For as long as I can remember, I've always said "look up" while photo-documenting the cities I visit. It's how to get those "cool" shots that not every city-slicker thinks to see, thinks to get or thinks to care about. The views, the angles, and perspectives can make you view your surroundings a little bit different than the average Joe. A key element to differentiating a "photographer" and "guy with a camera" I guess you could say.
Not always true, I do realize that. Looking up to capture cool is old news now. Delve a bit deeper. Okay, A LOT deeper. Let us go 4 "floors" under a bustling downtown City! A place so erased from thought, we tend to not think of it as anything. A little something we can almost forget the importance of. Even more, forget the existence of..
Sewers!
A flowing vein through every artery of all cities.
Unless a water main breaks, flooding your house or cutting off your power grid, how often does one think of where the water goes after the tap? To be honest, I do think of this often enough. I think of these things so you don't have to!
This is "The Duke of Wellington" or "Wellington Arms". It's a sewer, there is no official name. A riveting journey.
Constructed in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada in the year 1923, this combined sewer overflow runs directly under the feet of thousands in the Downtown Core of Hamilton. Built to last, red bricks adorn miles of the underground. And lasting is one this brick tube has done well. Nearly a century of illicit dumping, sanitary overflows, calcium build-ups, constant water contact, and she's still going strong! Barely a visible crack in the foundation.
For those who don't know sewers well, they can get complicated when it comes to shaping them. Each tunnel or sewer is built for a specific reason. The name of this, CSO (Combined Sewer Overflow) means that it's a mostly "dry" tunnel, running along-side "sanitary" sewers and "storm" drains. If, however, a storm hits, and the sanitary and storm drains cannot take the water load, they literally pour over into a CSO. With that said, yeah it's not for everyone. There is untreated poop, needles and well...everything else imaginable (not pictured for said reasoning)
So, a sanitary pipe is pretty much off limits. It's exactly what you could imagine. A Storm Drain is great. That is if there is NO rain in sight, as you don't know if it's raining above you until it's too late to get out. A CSO is a middle ground. Yeah, some fecal matter is present, but you won't drown in it!
Some examples of shape-shifting;
This one here is actually three in one. I'm standing in one shape tunnel, then the middle is another shape, leading into yet another shape. The water pouring down is coming from an unknown source. It's another tunnel, not accessible at this point, pouring over a ladder which went up about 40 feet to a manhole. A cover we were NOT about to check out, as you can clearly see the filth and disgust of garbage piling up on the ladder.
As much as I didn't get into thorough detail, this was a glimpse into one of the oldest tunnels still in use in Hamilton. It will be a trip to do again. And a must. After spending a dangerously long time down here (5-hours) we still did NOT conquer The Duke of Wellington in its entirety.
Time will bring us back, we know for sure it's not something thats taking THIS away anytime soon.
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