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Report - - Camden Rathole, December 2015 | Underground Sites | 28DaysLater.co.uk

Report - Camden Rathole, December 2015

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19jon98

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
I can already hear the exasperated sighs of "Oh God, not another report on this stinking place" but I could hardly resist. I've been wanting to do a tunnel since I started exploring and this just happened to be the first one I got to.

The Site
I won't go into to much detail as most know it all already but briefly:
The Camden Rathole, or to give it its proper name of the Camden Service Line, served as track to transport empty steam train carriages and ran from south of Primrose Hill to where it connected to the Broad Street line. The tunnel also runs underneath the still very active mainline rail.

The Explore
After seeing both the Camden Rathole and 'Catacombs' on this site I was immediately determined to find my way in there. After a couple of evenings of searching and having provided great entertainment to a few drunks by nearly falling into the canal I found the Rathole entrance (Still working on the Catas, anybody fancy lending me a boat?). @SilentDesigns, a non member and I then proceeded to delve right in.

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It's a shame the site has become so trashed but what can you do?

I've got to say I now have huge respect for all of you that take good shots underground. It's a lot more challenging than I really expected it to be
 

PatientTheory

Yung explorer
28DL Full Member
Nice pics, its always nice to see thread on an area not covered for a long time, as opposed to clusters :thumb
Did you manage to find encyclopedias in the tunnel? Last time i checked one was still in good condition
 

19jon98

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
Nice pics, its always nice to see thread on an area not covered for a long time, as opposed to clusters :thumb
Did you manage to find encyclopedias in the tunnel? Last time i checked one was still in good condition


Found a big old red encyclopedia but that was half burnt. There's some suspect stuff down there. Busted safes, syringes...
 

Adders

living in a cold world
Regular User
Good work on not getting busted walking in the portals, surprised the sensors didn't get you. This is still covered by BTP and is criminal, by the way.
 

Cameron Smith

28DL Member
28DL Member
Good work on not getting busted walking in the portals, surprised the sensors didn't get you. This is still covered by BTP and is criminal, by the way.
I've had my collar felt by BTP at the Euston shed due to a PIR linked camera, no signs of anything like that in the rat-hole though and my trips have always been drama free
 

elliot5200

28DL Regular User
Regular User
Yep, can definitely confirm the BTP are watching this place. Well at least they were 3 years ago :O Good job on getting in though!
 

kylepb333

28DL Member
28DL Member
Found a big old red encyclopedia but that was half burnt. There's some suspect stuff down there. Busted safes, syringes...

Ah i didnt realise this place was known until i saw this website today. I indeed saw the encyclopedias, still got it with me. Was a pain getting back out tho, had to climb the ladder with like one finger. ( http://imgur.com/Bfd0fl0 )
 

1skilzdude

28DL Member
28DL Member
I've been to the catacombs a few times now and i recently been back there and they have been draining the water out and have almost finnished plus they have fixed the bent gate
 

flaming22

28DL Full Member
28DL Full Member
I read in the local rag, some while ago that there is going to be restaurants etc. down there, so unfortunately it is yet more commercial messing about. There used to be a way in below 30 Oval Road, which had been a railway building. In recent times it had been an architect's office
then the Henson Organisation ( Muppet makers). One (dry) way in was via horse tunnel leading from The Stables market to the Oval Road lower level accessed the barge inlet, with the storage vaults all around. The Stables Market is now so developed I doubt it exists in the form I remember. I got in by myself once or twice, as I stumbled into a film set once, so knew the way from that. In 1990 there was a public inquiry re the warehouse and I got in on that inspection. Floodlights had been set up for the Inspector and Council visits so was able to get a good look at the vaults around the water inlet/loading of barges area accessed via 30 Oval Road. The whole lot connected to The Interchange building.
There used to be a very old barge permanently moored in the little inlet that used to be be accessed from the main canal - that's where you are seeing the water drainage I expect.
The vast warehouse on the higher level of Oval Road was demolished and is now Morrison's, formerly Safeway supermarket. The Council allowed that because the planning gain in return was the building of houses that you see between Morrison's and The Roundhouse.
The Council tried to get The Stables too, but it was listed Grade 2. The Inspector decided it should stay.
The basement of the warehouse was on the same level as the canal and had tunnels linking up with the main horse tunnel.
Even then there were lots of blocked off areas. Later the Henson people blocked up one way in I knew about.
I dread to think what it is like now there has been so much market expansion - and there is more to come soon
as there are new owners who have development plans. I never visited the Interchange basement area as it was then occupied by boilers and security was tight. In the early days of my visits there were still some London Midland ledgers with clerk's stool, recording the delivery of coal - but the Gilbey's gin enterprise is most remembered.
Good luck in seeing what is left!
 

Pl0xyserver

28DL Member
28DL Member
I read in the local rag, some while ago that there is going to be restaurants etc. down there, so unfortunately it is yet more commercial messing about. There used to be a way in below 30 Oval Road, which had been a railway building. In recent times it had been an architect's office
then the Henson Organisation ( Muppet makers). One (dry) way in was via horse tunnel leading from The Stables market to the Oval Road lower level accessed the barge inlet, with the storage vaults all around. The Stables Market is now so developed I doubt it exists in the form I remember. I got in by myself once or twice, as I stumbled into a film set once, so knew the way from that. In 1990 there was a public inquiry re the warehouse and I got in on that inspection. Floodlights had been set up for the Inspector and Council visits so was able to get a good look at the vaults around the water inlet/loading of barges area accessed via 30 Oval Road. The whole lot connected to The Interchange building.
There used to be a very old barge permanently moored in the little inlet that used to be be accessed from the main canal - that's where you are seeing the water drainage I expect.
The vast warehouse on the higher level of Oval Road was demolished and is now Morrison's, formerly Safeway supermarket. The Council allowed that because the planning gain in return was the building of houses that you see between Morrison's and The Roundhouse.
The Council tried to get The Stables too, but it was listed Grade 2. The Inspector decided it should stay.
The basement of the warehouse was on the same level as the canal and had tunnels linking up with the main horse tunnel.
Even then there were lots of blocked off areas. Later the Henson people blocked up one way in I knew about.
I dread to think what it is like now there has been so much market expansion - and there is more to come soon
as there are new owners who have development plans. I never visited the Interchange basement area as it was then occupied by boilers and security was tight. In the early days of my visits there were still some London Midland ledgers with clerk's stool, recording the delivery of coal - but the Gilbey's gin enterprise is most remembered.
Good luck in seeing what is left!

They are currently working in there right now, pumping the water out and cleaning everything up. Fixed the entrance on the gate, had one post on the palisade fence with a finger tight bolt - now fixed due to worker catching us on our way out and we had no time to put the post back in place. Made our way back down the ladder quickly and found a new entrance and exit somewhere along Adelaide road :)
 
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