Tales of the Urban Explorer: A Tale of Seven Deadly Houses

"Very few explorers have been to this one", @anidiotexplores was telling me.

I had no reason to dispute his claim, he had been handed it from another 'popular' explorer, one I have not had any personal interaction with.

As this strictly comes under the moniker of ‘Time Capsule’ I can’t divulge much about it, however there’s some history here that goes something like this:

Once upon a time, there was a large industrial complex that was in the middle of nowhere. The management needed workers so built several houses next to it.

They rented them cheaply to the workers who could then live there, and step out of their doors to start work every day paying them peanuts.

For years this deal went well until an almighty explosion on the plant devastated it, rendering the once proud business unusable.

The blast was so fierce that the surrounding employed occupants were told to leave immediately. As there was now no work left, the residents never returned and many of their possessions remain in the properties.

We were going to have a look and sniff out what was left. The plant was a wreck, vast, open, and devoid of any features. The closest houses were in terrible shape and obviously had been caught in the blast.

The far block, which appeared to be around seven houses all glued together were nestled behind a large iron fence. It proved ineffective and we quickly found ourselves outside the front door of house #1.

I didn't know it at the time, but there would be a theme soon that involved jumping through a broken window, mooching around the bottom floor, climbing the stairs, checking the top floor, descending, climbing out…, rinse and repeat.

There were SEVEN houses though the last one was passed upon, the reason will soon become apparent.

The insides were remarkably well preserved, though I wouldn’t wipe my arse using that crusty chunk of Imperial Leather. The cotton buds and deodorant could well have been borderline useable.

At least one lot of these foodstuffs has a date of 2014. I could describe the incident but that would give away the location. It was mostly unspoiled and contained items of value so I won't.

The front windows were always the way in. At times, there was a landing point while others like this hosted just the floor.

The rare record guide would have been of great interest to me once, but as all my vinyl went in one large lot around 2004, it was no longer.

House #2 decided not to place their CRT TV in the far corner but used it to dry their washing and appeared not to own one.

That bloke looked mean, I hoped he would not re-appear and chase us out with a large sword, screaming the words…, 'DEATH'.

In another room we found the TV, and the discarded CRT on the floor which looked remarkably similar to the one in House #1.

The kitchen looked as deadly as the bloke with the beard. Our visit in this room was short-lived.

Real money, if a little dusty.

At this point, I am losing my memory of which house was which. I think we are still in House #2. A service book for a car I used to own in the late 1990’s.

Is it the same bearded bloke, before he grew it?

He's a drinker and not just of cheap beer.

Digital money right in front of me; should I have taken it? At the time, I didn’t even notice.

Mr Beard needs a little recreational entertainment, maybe while having a shit? We all have our deviant secrets.

The other chair is in a strange position; a perfect level for a little tongue waggling I would wager.

We left the deadly bearded one and headed for House #3. I do try and avoid depositing my filthy shoes on people's leather sofas but you can't avoid it at times. Leave the front door open next time.

A slightly tidier kitchen, with what looks like a tumble dryer on top of the washing machine. They had little space to play with.

That one must not have had a lot inside as it appears we are on House #4 already. Apologies to the orange chair which was our landing zone as well as that comfy-looking cushion.

The Lemsips may be salvageable, but even fresh ones tend to make me wretch. I could stomach them when younger, but not anymore.

The newspaper may tell me a little more about the last days of these houses. 2015; that's eight years ago.

It could be put to great use where it’s sitting.

I am thinking this could be House #5, the one before my…, er we will get to that a little later. Did someone nick the telly?

Some very English glasses on that shelf, as well as more cold medication.

A lot of crap to sift through if you have the patience. I still had two more houses in the bag, so didn’t look very hard.

Ooh, Karate Belts, Purple being the big boy. I never made it past Orange, and it’s a long time ago!

The looks a little serious Edward, what have you been up to? This means testing is checking whether you are eligible for benefits. Has he been trying to con the taxpayer to give him extra cash?

Eight years later, Edward still lives here. It seems he got away with being thrown in jail.

Urk.., has someone been shitting on the bed?

I too have a load of these useless items hanging around in the house. They need to be binned.

I think this may be House #6; the postcard house and the place of my accident. I had no idea what was going to happen in the next few minutes.

Walking into the kitchen, I approached the stairs and then it happened without any notice.

I lay there thinking…, ’this isn’t bad I could get used to it’. Nothing was hurting; no pain just a sense of contentment. What the fuck was happening?

It didn't last long, and staying here forever was not the answer though I was tempted to just lie there a little longer. I pulled myself up and looked up.

The fall was only around 3 feet and the landing was soft. It could have been a lot worse but I was shaken, and dazed.

Hauling myself out of that hole was a little troublesome. @anidiotexplores had not heard me and I guessed was in the final house. I had to place my back on the white tiles and then try to edge up without breaking more of those flimsy floor tiles.

After a few minutes, I was out and very wary of that damn floor. What to do now?

Feeling no injuries, I clung to the wall and edged my way up the stairs. You have to see these things out.

Up there was a room filled with airplane postcards, all of them looking quite new. Someone was a plane freak.

By the time I had exited House #6, @anidiotexplores was already outside and telling me that the final house was 'a bit crap'.

Under normal circumstances, I would have looked anyway, but my level of wary was in the stratosphere.

He had not heard my fall, probably because I had not yelled. There had been no time, it was instant.

Why 'Seven Deadly Houses'? That's because the foot of the stairs in each contains the same plastic floor tiles that have been derelict for the same amount of time in each one.

They look convincingly strong but don't be deceived. How many more explorers are going to take the same fall as me? I am a lucky bastard, or was on this occasion.

Fate was about to catch up with me; Ever seen the Final Destination movies? I am a believer.

Thinking I had dodged a bullet, we left and headed for ‘Sally’s House’. This is where things would take a turn for the worse.

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