The Decade Pavilion at the West Burnaby Nonspecific Sickhouse forms an X. Not the stairwell at the center of the X, nor any of the four stairwells at the points of the X, lead to unlocked rooftop access, alas. The top few floors are active patient wards, but no one cares about you -- go where you want. Nurses will let you out of secure wards that you have accidentally let yourself in to with a smile. Nevertheless, these floors can be skipped if you are in a hurry.

Absolutely not to be skipped is the abandoned operating wing on the after-first floor.

The thing on the right is an "illuminator."

This filing cabinet had been crowbarred into, I think unsuccessfully. I imagine this was the (failed) attempt of some former owner of the files, rather than some roaming pill-freak, for instance.

The pamphlet I looked at was printed in 1993.

The Laurel Pavilion should be your next stop.

It has many nooks and crannies, and even some wild abandoned areas. The connoisseur of peeling paint will not be disappointed by the stairwells.

The intrepid will want to brave the hanging plastic and “Danger Construction Area” sign to enter the Ash Bosom Center via the Tunnel level.

The ABC is currently undergoing asbestos abatement, but you don’t need to worry about that, unless you are planning to exercise inside the walls for thirty years.

Indeed, you’ll have a hard time finding walls. Twisted metal studs are all that remain of the walls that once divided this building so effectively into rooms. The former rooms are piled with the mangled detritus of the former walls and ceilings.

Though no doubt neat and systematic, the demolition appears to have been largely the work of sledgehammer and resentment.

All the floors are much alike. Avoid spending too much time on the roof in full daylight.

Give the main floor a pass, too: that’s where the on-site security guard, speaking Tamil into his cell phone, defends himself against the monotonous naggings of his wife.

Why not visit the West Burnaby Nonspecific Sickhouse? Conveniently located in that municipality to the west of Burnaby, West Burnaby, WBNS has much to discover, and much to explore.

Start at the bottom. Most of the buildings of the Sickhouse are connected by an underground network of corridors. This “tunnel” level, accessible from many stairwells and elevators, is no doubt technically off-limits to the public, but the few signs making this explicit are easily ignorable.

Go in the early evening on a weekend, and you won’t run into many people.

Security guards travel in packs of three, and smile sheepishly without much eye contact. In fact, they are your friends: like couriers with undelivered mail, they leave little slips on insecure and ajar doors, which are presumably intended for whoever is responsible for the room or space, but are also useful opportunity-flags for the urban explorer.

The Tunnel level not only gets you into the elevators and stairwells of various buildings, it is a destination in its own right. Low-ceilinged, utilitarian, hot, and pipey, these hallways are deliciously homely, and offer a nice grungy contrast to the sterilized public areas.

The Tunnel level is also home to service elevators, storage rooms for beds and other equipment, roaming forklifts, mechanical rooms, a print shop, laundry rooms, and the anuses of garbage and biomedical waste chutes.

Did some wandering without my camera this week, and had to fall back on my cell phone.

Got into the parkade of the empty P500 Hotel, but the "Stairwell to Lobby" doors were all locked. This might change next week, when new renovation starts, according to the friendly security guard I spoke to.

Spent an hour or more wandering around the tunnel level, and climbing up into some of the buildings of, the VGeneralH. This place is a freaking wonderland. I think these two photos are from the H. Pavilion, which appeared to be half abandoned:

And then, miracle of miracles, I found a couple of locked but not quite closed doors on the B. Columbia I. of Tech campus.

I poked my nose into every corner of the steam plant ...

... The last corner I poked my nose into was the control room, where I had a brief, awkward chat with the control guy.

"Oh, hi. You, uh, got much to do on a Sunday here?"
"Not really.... You in training or something ...?"
"Nah, just visiting the campus."
"..."
"Well, I guess I'll return my hardhat and, um, get out of here ... Bye."

There are steam tunnels under them thar buildings. Altogether I found and tried about six or seven doors marked "Service Tunnels -- Contractors Must Wear Hardhats," but they were all locked. Even the one in the basement of the steam plant, and the one in the back corner of this normally locked electrical room.

Dang.

Got up at dawn (fuck!) to check out this under-demolition apartment building.

The huge gaps in the security fence made it irresistible.

I was taking this photo when some unseen person started calling "Hello."

You can just see the security guard's truck's license plate in the darkness.

I guess this guy is of the "wait till they trespass and then pounce on them" school rather than the "make yourself visible to dissuade them from trespassing" school.

We had a pleasant chat. He was a bit puzzled by a "photography student" wearing a hardhat and reflective vest, but told me to come back at 7:30 and talk to the guy in charge about getting permission to take some more photos. I thanked him and agreed, knowing in my heart of hearts that I was going back to bed.

Visited my third under-construction residential highrise in Rotown. Old hat. Yawn.

Actually, though the sights are starting to look familiar, the getting in is still pulse-quickening. Hopped over a rattly fence at 2:00 a.m. on a weeknight in full view of Kingsway.

I read somewhere (I think it was in Bradley Garrett's "Explore Everything") that the author finds sites like these, once he's inside, to be oases in the city, private sanctuaries where he can really relax.

I don't feel that way. My procedure is still to get in, climb to the top, take some pictures along the way, and get out as soon as possible.

The pictures are generally lousy -- panic shots.

I look forward to feeling less anxious when doing this. On the other hand, obviously part of the fun is the adrenaline. For the most part, the places I have been inside have not been inherently wondrous. Just deliciously off-limits.

Here's a blurry view north.

Perhaps the wind was blowing, or perhaps I was shaking while holding the tripod out on the ledge, while leaning over a 2x4 barrier on the 40th floor.