Hospital 05, February 2012

We took our usual security precautions: Coming in under cover of darkness, communicating only with hand gestures, soaking our clothing in deer urine (I was never clear about the reasoning behind that last item, but my mentors assured me that it was standard UE protocol). It was all for naught. No police, no security, no cameras, no alarm system, no laser beam tripwires, no pressure-sensitive pads hidden beneath the floorboards, nothing. It was a beautiful day, and nobody seemed to mind that we were wandering around the abandoned hospital grounds. It was so peaceful that I started to feel a little ridiculous in my full-body camouflage and night-vision goggles.

So, no thrilling tales of almost getting caught by THE MAN. But hard lessons were learned, nonetheless. To wit:

• If you’re trying to get over a mild flu/cold, you almost certainly should not spend eight hours climbing around an ancient stone building breathing frigid air visibly laden with asbestos, mold and mycobacteria.
• Always, always, ALWAYS bring an extra tripod quick release plate.

Two extra-freaky things we saw on this trip, neither pictured (unfortunately):

• In one of the claustrophobic and lightless utility tunnels under the hospital, a severed cable of unknown purpose dripped a viscous greenish-black liquid on the concrete floor. In the one-foot-by-two-foot pool of sticky and poisonous goo, there were – wait for it – THIRTEEN dead mice. Also two snakes.
• In the basement of the last building we entered, we found a large wooden crate with Property of U.S. Army stamped on the side. It appeared to have been recently shipped from that warehouse at the end of Raiders of the Lost Ark. The crate had been helpfully pried open by a previous explorer, exposing the contents: A never-used military x-ray machine, presumably for use in the field (?), dated 1956. Some assembly required.

As a final note – yeah, I know I kinda went overboard with the wide-angle lens this time.

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