Rant: I spent 7 months trying to get into the old Northgate Mall the hard way, and a $12 flashlight did it in one trip

Cora Reed · 2026-09-28T00:05:04.542654+00:00

For months I was climbing fences, prying at boarded doors, and even tried the roof access twice at the dead mall off Highway 2 near my town, all because I figured security would spot a light through the glass. A buddy who does overnight HVAC work finally laughed at me and handed me a cheap red lens flashlight he keeps in his van. Turns out red light does not travel through dirty windows the same way white light does, so I walked right in through an unlatched service door and got 40 clean shots of the old food court and the carousel pit. Seven months of scheming beat by a $12 tool I could have bought at any hardware store. Now I want to know what other dumb obvious stuff I am missing, so what is the one cheap trick you wish someone had handed you before your first real explore?

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Rant: I spent 7 months trying to get into the old Northgate Mall the hard way, and a $12 flashlight did it in one trip | Abandoned Mall Stories - Librear