Had a wander around the perimeter of G & C to begin with (always good practice!) Gaining entry was straightforward although once in we found ourselves with very little light and beyond that first room - total darkness. So it was out with the Maglite and on our way.
From what we could see most of the place seems to have been stripped bare – the only equipment we could see was stuff that was firmly secured fixed into place such as the boiler, remains of a lift and random bits of machinery. We did come across a few ledgers scattered on the floor but didn’t spend too long looking at them given that we were in total darkness!
We did try to access a staircase which we knew led up to an area with at least two open windows but abandoned the attempt as the going was treacherous. In fact the floor (if you could call it that) was so fragile that I went though it on no less than three occasions – and that was only when testing the area with my foot while supporting myself at the same time. Trust me – we would have got better support from a few sheets of old newspapers. Some of this could be due to the several cases of pancake fungus that we encountered (Poria Incrassata apparently) which is known for the severe amount of structural damage it can cause (See link to news article below).
Watch those floors!
We did eventually find a couple of stairways that were safe enough to climb but once on the upper floors there wasn’t really much to see – there was one area where the celling has collapsed creating something that would not look out of place at the Sculpture Park, some more pancake fungus + a toilet and a bathroom. So with that we went back outside and entered the building from the opposite side.
We fared better here if only because this area was mainly very well lit and more interesting to look at. But again nothing much to see in terms of equipment/artefacts/ etc. A weigh bridge area, the remains of the canteen which provided access for men only (wouldn’t happen today) and few strategically placed doors suspended about 15 feet in the air - sorry you failed your job interview try again later!
A good visit all in all – though clearly not for the faint hearted – ensure you have a torch, tread very very carefully and you should be OK.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/11/02/poria-incrassata_n_2063942.html
..and finally a couple of images I edited slightly....
Thanks for looking - feedback always welcome.
Thanks for looking
Feedback welcome esp as I am a nooby!