For this first post on steemit I want to revisit a series of photos I took in an abandoned trainyard in northern Germany.
By chance I got to talk to a fellow urban explorer and learned about the existence of an abandoned train yard not too far from me, even though the general location was unknown at that point. Seeing I still had a few days of vacation left I decided to check out the area by biek to see if I could find it, but I didn’t want to explore it just then to do more research first.
When I took a wrong turn that turned out to be a right turn I suddenly found myself in urbex heaven and there was no resisting the urge to explore just there and then.
Before I get to the pictures I want to tell you a bit about the history of the place. The massive complex spans around a center plate that once turned to allow trains to be parked and sent on new rails, but was destroyed in a huge fire more than twenty years ago. The middle plate somehow went missing – my best guess is that it was mostly wood and burned – and is now a lake in the middle of a small forest. The whole inside has been reclaimed by nature and it’s quite eerie to walk through a forest that you know has grown inside a building.
Only the outer walls remain of the main complex, though there are some buildings – that I didn’t get a chance to explore this time – that I assume used to be office or machinery storage. I will surely explore them at a later date.
I'm never tired of exploring.
Same shit, different tire
Found a perfect parking spot.
I love how the graffiti artist felt the need to tell us we are looking at a window.
This place had all the cliche photo opportunities. Not that I'm complaining.
One more shot of the outside, I couldn't walk past that bright red gas tank.
The complex welcomed me with the urbex equivalent of a red carpet, but seeing the state of the wood I decided to use the little step to the left instead.
This was were the trains parked while they waited for their turn to be sent on their new track. You can see part of the wall in the background. Each of the 'gates' once led to a track just like this one and it's actually the inner of two circles with the outside walls you just saw being the outer one.
A closer look at the inner circle. Weird graffiti was all over the place, for some reason the blue one on the pillars really gave me chills.
I want to say this is my favourite shot of the day, but it's a close fight with the next one.
Just as with the shot before the bright graffiti colours work so well as a contrast, and just like the torn down wall it shows the level of decay so well. Even the graffiti begins to crumble and fade, the end of this place is near.
Yet another favourite shot, this crumbling pipe had such a lovely and vibrant colour that it even stuck out in the fully coloured image.
It was time for me to leave, but my favourite tip I ever learned in a photography book 'When you shoot a picture you like turn around and look again' proved to be true once more, making me stumble over a pretty unique graffiti I would have almost missed.
That is all I have today, but it surely won't be the last time I visit this place. I hope you liked the short afternoon trip as much as I did!
I'm also super exited about steemit, hoping it will take off as it deserves.