid in a little corner. Though he was some distance away, had that been a little narrower we'd have been spotted. With the nerves reaching high levels, we wait and don't move a muscle. We hear footsteps, but they vanish. We peek round the corner and he's gone.
Back to where we were, and with darkness closing in, we find an access point; a flight of stairs with the handrails and steps removed. Oh god almighty, this is the most difficult climb I have ever endured, hanging onto small girders, pulling myself up and using a sloping stairframe to push myself up. I was extremely close to falling, but we make our way up. We were in, and had free roam now.
I've done HF6 in 2014, but to conquer something of such size and epicness on my own home turf feels like a coming of age.
So now even though I'm still unsure about security, I find myself basking in the majesty of this steel cathedral, looking around me with nothing but sheer awe and amazement. Rarely do I feel so alive as times like this.
Unfortunately the downside of Redcar is that whilst it is so beautifully photogenic, it's also the most exceptionally difficult place I have shot in. So many places were plunged into complete darkness, with others being bathed in harsh, orange light, making photography a real challenge. It may well be different in the day, but we were here at night.
Onwards and upwards. We completely underestimated the height of the blast furnace, making our ascent arduous and tiring. Photography was made even harder with the thick fog, getting thicker the higher we went.
From time to time, we'd also see CCTV at random points; none of this was a problem however, so we continued at leisure.
By the time we reached the top, we got into the conveyer belt in the hope that we'd reach the power station. A blind man leading the blind, we ended up at the bin store which unfortunately was completely pitch black apart from the control room. Despite the dangers, I suggested we only turn the torch on when in enclosed spaces for fear of being spotted by security. It's not like we could turn the lights on to an entire gigantic building easily either.
We continued along the conveyer belts, running past the presumably live warehouse, where we'd seen cars go to and from. Were they security? Maybe, but if they were they didn't patrol that often. At times we stood in the conveyer belt and watched their movements whilst we rested. The grounds were lit up with floodlights, leaving us in the relative safety of darkness.
Look at the picture above. The TV still left on into the night, displaying "no signal." The lockers still full of workers possessions and the fridge even with some drinks left behind, this was a poignant time capsule for the workers who've lost their jobs from here. Such was how recently the place closed, even the clock was ticking, albeit at the wrong time.
By now it was around 1am, and time to leave. Walking back along the conveyer belt, we decided we wouldn't be able to get into the power station tonight sadly. Getting out, I managed to get down again despite fear of falling. Slipdrix, however didn't want to do what I did and panicked. Except I was down, so I ran away and hid to wait for him. He didn't like that, and kept calling for me to come back. I was really on edge by that point, but I daren't move. Eventually I had no choice, and had to tell him what to do to get down safely. Tensions were sky high between us then, but we got out safely in the end. Security also patched up our exit... with a crowd safety barrier, which we used as a ladder over the palisade. Ha!
All in all, although some of my pictures aren't up to standard, this stands as one of the greatest explores I have ever done. Possibly my greatest achievement exploring, even if it's not groundbreaking in the grand scheme of things. I'm so glad to have pulled it off, when I honestly thought I wouldn't.
Thanks for reading as always,
TBM x
