Abandoned Underground Sites
Abandoned underground sites are not my forte, I’ll be honest! Aside from my fear of creepie crawlies, I also don’t like the idea of getting stuck underground. 9 times out of 10, I go exploring alone and most times, I could disappear and no one would know where to start looking for me. Most of my urbexing happens abroad too, so I would probably never be found if something did happen to me.
Unfortunately, no one in my circle of friends and family is into urbex, so I don’t tell them when I’m going to photograph a building, let alone give them the address of where I’m going, as much I’d love to have even just one person out there looking out for me in that regard. C’est la vie. The best I can do is minimise the risk I take. And urbex can be dangerous enough without adding the risks that underground exploring brings.
However, there is one aspect of underground exploring that’s on my bucket list and my safety levels will most likely decrease once I find them. War bunkers.
Abandoned Soap Factory Tunnel, Perth, WA
In 1905, the Burford Soap Factory was established in Fremantle, Perth. At the same time, a 96-metre tunnel was built, behind the factory. The original factory building has since been renovated into apartments, but the abandoned tunnel remains. At just 1.8 metres high and 1.4 metres wide, it’s a tight squeeze, and it gets a lot narrower as you walk in. It’s pitch black, full of cobwebs and my worst nightmare – cockroaches. Watch out for dead ends! I noticed a lot of metal pipes along the ground as I was exploring this tunnel and later found out that these were used to transport water pumped from the river to below the factory, where it was directed up the vertical trunk to the factory and then to the cooling tanks or to be heated into steam. As you go deeper into the Soap Factory Tunnel, you will find two vertical tunnels (trunks) that lead to storm drains on the street above. The first trunk is located at the first bend in the tunnel. It is a drywall construction and capped with angle iron, tin sheeting, and cement. The second trunk is lined in modern concrete with hand holds leading to
Secret Abandoned Underground House in Dublin, Ireland
I found this hidden gem on Cork Street and it turned out to be one of the oldest, most abandoned buildings I would ever find. It was so dilapidated, the cobwebs were massive and looked like they’d been spun for centuries and more than half the building had fallen. What was so cool though, was that it was all UNDERGROUND. Check out the secret door photo below, the steps leading down, and if you can, imagine how big this place actually is. We’re talking a few storeys…and once again UNDERGROUND. Mind blown. Sadly, it was impossible to find any history on this place. Only a few metres away from the secret door there was a commercial garage and other shops. This place is truly hidden and in such a random spot. Enjoy the photography slideshow below and don’t forget to follow Abandoned World Photography for regular urbex updates on Facebook, Instagram and YouTube.
