The asylums I've visited over the ten years of being on 28DL remain my favourite choice of explore. So here are my ramblings and photos of ten years of lunacy. It's been fun and to all of those people who I've explored/met on the way I thank you one and all. It's been emotional!
I've set a rule of just 5 photos from each as otherwise I'd be here typing this report for another ten years.
You can see all my photos of asylums on my website here, however: Asylums - Whatevers Left
1. Barrow Hospital, Bristol - 2007
Where it all began. Just to wind up @clebby too who loves this place. Barrow was known to me from an early age. The common line at school 'eeere your mum is in Barrol int she' - Fundamentally the last purpose built asylum/overspill from the county asylum era - built to open in 1938 but WW2 would see it re-purposed before finally opening in 1947 for its original use. Officially classified as the dirtiest hospital in the UK in 2005 it very rapidly closed within the following year. I can't remember the first time I found my way onto the site it might have been late 2006. Back then security was bloody good and every window and door nailed tight. It would be xmas 2007 before anyone saw anything from inside thanks to @rigsby's late night xmas antics. Over the next year it would go from being nailed down tight to wide open walk in. My first visit inside with Rigsby and Rookinella was a funny night. We'd follow it up cracking various parts over the next 6 months. A few years later the place was a total wreak but in some ways more photogenic. I still miss the odd wonder around it now.
2. Mid Wales Hospital, Talgarth - 2007
Probably alongside Barrow one that holds dearest to me. An hours blast (if driving like you've stolen it) from home this is another place I've watched go from good condition to the state it is in now which is only fit for a bulldozer. Perhaps the opposite from a security point of view.. a walk in back then where as now you get covered in dog shit and suffer flat tyres if you're stupid enough to park your car in the grounds. First visited with Sinnerman & Snappel. I've probably lost count of the amount of times I've visited over the years now. It's a crying waste of a set of buildings given the condition they were in but now I'd rather just see the place levelled if it meant keeping the admin and chapel perhaps. Best trips included staying at the local B&B and running around 3 foot of snow at 2am pissed as a fart.
3. West Park Hospital, Epsom - 2008
The first big un' - West Park had been notoriously well sealed but for 3am trips around the laser grid and dodging the dome cameras everywhere. Then early in 2008 security seemed much more relaxed. It was kept quiet for months that it was open for business once again. A whole day of roaming the place. A giant and memorable place. First explored with Rigsby, Rookinella, Speed & Ether. We found Denton ward was nailed shut but even more frustrating so was the padded cell. A visit the following month would find it open and 35 of us fitting inside the walls of it. Probably crammed in 10-15 more visits over the years before demo. Looking back now I perhaps should have given it more attention but Cane Hill down the road was just that little bit more special.
4. Fairmile Hospital, Berkshire - 2008
An odd one with those bloody talking CCTV camera/posts. First visited with Winchester & Sinnerman. We stood on the lawn to see if the cameras were still working. 'Please leave the site immediately' - yep they're still working. Bollocks. We'd go around the old OT sheds to the west of the site and bumped into Nurse Payne who promptly got naked on a rather soggy shit stained mattress. The following year we'd get into the main block on a freezing January Sunday morning. I seem to recall it being around minus 12 outside. Winch decided to have a shit and it was still steaming about 3 hours later when we left. Not one of my favourites it was a bit bland and only one ward really carried it's original fixtures and fixings. Now a very overpriced set of fancy apartments. Well its is Berkshire!
5. Severalls Hospital, Colchester - 2008
June 2008. What a month that was. My travels with work seemed to put me next to a derelict asylum every night of the week. In the space of 10 days I would visit or revisit no less than 7 asylums. Severalls was also the first solo explore of an asylum. A sunny afternoon Winch is telling me to walk around the back fence where I'd find either the fence open as it had many holes in it or just climb up the 'Severalls Tree' - I found the tree. Or rather just the stump of it and a fresh batch of sawdust around it. The fence had also been sealed up. Bugger. Eventually finding a way under I'd have a free roam. The days before Michael were a lot more chilled and but for walking brazen along the road that circled the hospital once you were in, you stayed in for as long as you liked. I recall somehow climbing up through a narrow hole in the door to the water tower and then trying not falling into the fetid pit of water below. A huge site but perhaps a little empty but those huge corridors and rows of cell doors would make it one of the most photogenic. It had about 3 farewell tours and yet the place outlived all but the rest of the derelict ones of its time.
6. Cane Hill Hospital, Coulsdon - 2008
Cane. Fucking. Hill. Even by June of 2008 I'd left it too late. I remember walking down the footpath of Portnalls Road and there I got my first glimpse of it in the early morning sunshine. One of my favourite exploring moments. The place was colossal. I first caught glimpse of a ward as we walked towards the fence. Curtains gently blowing in the breeze. For all its sheer fuckedness of 19 years derelict it was beautiful. That first Sunday at Cane Hill with JonBoy, Dystopia, Winch & Fluffy was incredible. I think we did 13 hours with little more than the occasional stop for a swig of water. It was 25 degrees outside but we pushed on till we were all exhausted and covered a large chunk of the place. I say a large chunk but I could have honestly spent 3 weeks solid in there and not got bored. To try and whittle down my CH photos down to 50 is hard enough. 5 is sheer impossible. I miss this place more than any other site I've ever explored. It was simply incredible.
I've set a rule of just 5 photos from each as otherwise I'd be here typing this report for another ten years.
You can see all my photos of asylums on my website here, however: Asylums - Whatevers Left
1. Barrow Hospital, Bristol - 2007
Where it all began. Just to wind up @clebby too who loves this place. Barrow was known to me from an early age. The common line at school 'eeere your mum is in Barrol int she' - Fundamentally the last purpose built asylum/overspill from the county asylum era - built to open in 1938 but WW2 would see it re-purposed before finally opening in 1947 for its original use. Officially classified as the dirtiest hospital in the UK in 2005 it very rapidly closed within the following year. I can't remember the first time I found my way onto the site it might have been late 2006. Back then security was bloody good and every window and door nailed tight. It would be xmas 2007 before anyone saw anything from inside thanks to @rigsby's late night xmas antics. Over the next year it would go from being nailed down tight to wide open walk in. My first visit inside with Rigsby and Rookinella was a funny night. We'd follow it up cracking various parts over the next 6 months. A few years later the place was a total wreak but in some ways more photogenic. I still miss the odd wonder around it now.
2. Mid Wales Hospital, Talgarth - 2007
Probably alongside Barrow one that holds dearest to me. An hours blast (if driving like you've stolen it) from home this is another place I've watched go from good condition to the state it is in now which is only fit for a bulldozer. Perhaps the opposite from a security point of view.. a walk in back then where as now you get covered in dog shit and suffer flat tyres if you're stupid enough to park your car in the grounds. First visited with Sinnerman & Snappel. I've probably lost count of the amount of times I've visited over the years now. It's a crying waste of a set of buildings given the condition they were in but now I'd rather just see the place levelled if it meant keeping the admin and chapel perhaps. Best trips included staying at the local B&B and running around 3 foot of snow at 2am pissed as a fart.
3. West Park Hospital, Epsom - 2008
The first big un' - West Park had been notoriously well sealed but for 3am trips around the laser grid and dodging the dome cameras everywhere. Then early in 2008 security seemed much more relaxed. It was kept quiet for months that it was open for business once again. A whole day of roaming the place. A giant and memorable place. First explored with Rigsby, Rookinella, Speed & Ether. We found Denton ward was nailed shut but even more frustrating so was the padded cell. A visit the following month would find it open and 35 of us fitting inside the walls of it. Probably crammed in 10-15 more visits over the years before demo. Looking back now I perhaps should have given it more attention but Cane Hill down the road was just that little bit more special.
4. Fairmile Hospital, Berkshire - 2008
An odd one with those bloody talking CCTV camera/posts. First visited with Winchester & Sinnerman. We stood on the lawn to see if the cameras were still working. 'Please leave the site immediately' - yep they're still working. Bollocks. We'd go around the old OT sheds to the west of the site and bumped into Nurse Payne who promptly got naked on a rather soggy shit stained mattress. The following year we'd get into the main block on a freezing January Sunday morning. I seem to recall it being around minus 12 outside. Winch decided to have a shit and it was still steaming about 3 hours later when we left. Not one of my favourites it was a bit bland and only one ward really carried it's original fixtures and fixings. Now a very overpriced set of fancy apartments. Well its is Berkshire!
5. Severalls Hospital, Colchester - 2008
June 2008. What a month that was. My travels with work seemed to put me next to a derelict asylum every night of the week. In the space of 10 days I would visit or revisit no less than 7 asylums. Severalls was also the first solo explore of an asylum. A sunny afternoon Winch is telling me to walk around the back fence where I'd find either the fence open as it had many holes in it or just climb up the 'Severalls Tree' - I found the tree. Or rather just the stump of it and a fresh batch of sawdust around it. The fence had also been sealed up. Bugger. Eventually finding a way under I'd have a free roam. The days before Michael were a lot more chilled and but for walking brazen along the road that circled the hospital once you were in, you stayed in for as long as you liked. I recall somehow climbing up through a narrow hole in the door to the water tower and then trying not falling into the fetid pit of water below. A huge site but perhaps a little empty but those huge corridors and rows of cell doors would make it one of the most photogenic. It had about 3 farewell tours and yet the place outlived all but the rest of the derelict ones of its time.
6. Cane Hill Hospital, Coulsdon - 2008
Cane. Fucking. Hill. Even by June of 2008 I'd left it too late. I remember walking down the footpath of Portnalls Road and there I got my first glimpse of it in the early morning sunshine. One of my favourite exploring moments. The place was colossal. I first caught glimpse of a ward as we walked towards the fence. Curtains gently blowing in the breeze. For all its sheer fuckedness of 19 years derelict it was beautiful. That first Sunday at Cane Hill with JonBoy, Dystopia, Winch & Fluffy was incredible. I think we did 13 hours with little more than the occasional stop for a swig of water. It was 25 degrees outside but we pushed on till we were all exhausted and covered a large chunk of the place. I say a large chunk but I could have honestly spent 3 weeks solid in there and not got bored. To try and whittle down my CH photos down to 50 is hard enough. 5 is sheer impossible. I miss this place more than any other site I've ever explored. It was simply incredible.
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I think I'd failed here several times but didn't really put that much effort in as the place was simply ruins. Still nice to eventually tick off the list. Funny how this place was meant to be saved due to its condition being better than Cane Hill. What a load of bollocks from English Heritage. 
