Last Summer we crammed an unprecedented amount of exploring into just a few short months. Each weekend was littered with schools, churches, and whatever miscellaneous industry we could find. We hooked up with a couple new friends from outa state and decided to hit a few places new to all of us. We put the usual spots on the backburner, and headed out towards rooftops, medical facilities, veterinary offices, funeral homes, and lastly dry cleaners.
When we set out on these adventures we never truly know what to expect or what to plan for. I have adopted the “boy scout” motto of “Be Prepared”. That motto can bite you in the ass though, as my vehicle and backpacks are only so big. We try to have extras of almost everything with us. Before this explore that list included, but was not limited to extra batteries, flashlights, water, snacks, clothes, door ties, and even mini glow sticks. After this day’s first exploration took us to a flooded dry cleaner, we promised ourselves that “extra shoes” would forever now be on our list!…
This dry cleaner was a place we had all seen online, so we had high hopes of gaining entry. The building sat on an unassuming corner with not much around. There was little to no cover to help conceal our entry, and the residents across the street most certainly knew what we were up to. As we walked around this structure we could clearly see liquid seeping out of the building, yet none of us gave it a second thought. Once we found an open window we started to understand what was going on. This building was flooding, not just flooded, but actively flooding!
The four of us stood outside of this dilapidated entry of a window, literally and figuratively contemplating our next steps. It was decided that one of us(beef)(he really did volunteer) should go in and try to make a pier or platform for us to walk on. Rita proceeded to locate and gather boards, planks, and bricks from around the building’s foundation so beef could craft our pathway. These building materials were in no way uniform or even level, so creating a stable walkway through ankle deep water was near impossible, yet beef tried. Each piece that was placed wobbled precariously under our weight as we made our entry.
Not surprisingly, through sheer will, stubbornness, and a need to explore, beef found a way to craft a 7-10 foot long elevated walkway through one room and almost into the next. The thin laminate door that separated these two rooms hung precariously from its hinges, but only briefly. Having brushed against that door one too many times, it broke free from its supports and came splashing down. Beef proceeded to lay that door flat, which extended our entry into the next flooded room.
Not unlike the door in Titanic, this door could barely hold one person’s weight before it started to succumb to the watery depths that lay before it. This thin laminate door we were walking on had become brittle with time, and now each step caused it to crack and crumble beneath our feet as it started to sink. The sight that stretched out before us; this entire dry cleaner’s interior was flooded 4 or more inches deep. It was at this moment that we knew what had to be done. If we wanted to see this dry cleaner with any sense of accomplishment or finality, we had to “Full Send” it. Just grit our teeth and step off the platform into the semi-murky chemical-laced ankle-deep water.
Typing that sentence out makes me realize just how crazy it really was! We were now wading through and standing in disgusting water that most likely contained unknown dangers. Luckily it was not “still water” as some of it was “flowing”. We thought we heard abstract music in the distance, and someone even commented that they hear “heavy metal”. There was no music playing in the back, just a different source of white noise. From what we could tell, a city water service line broke, and was now pouring copious amounts of water directly into this dry cleaner’s structure and foundation. This meant that whatever stagnant water and chemicals we were trudging through had a chance to be diluted and somewhat cleaner than it otherwise should be. This is one of the main factors that we believe “saved” our feet. We Hope….
The fragments of this business that remained in the backrooms were most certainly worse for wear. Chemical containers of all shapes and sizes were scattered about in various piles. Each of these containers was more or less rusted through from sitting submerged in water, leaching out whatever toxins may lay inside! There were many stations with rusted equipment, and mounds of decaying clothes just strewn about in each corner.
It blows my mind that so many personal items and cherished pieces of clothing were just left behind. After a place like this closes, wouldn’t you come here to retrieve your items? How could you just leave your wedding dress, jean jacket, vest, or suit here to decay and rot?
The stench here wasn’t horrible until we started to wade through and really disturb the water. Once that happened, all the chemicals and decayed cellulose material from the clothes and paper products, now in the water, were kicked up and released into the air again. Luckily, that funky earthy smell only lasted so long until we were fully acclimated to it. Seeing the iridescent/ “oil-slick”-like colors on top of these cloudy waters was another thing to be concerned about. Were those suspended chemicals in the water harmful to humans? Most likely they were! Yet, we were here, ankle-deep, hoping that they had been diluted, and not concentrated with time.
Even in these chemical-laden waters, somehow life finds a way. This dry cleaner’s storefront had floor-to-ceiling windows that let in an overabundance of light. In that bright, warm, and humid environment, plants, grasses, and mosses found a way to thrive, similar to a greenhouse. In theory, none of this should be possible with the numerous harmful elements hidden in this environment, but here they are flourishing.
All in all, this explore wasn’t very big or in depth, yet it will go down as one of our most memorable and unexpected adventures. Everything here was interesting. From the workstations rusting out in the backroom to the finer details of a dry cleaning business, it all held my attention. On top of all that, this was only our first exploration of a long weekend, and the joy and laughter didn’t subside the entire time!
Here is a video of the entry and “beef the builder” hard at work! We hope you chuckle a bit!
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Please enjoy! If you are bored, give our walk-thru a listen
A good portion of the 3 following galleries will contain similar, if not the same photos. We were all a bit overwhelmed at this site and just started snapping to document what we could. This first set will contain beef’s photos!
Now onto Rita’s pics from this site!
Last but not least, Teagan’s pics. We had such a fun evening on this Friday night in July of ’24. Check Out Discovering Teagan and her profiles.
We Hope you decide to play along!
