Urban Exploration: Brodock Ltd, The Old Paper Mill (Failed).
We are Urban Explorers, we are not vandals. We take nothing besides photographs and leave nothing but footprints.
You win some, you lose some – It’s an old expression that’s used often and applies to what you are about to read.
At the end of November, I noticed this old mill simply by driving past. It's quite close to where I live so I decided to investigate.
Access was simple and I parked my car not so close as to attract unwanted attention. There is little in the way of residential properties close so it was quite simple to slip into the grounds via the main entrance and start my photography.
I needed to know what this place is or was. The phone number on the wall of the building was a clue. Later, I looked it up and discovered this was once ‘Brodock Ltd’, a supplier of ‘decorative furniture, furniture pieces, chairs, tables, antique furniture’.
I can imagine this corrugated iron large building with the very high room could have been a showroom for large retail items such as these but Google also tells me that once it was a paper mill.
The ‘corrugated iron' building looks like something built later. There is a public footpath on the opposite side of the property and river which afforded me the cover shot. The employees might have taken lunch next to this scenic view once.
Anything resembling scenic is now long gone. From what I can gather, the company filed their last tax report in 2004, making this place empty for possibly 14 years.
The reception door was stuck fast as so that wasn’t an option. It looked like it was never a very inviting entrance even when the place was open.
What was once windows on this horrible iron building had iron guards placed on to stop intruders? Some had been pulled off and I could have climbed in but decided against it.
The back of the factory had an entrance. See the big gaping entrance where a door used to be? I stuck my head in only to find blackness. I hadn’t brought a torch with me, doh!
I left meaning to return in the near future armed with a torch.
3 weeks later.
My second failed attempt at infiltrating Brodock Ltd is a consequence of simply farting around for too long.
UrBex Tip: If you find somewhere interesting with an access point don’t dilly-dally!
I noticed the original entrance has been secured, but the alternate one down the back of the mill was now open.
Walking down the muddy trail was none too pleasant and I found myself at the opposite side of the mill next to the river.
I had to vault over this fast running stream to ensure I got the photographs I wanted at the correct angle.
Balancing on this wall next to the river bought memories of my teens. I’m not so old and decrepit that I can’t do it any longer, and then the anticlimax hit me.
The place had been sealed in the last three weeks, bummer!
Not one for sulking, I set about photographing the graffiti. You have to make the most of what you have, right?
The iron guards had been reset on the iron mess of a building too. No going in there either.
As I could no longer get out via the front entrance, I had to balance on the wall again and try not to fall into the river retracing my steps.
On the way out I noticed an access point in the form of a ‘hole’. Peering in showed me darkness and my torch didn’t help too much either.
It was large enough for me to crawl though and I did contemplate going in.
Even if it gained me access to the upper section of the original factory with every window boarded up with wood or concrete I figured it would be hard to see anything.
Common sense kicked in and I disregarded this new entrance and left after taking more graffiti shots.
Brodock Ltd was not a complete failure, though I should have gone in the first time. Bringing the correct tools (torch) helps a lot.
I'm still learning about all this; it's invigorating and gets your adrenaline racing at times.
Other articles in the ‘Urban Exploration’ series:
Urban Exploration: Urban Exploration: Workhouse Farm
Urban Exploration: Urban Exploration: Hellifield Abandoned Train
Urban Exploration: Extwistle Hall
Urban Exploration: Huncoat Power Station (Demolished)
Urban Exploration – A Trilogy of Failures
Urban Exploration: Holdings Country Pottery
[//]:# (!steemitworldmap 53.769489 lat -2.401684 long Urban Exploration: Brodock Ltd, The Old Paper Mill (Failed). d3scr)
If you found this article so invigorating that you are now a positively googly-eyed, drooling lunatic with dripping saliva or even if you liked it just a bit, then please upvote, comment, resteem, engage me or all of these things.
You are the urban adventurer @slobberchops! I always find these old abandoned buildings so sad, once so full of hope and now literally just broken dreams! Enjoy your exploring!
Seriously... you need to bring a headtorch and a helmet on these types of exploration! And make sure someone knows where you are (text bingbabe to say where your car is parked)! If you don't come back, the first thing the police will do is check to see if your car is parked where you said it would be.
You can get a good climbing helmet for about £22 from Decathlon - designed to protect your head from falling rocks.
Yes she does know where I go, and I tell her 'call the cops if I don't return in an hour and am not answering the phone.'
Wearing workman's gear isn't a bad idea, I could be the owner of the place looking it over.
That is a good idea! With a helmet. And take a clip board.
Is that to hit undesirables that I meet on my trips? :)
Haha! No - to give you an authentic look! People wearing a hi-viz vest and carrying a clip board rarely get approached.
This place looks more dodgy than any other that you have posted so far... do you ever get stopped by anyone? and would you ever consider climbing in (like with a ladder or a rope...), although, I guess that opens up the problem of how to get back out!
Some UrBex people use ropes and grapples. Its not unheard of, and yes this place does look dodgy. That's the reason I didn't go in the first time.
I kept telling myself.. C'mon you wimp.. try again, so did and then this..!!
Heh, you need other people there... Peer pressure!
Wow, that is pretty cool. It just amazes me how you can walk around these kinds of places over there. Here you would be thrown in jail for trespassing pretty much straight away I think. Bummer that you weren't able to get some shots inside though.
Are you sure? Trespass is a civil offence here, not a criminal one. If the cops turned up they would simply tell me to leave and that's it.
Okay, you're right, it would probably just be a ticket as long as you didn't get shot by the property owner first. We all have guns over here remember :)
Yes I remember... shoot first, talk later ;)
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you should take some actual #googlyeyes along on one of those explorations ;) I see opportunities everywhere :P
LOL, I will keep an eye out for the eyes, though I don't have a pair I bring along with me.
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You didn't crawl through the hole? The entrance to Slobberchops Wonderland!
I had a good think about it. There was a load of junk in there, someone had sought refuge at some time. Maybe homeless, or an escaped convict.
Or a bankrupt crypto investor, hehe!
Go in there looking like the sweaty guy and I guarantee nobody will bother you. Have a good look at him. Seriously, if you saw this coming at you, would you stick around?
You captured some great photos, regardless of not being able to get inside and get all of them that you would have wanted. Your Graffiti photos are great. Do be safe when you are wandering around those sort of places!
I do try, a Harry Potter invisbility cloak would be good for me, those nosey humans do get in the way of my UrBex. Do you have one for sale?
I don't. There's no way that I'm parting with my own, but if I see one that's available I'll be sure and grab it for you!