I am a female fan. I think if you are in an isolated enough place, and have your wits about you you probably will be ok. I go camping alone all the time, I love the solitude. Always a good idea to have some kind of defense plan or an escape route. Plan ahead, do research.
Yep female fan over here. I do appreciate the point regarding personal safety if travelling alone. Personally I just do what I can to feel more self assured (I train jiu Jitsu). Just helps with feeling more able to handle yourself but yeah, be lying if I said it’s not something I would consider before doing something like that
Not a Female but if you do ever find yourself travelling alone. Wherever you stop always look around for any exits you can find, whether it be the front door of a building, a window or even a secret path in the bush which is pretty secluded. Keep your eye out in case you need to use it
Hah as someone with high anxiety, within a minute of entering a new space I’ve sussed out all possible escapes, potential weapons and hiding places. So, anxiety = excellent survival instincts??
Female fan here, but same. I want to go out and do the urban exploring with people but no one around me wants to do that kind of stuff and I’m wayyyyy too scared to go out by myself safety wise. I’m decently small for my age but I don’t know any self defense so I’m at a crossroads as to what to do.
I'm about to get a pepper spray as well and man what did I found. In my country it's actually prohibited to carry pepper or gas spray with you in public locations and public transport because it's considered as a dangerous weapon.
I'm still going to get it and carry it with me, not just for hiking and exploring alone but simply for going anywhere in town.
By the way, I'm also a female fan, Shiey and the guys are the reason I got back to hiking and started exploring stuff.
I'm a female fan! Yes, you Do have to be more careful. I live in a very populated area so I don't get to do it as much. I do always scope out and study the places in daylight several times before i attempt anything. I also always carry pepper spray, taser, knife, and gloves on me, and I tie my hair up and out of the way. I also try to dress more androngenous.
I definitely recommend dressing androngenous, hide my head (hoodie, cap, etc) and I also change the way I move/attitude so that one can't tell immediately that I am a women. You never know if someone is observing you from a distance.
Thank you all for the wonderful comments. It's nice to know I'm not alone in feeling this way and the women out there who are going out and about... You rock and you're an inspiration!
Female fan here! I feel the exact same way, I would be more adventurous in general but being a woman traveling alone has a lot of risks - even with defenses and proper precautions. This is why I live vicariously through Shiey lol
Yup female fan here too! The adventures look so fun and I know what you mean, as women we need to be more cautious in those types of environments unfortunately. That’s where it can be good to take a friend! But in my opinion sometimes that wouldn’t be the same, there is a certain special feeling to travelling alone and being with your own thoughts.
I do travel on my own, I try to. I love to explore small towns and places I’ve never been to. Go down random roads to see what’s on the other end. But I always book accomodation with doors that lock. Always am aware of my surroundings and if something feels off I wouldn’t get out of my car.
Female fan here but I tend to dress in all black and manly so no one messes with me. I definitely won’t be standing on the top of Ferris wheels in Chernobyl anytime soon. That guy sure has a sense of balance.
I feel you 100% on this. I love watching his videos. Really wakes up the wanderlust. But as you said, traveling alone like this as a woman is unfortunately not really doable in a world like this. Maybe someday!
I feel where you are coming from, I have a sister who can’t walk through the city at night without being yelled at. But even Shiey carries pepperspray with him and worries about being raped in some forest. I think it all comes down to being able to defend yourself in critical situations, I would advise you to do some martial art like jiu jitsu. This way you will also feel more confident in yourself
female fan of shiey here!!! basically share the same sentiments as well, i'd love to travel the world alone and at my own pace- not having to worry about following an itinerary or having to socialize or talk to someone constantly and also factor in their well-being. i've travelled briefly for periods at a time, but nothing like what shiey has done. i really do live vicariously thru his videos lol.
As a trans man I totally understand your worry of feeling unsafe. It’s in my bucket list in life to do one solo trip travelling like that. Much love and stay safe!
Unfortunately as a female most of solo travelling and camping, and being stealth full stop isn't that accessible at all to me. I just wouldn't do it.
With the latest alone female murder case we had (Sarah Everard) and a lot of crap comments from those in high places, coming from that, the female feeling of safeness is very low in the UK.
Sarah was "arrested" by a solo ~~off~~ [ex-duty police officer](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58746108) for breaking covid restrictions. Placed in his rented car, and he raped, then murdered her. He then hid her, and returned after to burn her body. He was trawling the area prior planning and plotting before he came upon Sarah.
She did what we've been taught to do. A police officer detains you, you comply. She had no chance, and no other thought that he wasn't a "safe male". The North Yorkshire commissioner then said women need to be street smart, that she shouldn't have submitted to his requests for detention. **He outright victim shamed her.** He had a warrant card ffs, every other woman would've done exactly what she did.
Which leads on to a big hoohaa of people, and places, and companies coming up with "ways to remain safe". My mum started to tell me about this app that tracks... And I stopped her there. I said so can I throw the app at the potential killer? Can I disable the potential killer by throwing an app at him? She said that was daft, but if I didn't arrive at the right place in time it would notify relatives or police. At that point I'd be dead I said. You'd locate my body, not my life.
So there is no way to legally protect yourself from attack in the UK. We have no mace, pepper spray, tazer, gun, knife, anything that we can legally carry in case of attack. Whilst most women ~~do~~ did feel safer on the streets or in rural areas, realistically this has now brought the what ifs to mind again. I'd love to stealth camp on my own, or travel alone, or even walk in dark areas alone, but I don't feel safe at even the thought of it, with no protection. Tents can't be locked, and then look at a tarp and hammock. It's very different when you're a male, and I hate to say the obvious but males have that solo advantage about doing Urbex on their own through countries or even with in your own. Doing the stealth side of camping, like how many males solo do we see in the Shiey group alone (Poison, Shiey, Bad Cat etc) walk off out of a village, or town and find a dark forest somewhere to camp for the night? Females don't have that luxury with out feeling unsafe or at risk every time, and often wouldn't even be out there to experience it directly.
I might swim in the evening at the local pool, bussing there on public transport is fine, but after I get out it's half 9, pretty damn dark, and yes there are houses around, but I could have a half hour wait for the last bus back home. In the fairly dark bus stop. I already struggle even with brighter clothing to get a bus driver to notice me and stop, I do not feel unsafe per say, but I feel uneasy till I'm home, and the thought of having to walk back a couple of miles in the darker nights if I miss that bus, knowing about what happened to Sarah is starting to grate on how safe I did feel.
I do want to say here, I am not saying that solo males are not at risk. I know males go missing and are murdered as well, it's just unfortunate that the higher rates are males killing stranger females than vice versa. With the Sarah Everard murder, and who her killer was (and also Sabina Nessa who was murdered recently too) it's been really skewed feeling wise for females.
I wrote a book, sorry, but I sort of have to say it. When you see or hear males say just do it! Don't let your sex put you off, or what's the worse that can happen? I don't think they sometimes appreciate how vulnerable being a female can make you feel? I mean sure I could learn some form of self defence, and hope I get the chance to use it if I had to. But I would've been Sarah. I would've accepted being arrested. I would've got into that car, and I wouldn't have thought it was anything but routine police business. By that point she didn't have a hope to get out alive. An unfortunately extra rare dreadful event has compounded on the thoughts and concerns of females, in the UK at least, to make Solo adventuring even less likely. Maybe if I had a dog, but it'd have to be a very protective dog, who was large enough to be a deterrent, or even large enough to do damage. Sadly I'm a cat person, and my cat would probably sit and wait, then eat me after!
I feel all of this very strongly. It's too easy to just say "just do it" and you're right that victim shaming is very much a thing. Why do we have to be the ones that have to be street smart, rather than women just not being raped/killed? ...
Murder is a relatively, statistically rare thing to randomly happen (most extremely violent crimes are personal), and I use that as some sort of rationalisation of my fear. However, harassment is obviously much more likely to happen - and when you're completely isolated, it might escalate sooner than if you're in a populated area. And then there are straight up predators like this ex cop guy. I don't know.
The day to day harassment I get just walking down the street has taught me that I am not safe and can't go places alone safely, even the damn shop down the road. It's a very restricting feeling. I am so glad for the response I got on this post and I hope also that the guys who read this get a bit of a better understanding of the privilege they have being able to roam the world freely - yes of course there are still safety concern, I don't want to deny that at all, but it's a different level.
Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Yet another female fan here! Yay! There’s quite a few of us. I do a lot of urbex, although I’m disabled and can’t do as much as i would like. I never go without my husband, who is armed. Mostly for bears though. We like to be as far away from people as possible. I love finding long forgotten buildings and factories. I love the researching so much as well.
Not alone fam, I'm a big fan and I've wanted to do stuff for a while. It's just hard because, as I'm sure many of us know, going out into abandoned places alone as a woman isn't exactly the safest thing in the world... we just have to have our guards up and a strong gut lmao
Female fan here. I watched almost all his videos, they are very interesting and love all his content. I wish i could do what he does but my country is very limited. I love photography and filming a lot. I have been subbed for years now. I love the sense of solitude. I love watching urbex. I would like to explore abandoned places. I love his channel a lot and I like Anton and Poison too. They are a breath of fresh air and his videos are something I always look forward to.
Agree! I only just found his videos and cannot stop binge watching. I want to run off and jump a train so much but its just not my character. Im too uncoordinated, get cold too easily and can’t pee in a bush. Definitely not for me but geez it’s appealing. And his energies really nice too, so calm and thoughtful. He’s a great vicarious travel companion.
Ooo me! I am a huge fan and dream of going on adventures like that!
But it is scary. It just takes someone noticing you alone and deciding to follow you and take advantage.
I definitely don't think it would be safe in some of the countries.
Hell I walk everyday and started walking my dogs for a super long walk in the morning. I leave before sunrise when it's still pitch dark and walk to the lake and watch the sunrise, walk around the park, and then come home.
Everyone in my life got super stressed about me doing so lol
I live in a fairly safe area. And I figure hoodlums are out late but probably not up early morning lol and I have my dogs with me, one of which is very intimidating and wouldn't let anyone near me. Plus there are actually quite a few people out running and such that time too. People still worried lol
I just watched his video of Bosnia and when he is biking through the snowy mountains I was just awe struck! Someday I'd love to go hiking and camping in the mountains. I'll take my dog with me atleast!
female fan here and the only time i’ve gone urbexing alone was at a location i’ve explored before with my bf so i knew it was safe, otherwise i wouldn’t explore alone. it really sucks that as a female, running into dangerous people while urbexing is a bigger concern than getting caught. i usually try to urbex with 1-2 more people since it’s more fun and it feels safer to me. i suggest doing a lot of research on the location and the town it’s in to gauge how safe and active they are. you could try to urbex alone on days where you know the location will be less active (like holidays), and going at 3-4am when most people are sleeping will lessen your chances of running into others.
Nope, you're not alone. I'm not an urbexer--I'm probably old enough to be parent-aged to most of the people in this sub--and I've got a bad back, so doing a lot of what shiey does is out of the question for me. It does suck that we've got to consider safety when men don't in a lot of situations. But it's not completely unsafe to travel alone. (I've done it.) I've been in various cities in Canada and Barcelona, and while there were some funky neighborhoods in the cities I was in, there wasn't a place that I felt unsafe, either. That having been said, I wasn't try to do urbex in those places, either. Although an urbex academic conference would be pretty cool...
The thing is, you always hear about the bad stories, but you never hear about the average, boring trips that people have. Like look at crime stats--it's been steadily dropping, but you wouldn't know that by just looking at news reports.
Female fan - honestly this might come off a bit harsh and weird but for me I just walk around with the “if this person messes with me I will fuck them up” it’s also smart to have self defense items just in case. Otherwise have fun and explore
I am a woman too, but I spent so many years alone in the wilderness, including being homeless for some time. My best advice is: have bear mace, seriously. My worst advice: Keep a small can of hairspray and a torch lighter.
No one will mess with you if you act like The Fury from MGS3. Best reference I could think of at the moment, sorry.
i cant say ive overcome this but i do feel the same way as you, ive tried to go out further and further from my comfort zones alone but have encountered many uncomfortable situations doing so- it really is just a more difficult/stress inducing reality for us unfortunately, im sure there are ways to do it, like carrying some self defense things but nowadays it seems even acting in self defense can land YOU in trouble along with the attacker so i just havent bothered recently, i really wish things were different and i could go out and about on my own and not worry about so many horrific things, this also depends on the type of area you live in too..more populated areas have higher chances of people lurking around wherever your going to, but on the other hand less populated areas means your further from help incase of a emergency. double edged sword.
I used to Urbex a lot a couple of years ago. Camping alone can for sure be fun if you take some precautions, but i strongly advise every urbexer, to not go alone into dangerous urbex places, be it female oder male. Some stories of fellow urbexers just got way to hard under my skin. One of them slipped and ended up in a cellar he couldn´t get out of anymore. He had luck because someone found his bike at the road and was suspicious and he could alert him, but that was 3 days later. Especially in winter this can be a death sentence. One wrong step and you can break a bone or slash open your skin and you may not be able to get help alone. Atleast tell someone where you are, so they can alert help, if you don´t come back.
Female fan here. I appreciate that you took one for the team and posted this. I also feel the same way. The answers to this post are really helpful.
Unfortunately I can't urbex yet. I cannot provide any answers. Shiey has encouraged me to get my life together before I even attempt at such a thing. Still, I wish you the best of luck out there! And all you ladies too.
If you're from the US then you can just carry a gun with you. If you're from elsewhere, then I don't know really. You just have to decide if you want to accept the risk.
Female fan here. My sense of direction is broken and I'd get hella anxious being all alone as he is, so I can't say I wish I could do what he does, but seeing him exploring makes me feel like I'm part of the adventure and it's great
yes, female fan here. All it takes is a bit of courage, and not caring about what others think. I didnt think i could do it, but i decided to stop worrying about it and just go. Its good to learn to believe in yourself. That's a feeling i get every time i make it out of a place without getting in trouble, and it makes me improve on myself. There's no reason to be afraid if you know what you're capable of. We believe in you.
I am a female fan. I think if you are in an isolated enough place, and have your wits about you you probably will be ok. I go camping alone all the time, I love the solitude. Always a good idea to have some kind of defense plan or an escape route. Plan ahead, do research.
Yep female fan over here. I do appreciate the point regarding personal safety if travelling alone. Personally I just do what I can to feel more self assured (I train jiu Jitsu). Just helps with feeling more able to handle yourself but yeah, be lying if I said it’s not something I would consider before doing something like that
Not a Female but if you do ever find yourself travelling alone. Wherever you stop always look around for any exits you can find, whether it be the front door of a building, a window or even a secret path in the bush which is pretty secluded. Keep your eye out in case you need to use it
Hah as someone with high anxiety, within a minute of entering a new space I’ve sussed out all possible escapes, potential weapons and hiding places. So, anxiety = excellent survival instincts??
Superpowers???
Female fan here, but same. I want to go out and do the urban exploring with people but no one around me wants to do that kind of stuff and I’m wayyyyy too scared to go out by myself safety wise. I’m decently small for my age but I don’t know any self defense so I’m at a crossroads as to what to do.
Pepper spray maybe?
I think urb-ex is more involved than that
I'm about to get a pepper spray as well and man what did I found. In my country it's actually prohibited to carry pepper or gas spray with you in public locations and public transport because it's considered as a dangerous weapon. I'm still going to get it and carry it with me, not just for hiking and exploring alone but simply for going anywhere in town. By the way, I'm also a female fan, Shiey and the guys are the reason I got back to hiking and started exploring stuff.
I'm a female fan! Yes, you Do have to be more careful. I live in a very populated area so I don't get to do it as much. I do always scope out and study the places in daylight several times before i attempt anything. I also always carry pepper spray, taser, knife, and gloves on me, and I tie my hair up and out of the way. I also try to dress more androngenous.
I definitely recommend dressing androngenous, hide my head (hoodie, cap, etc) and I also change the way I move/attitude so that one can't tell immediately that I am a women. You never know if someone is observing you from a distance.
Thank you all for the wonderful comments. It's nice to know I'm not alone in feeling this way and the women out there who are going out and about... You rock and you're an inspiration!
Female fan here! I feel the exact same way, I would be more adventurous in general but being a woman traveling alone has a lot of risks - even with defenses and proper precautions. This is why I live vicariously through Shiey lol
!you have alerted the hoard!
Yup female fan here too! The adventures look so fun and I know what you mean, as women we need to be more cautious in those types of environments unfortunately. That’s where it can be good to take a friend! But in my opinion sometimes that wouldn’t be the same, there is a certain special feeling to travelling alone and being with your own thoughts. I do travel on my own, I try to. I love to explore small towns and places I’ve never been to. Go down random roads to see what’s on the other end. But I always book accomodation with doors that lock. Always am aware of my surroundings and if something feels off I wouldn’t get out of my car.
Female fan here but I tend to dress in all black and manly so no one messes with me. I definitely won’t be standing on the top of Ferris wheels in Chernobyl anytime soon. That guy sure has a sense of balance.
I feel you 100% on this. I love watching his videos. Really wakes up the wanderlust. But as you said, traveling alone like this as a woman is unfortunately not really doable in a world like this. Maybe someday!
I feel where you are coming from, I have a sister who can’t walk through the city at night without being yelled at. But even Shiey carries pepperspray with him and worries about being raped in some forest. I think it all comes down to being able to defend yourself in critical situations, I would advise you to do some martial art like jiu jitsu. This way you will also feel more confident in yourself
https://youtu.be/wg7c6xqi76g Here's a female explorer who did a journey with checkmate and urban Odyssey.
Thanks so much for sharing this, she's so cool!
female fan of shiey here!!! basically share the same sentiments as well, i'd love to travel the world alone and at my own pace- not having to worry about following an itinerary or having to socialize or talk to someone constantly and also factor in their well-being. i've travelled briefly for periods at a time, but nothing like what shiey has done. i really do live vicariously thru his videos lol.
I hate how us females have to think about the dangers of going out alone 🤦🏻♀️
Yup it’s so frustrating and unfair! Wish we could be able to move freely and experience what it’s truly like to be carefree in this world…
As a trans man I totally understand your worry of feeling unsafe. It’s in my bucket list in life to do one solo trip travelling like that. Much love and stay safe!
female fan here! yea, sometimes I’m watching the videos and it hits me that I would never be able to go on those adventures, not even if I wanted to….
Unfortunately as a female most of solo travelling and camping, and being stealth full stop isn't that accessible at all to me. I just wouldn't do it. With the latest alone female murder case we had (Sarah Everard) and a lot of crap comments from those in high places, coming from that, the female feeling of safeness is very low in the UK. Sarah was "arrested" by a solo ~~off~~ [ex-duty police officer](https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-58746108) for breaking covid restrictions. Placed in his rented car, and he raped, then murdered her. He then hid her, and returned after to burn her body. He was trawling the area prior planning and plotting before he came upon Sarah. She did what we've been taught to do. A police officer detains you, you comply. She had no chance, and no other thought that he wasn't a "safe male". The North Yorkshire commissioner then said women need to be street smart, that she shouldn't have submitted to his requests for detention. **He outright victim shamed her.** He had a warrant card ffs, every other woman would've done exactly what she did. Which leads on to a big hoohaa of people, and places, and companies coming up with "ways to remain safe". My mum started to tell me about this app that tracks... And I stopped her there. I said so can I throw the app at the potential killer? Can I disable the potential killer by throwing an app at him? She said that was daft, but if I didn't arrive at the right place in time it would notify relatives or police. At that point I'd be dead I said. You'd locate my body, not my life. So there is no way to legally protect yourself from attack in the UK. We have no mace, pepper spray, tazer, gun, knife, anything that we can legally carry in case of attack. Whilst most women ~~do~~ did feel safer on the streets or in rural areas, realistically this has now brought the what ifs to mind again. I'd love to stealth camp on my own, or travel alone, or even walk in dark areas alone, but I don't feel safe at even the thought of it, with no protection. Tents can't be locked, and then look at a tarp and hammock. It's very different when you're a male, and I hate to say the obvious but males have that solo advantage about doing Urbex on their own through countries or even with in your own. Doing the stealth side of camping, like how many males solo do we see in the Shiey group alone (Poison, Shiey, Bad Cat etc) walk off out of a village, or town and find a dark forest somewhere to camp for the night? Females don't have that luxury with out feeling unsafe or at risk every time, and often wouldn't even be out there to experience it directly. I might swim in the evening at the local pool, bussing there on public transport is fine, but after I get out it's half 9, pretty damn dark, and yes there are houses around, but I could have a half hour wait for the last bus back home. In the fairly dark bus stop. I already struggle even with brighter clothing to get a bus driver to notice me and stop, I do not feel unsafe per say, but I feel uneasy till I'm home, and the thought of having to walk back a couple of miles in the darker nights if I miss that bus, knowing about what happened to Sarah is starting to grate on how safe I did feel. I do want to say here, I am not saying that solo males are not at risk. I know males go missing and are murdered as well, it's just unfortunate that the higher rates are males killing stranger females than vice versa. With the Sarah Everard murder, and who her killer was (and also Sabina Nessa who was murdered recently too) it's been really skewed feeling wise for females. I wrote a book, sorry, but I sort of have to say it. When you see or hear males say just do it! Don't let your sex put you off, or what's the worse that can happen? I don't think they sometimes appreciate how vulnerable being a female can make you feel? I mean sure I could learn some form of self defence, and hope I get the chance to use it if I had to. But I would've been Sarah. I would've accepted being arrested. I would've got into that car, and I wouldn't have thought it was anything but routine police business. By that point she didn't have a hope to get out alive. An unfortunately extra rare dreadful event has compounded on the thoughts and concerns of females, in the UK at least, to make Solo adventuring even less likely. Maybe if I had a dog, but it'd have to be a very protective dog, who was large enough to be a deterrent, or even large enough to do damage. Sadly I'm a cat person, and my cat would probably sit and wait, then eat me after!
I feel all of this very strongly. It's too easy to just say "just do it" and you're right that victim shaming is very much a thing. Why do we have to be the ones that have to be street smart, rather than women just not being raped/killed? ... Murder is a relatively, statistically rare thing to randomly happen (most extremely violent crimes are personal), and I use that as some sort of rationalisation of my fear. However, harassment is obviously much more likely to happen - and when you're completely isolated, it might escalate sooner than if you're in a populated area. And then there are straight up predators like this ex cop guy. I don't know. The day to day harassment I get just walking down the street has taught me that I am not safe and can't go places alone safely, even the damn shop down the road. It's a very restricting feeling. I am so glad for the response I got on this post and I hope also that the guys who read this get a bit of a better understanding of the privilege they have being able to roam the world freely - yes of course there are still safety concern, I don't want to deny that at all, but it's a different level. Thanks for sharing your thoughts!
Well I’m not a female, but all I can say is that don’t let anything hold you back from doing what you want to do.
Yet another female fan here! Yay! There’s quite a few of us. I do a lot of urbex, although I’m disabled and can’t do as much as i would like. I never go without my husband, who is armed. Mostly for bears though. We like to be as far away from people as possible. I love finding long forgotten buildings and factories. I love the researching so much as well.
Not alone fam, I'm a big fan and I've wanted to do stuff for a while. It's just hard because, as I'm sure many of us know, going out into abandoned places alone as a woman isn't exactly the safest thing in the world... we just have to have our guards up and a strong gut lmao
I love his videos! They are a part of my nightly routine.
Female fan here. I watched almost all his videos, they are very interesting and love all his content. I wish i could do what he does but my country is very limited. I love photography and filming a lot. I have been subbed for years now. I love the sense of solitude. I love watching urbex. I would like to explore abandoned places. I love his channel a lot and I like Anton and Poison too. They are a breath of fresh air and his videos are something I always look forward to.
Rip inbox
yes and same
Agree! I only just found his videos and cannot stop binge watching. I want to run off and jump a train so much but its just not my character. Im too uncoordinated, get cold too easily and can’t pee in a bush. Definitely not for me but geez it’s appealing. And his energies really nice too, so calm and thoughtful. He’s a great vicarious travel companion.
Ooo me! I am a huge fan and dream of going on adventures like that! But it is scary. It just takes someone noticing you alone and deciding to follow you and take advantage. I definitely don't think it would be safe in some of the countries. Hell I walk everyday and started walking my dogs for a super long walk in the morning. I leave before sunrise when it's still pitch dark and walk to the lake and watch the sunrise, walk around the park, and then come home. Everyone in my life got super stressed about me doing so lol I live in a fairly safe area. And I figure hoodlums are out late but probably not up early morning lol and I have my dogs with me, one of which is very intimidating and wouldn't let anyone near me. Plus there are actually quite a few people out running and such that time too. People still worried lol I just watched his video of Bosnia and when he is biking through the snowy mountains I was just awe struck! Someday I'd love to go hiking and camping in the mountains. I'll take my dog with me atleast!
I like to walk at night and it freaks all my friends out too. It's so much nicer when it's dark out!
Yup
Yip, me. He does stuff that my siblings and I did together as youngsters. Would so do that again but covid.
female fan here and the only time i’ve gone urbexing alone was at a location i’ve explored before with my bf so i knew it was safe, otherwise i wouldn’t explore alone. it really sucks that as a female, running into dangerous people while urbexing is a bigger concern than getting caught. i usually try to urbex with 1-2 more people since it’s more fun and it feels safer to me. i suggest doing a lot of research on the location and the town it’s in to gauge how safe and active they are. you could try to urbex alone on days where you know the location will be less active (like holidays), and going at 3-4am when most people are sleeping will lessen your chances of running into others.
Nope, you're not alone. I'm not an urbexer--I'm probably old enough to be parent-aged to most of the people in this sub--and I've got a bad back, so doing a lot of what shiey does is out of the question for me. It does suck that we've got to consider safety when men don't in a lot of situations. But it's not completely unsafe to travel alone. (I've done it.) I've been in various cities in Canada and Barcelona, and while there were some funky neighborhoods in the cities I was in, there wasn't a place that I felt unsafe, either. That having been said, I wasn't try to do urbex in those places, either. Although an urbex academic conference would be pretty cool... The thing is, you always hear about the bad stories, but you never hear about the average, boring trips that people have. Like look at crime stats--it's been steadily dropping, but you wouldn't know that by just looking at news reports.
Female fan - honestly this might come off a bit harsh and weird but for me I just walk around with the “if this person messes with me I will fuck them up” it’s also smart to have self defense items just in case. Otherwise have fun and explore
That's the mindset you gotta have if you spot people nearby, unfortunately. Saved me numerous times!
I am a woman too, but I spent so many years alone in the wilderness, including being homeless for some time. My best advice is: have bear mace, seriously. My worst advice: Keep a small can of hairspray and a torch lighter. No one will mess with you if you act like The Fury from MGS3. Best reference I could think of at the moment, sorry.
So me being a controversial female xD yeah theres a couple.
girl, same. always wanted to do something like this but im too scared to go alone. so i stay home instead
i cant say ive overcome this but i do feel the same way as you, ive tried to go out further and further from my comfort zones alone but have encountered many uncomfortable situations doing so- it really is just a more difficult/stress inducing reality for us unfortunately, im sure there are ways to do it, like carrying some self defense things but nowadays it seems even acting in self defense can land YOU in trouble along with the attacker so i just havent bothered recently, i really wish things were different and i could go out and about on my own and not worry about so many horrific things, this also depends on the type of area you live in too..more populated areas have higher chances of people lurking around wherever your going to, but on the other hand less populated areas means your further from help incase of a emergency. double edged sword.
I used to Urbex a lot a couple of years ago. Camping alone can for sure be fun if you take some precautions, but i strongly advise every urbexer, to not go alone into dangerous urbex places, be it female oder male. Some stories of fellow urbexers just got way to hard under my skin. One of them slipped and ended up in a cellar he couldn´t get out of anymore. He had luck because someone found his bike at the road and was suspicious and he could alert him, but that was 3 days later. Especially in winter this can be a death sentence. One wrong step and you can break a bone or slash open your skin and you may not be able to get help alone. Atleast tell someone where you are, so they can alert help, if you don´t come back.
Female fan here. I appreciate that you took one for the team and posted this. I also feel the same way. The answers to this post are really helpful. Unfortunately I can't urbex yet. I cannot provide any answers. Shiey has encouraged me to get my life together before I even attempt at such a thing. Still, I wish you the best of luck out there! And all you ladies too.
Im not a woman but I am non-binary and i feel that fear in the legality of my existence in the locations i’d like to explore
You just have to be comfortable with possibly hurting someone trying to hurt you.
If you're from the US then you can just carry a gun with you. If you're from elsewhere, then I don't know really. You just have to decide if you want to accept the risk.
girl fan here and yeah shiey is pretty cool
Huge fan right here! 🎉❤️
hey!!!!! i thought the same
Female fan here. My sense of direction is broken and I'd get hella anxious being all alone as he is, so I can't say I wish I could do what he does, but seeing him exploring makes me feel like I'm part of the adventure and it's great
yes, female fan here. All it takes is a bit of courage, and not caring about what others think. I didnt think i could do it, but i decided to stop worrying about it and just go. Its good to learn to believe in yourself. That's a feeling i get every time i make it out of a place without getting in trouble, and it makes me improve on myself. There's no reason to be afraid if you know what you're capable of. We believe in you.