Hi! I'm new to the area and eager to hit the streets. I'd love to meet some of you - I've been sitting through the compulsory waiting period just itching to start posting and such.

This is my first time living in Toronto, and it'll be my first time exploring in a first-world city (debatable). I read the post on Ontario's trespassing laws and found it useful. I need some area-specific information, if you guys are down. Specifically:

- Those of you who have been caught, what is the response when it's discovered that you're *just there to explore* and not necessarily disturbing anything? In some places the motive for being somewhere is irrelevant, and in others it can make a world of difference.

- In Toronto, how common is squatting? I have no qualms about going into factory zones, trespassing corporate property, etc. but I take issue with just marching into someone's home - especially if home is a tentative and insecure space, the last thing I want to do is obliterate any sense of privacy and safety someone may have been able to find.

- Related: what are the drugs to look out for? It's one thing to be exploring and find a couple of people high on heroin, but another thing entirely to find the same on meth.

- Seriously, I've been in the country for 3 months: am I way off base with these kinds of questions? Some places it's important, others not so much.

I don't tend to shy from danger, but I don't want to just go naively marching into a place either. Different cities have a different feel to them, and difference dangers as well. I'd love to tag along with a small group on a jaunt to a favourite place if you'd have me, to get a feel for the city, its spaces, its people, and its unique challenges and special dangers.

Regards,

- A.

I'm not a huge explore due to the lack of buildings that I've found near me but I normally will say "Hello?" or something when I'm near the entrance of a building to potentially avoid barging in on anything. I'm not sure if its 100% effective of course as I've never ran into anyone.

I've been doing this for about 12 years now and never encountered a tagger before. It took one trip to Toronto to find one within the first 10 minutes of hitting up places.






He gave me his business card, after he was given the speech about how he really shouldn't be doing this to other people's businesses. We didn't run into anyone else that day except for a guy dressed in a white lab coat with what appeared to be blood on it (part of an amateur film production shoot).

I'm a wee woman, so I tend not to announce myself when exploring - especially solo. That said, I've definitely announced my intentions when I've stumbled on others in a site. It seems to negate the immediate panic for everyone.

Generally I'd agree that a shout 'anyone home?' is a good idea. In Detroit for example most of the 'abandoned' sites and all of the 'abandoned' houses are occupied. It's better all around to avoid the houses and head straight for the factories & commercial spaces.

... so in Toronto, when you encounter someone doing something 'bad,' they politely give you their business card and then continue on their merry way?

Posted by stickbeat ... so in Toronto, when you encounter someone doing something 'bad,' they politely give you their business card and then continue on their merry way?

In this instance, yes. He wanted one of us to take a photo of his 'art' and send it to him. I wasn't keen on doing so but he seemed to be a nice fellow despite his choice of canvas. Perhaps not all encounters would have gone so smoothly.

It's just so stereotypically Canadian that I never thought that such a thing could in fact be the case.

First off, Welcome to UER. Second, What country are you from? I'm just curious what you've previously explored. Show us some of your photos sometime, we'd love to see them!

Third. Most of the time you get told to get off the property. Very rarely does it extend further than that. If it's a higher risk location (active security patrols) you risk a ticket. That's all.

I do however suggest you take a photo of your POE from a distance, because if you're inside and the security guard asks how you got in, you'll have proof of no wrongdoing. I was arrested for B&E but in reality I hadn't done anything but walk through an open door. Cover your ass. :3

welcome to the forums! im looking forward to what your going to bring to the table.

good exploring

I'm actually from Canada, but I've been out of the country for the past four years. I got into exploring when I was a teenager - not as an activity so much as a way of finding shelter (I was homeless for a bit), and since then would occasionaly check out something that crossed my path. I started exploring in earnest about three years ago, across east and south-east Asia and the USA.

I don't have many photos - homeless waifs don't carry cameras, and in Bangkok bringing your camera with you into questionable situations is a good way to get it stolen.

I'll see what I can dig up from Detroit and Kuala Lumpur though if that satisfies?

I have run into:

* graffers / taggers
* meth-head scrappers
* professional scrappers
* homeless folk
* IV drug users
* security / cops
* other explorers
* curious people

The only one thats really worried me are the meth-head scrappers, I was quite clear on non-interference with their operations. The professional scrappers didn't want to cause a fuss and get any authority involved. The drug users and the homeless just want to be left alone. The taggers usually clear off shortly after realizing someone else was on-site. The cop gave most of us a free pass, the local security was all balls-hard about _somebody_ getting a ticket. Usually talk shop with other explorers. Curious people usually have lots of questions, if they approach you at all.

I've also run into all of the above. In almost all cases respect is given where respect is shown. Tweekers and junkies can obviously be dangerous at the wrong moment, when that despair hits.

Overall it's quite safe, get out and enjoy. And welcome.

It seems like you're expecting this city to be like Detroit but it's really not that bad. The biggest drug here is probably crack, not sure if that's preferable to meth or heroin. I've run into taggers, scrappers, cops, and other explorers and had to avoid security and construction crews, the worst was probably some cops who took my ID for being stupid. Of course I can't speak to the experience of being a petite woman trespassing in a dark place but I don't find violent criminals that worrying for what it's worth.

No Detroit was a breeze, but meth has become a big problem in Korea. It's (statistically) the most commonly used illegal drug. It's the one thing that freaks me out. Heroin makes you useless and you still have some relation to yourself on crack, but meth is a drug that makes people dangerous.

Security doesn't worry me as much as the police do. From abroad, news media reads like the cops are just abusive and violent. Call it culture shock, but I'm finding the look of them to be incredibly intimidating. They are HUGE. And wear body armour!

Posted by z0th ...the local security was all balls-hard about _somebody_ getting a ticket.

Never going to let me live that one down, are you? It was probably the hat.

Posted by TRAINS Never going to let me live that one down, are you? It was probably the hat.

As far as I'm concerned, there was not a damn thing wrong with your hat. Security-hag was probably thought otherwise. The cop didn't give a shit.

Are there many women doing this in the area? looks like most of you are men?

Posted by stickbeat Are there many women doing this in the area? looks like most of you are men?

There's a few. S'Qualie & L'Ali are the main ones in the GTA. There aren't many females in the Urban Exploring scene in Ontario.

I will add "Very sick old man still living in his house that I apparently saw as abandoned who caught me exploring his house that he legally owned while he was inside of it"

and

"Owners of the property that decided to check out their new purchase the day I decided to do some shooting for my thesis after I learned said man had died and finally got the courage to step foot on the property again"

to the list (though said property is about an hour and a half outside of Toronto...but, given the lack of locations in Toronto I'm sure you'll make it out of the GTA if you explore regularly.


I think walking through Lawrence Heights at night regularly was a riskier choice for me than exploring there ever was.

Man, this is certainly heartening.

So what I gather, Toronto (& Ontario more broadly) is a pretty safe place to go exploring. Not too much to worry about it seems, so far as squatters and scrappers. Sounds like security is lax and cops are chill, taggers are polite and others are deferential.

Good all around, yep!