• FenixHM70R - My main caving head torch, I have taken this thing to the depths of hell and its never missed a beat. The wide warm beam is also great for filming and doesn’t show the annoying white light circle you see in some videos.

• FenixHM50RV2.0 - Back up caving head torch, tiny thing packs a big punch and is a great back up option.

• FenixHM75R - Beginning to think i like Fenix?, You’d be correct. They sent me this one to review for its use in cave conditions but I’m always skeptical of wires when it comes to caving so I’ve been using it for most of my less harsh urban exploits. It also has the handy 'avoid security red light’ option for stealthy missions.

• FenixCL28R - An absolute beast when it comes to lanterns, I use this for the majority of my light painting photography underground as its adjustable temperature setting is a life saver.

• FenixLR40RV2.0 - This monstrosity is perfect for 12hr+ trips or if your somewhere that’s a huge dark open space and needs lighting up. With 15000 Lumen’s to play with and a max life of around 50 hours this one always comes with me on the big trips.

• Olight Baton Turbo - This little beauty is lightweight and has adjustable brightness levels. Its definitely cheaper than the rest and it comes with me on most Urbex trips that don’t involve me going underground.

  BUY CHEAP BUY TWICE - When Amazon or Ebay try selling to you a torch for £20 that is 9Billion Lumen’s i can assure you there wrong. I’ve been through a lot of these gimmick torches before investing in good kit, most of them diminished over a short period of time, were no where near up to spec or died at the sight of water so save your money and don’t waste your time.

• Sony A7III - I’ve been using Sony cameras for years now as they handle low light conditions extremely well and have a top notch dynamic range.

• Sony A7II - Prior to purchasing the camera listed above, I was down a drain in Buxton when out of no where my tripod went from under me and fully submerged with camera attached. It didn’t survive its brief swim in the end hence the upgrade.

• Sony A6000 - When I first started exploring I spent a good few years rarely taking photos and if I did take any they were wonky out of focus phone shots, something I know regret as a lot of those memories have been forgotten of at least very blurry. The A6000 was the first camera I upgraded to after a brief stint of phone tripod photography and it was an absolute beast that served me well for years, it was only the lure of full frame that led to an upgrade in the end.

• Samyang AF 14mm 2.8 - Full frame ultra wide angle lens that I use for most of my underground exploits as its low aperture makes it great in low light conditions, confined spaces and is quite sharp.

• Sony FE 50mm f/1.8 - A budget-friendly full frame standard prime lens that I use for portrait and street photography.

• DJI Mini 3 - There’s a lot of places a drone can come in handy and really make a place worth travelling to. For example remote derelict castles. Walking around the ruins it may just look like a pile of old stone bricks and not to interesting, from above however it will tell a completely different story. There’s been locations that I’ve visited with the sole purpose of getting drone footage/photos and only taken the camera with me as a back up. The DJI mini 3 can take good quality images, record in 4K and rotate 90* to shoot vertically. Being only 249 grams your only required to print off a flyer ID number and attach to the drone which cost around £12 a year to be fully compliant with the law.

• Go Pro Hero 10 - I capture a lot of my footage on the go pro, I’ve found that any after the Hero 8 they all do the job to a high standard. The Hero 8 is the only one I would avoid due to the lens being fixed meaning your unable to change it, this is a silly design as I’ve gone through at least 3 over the years mainly through caving trips and that’s with a lens protector attached.

• GoPro Max Lens Mod - With the Hero 10 the FOV is around 109* which is considered wide. With the Max lens Mod attached this is bumped up to 155* which is a drastic change offering an ultra wide view. One downside to this lens is it tends to fog up quite a bit when underground or cold outside.

• K&F Tripod - When it comes to tripods there’s a few things that are a must, a swivel ball head has proved to be really handy when shooting in places like caves and mines as the floor space is anything but flat and having that extra room for adjustment can save a lot of time. Weight and size are key factors too, when exploring I always prefer to be able to store my tripod inside a bag as it can sometimes be a giveaway to your actions, such as accessing the roof of a live building, More than once I’ve had security spot me within a busy lobby full of people and figure out my intentions all because a tripod was visible attached on the outside of my bag.

• Camera Remote - For a lot of my photos I like to have someone in the shot to give a better perspective of the surroundings. Sometimes not everyone is willing to be a model and I plonk myself there instead, this can be done by setting a 10 second time and making a run for it, some places however will take a lot longer than 10 seconds to reach and take multiple attempts. This is why having a wireless remote is always handy. There used to be a way of using an app on your phone to do this but unfortunately its no longer compatible with newer Sony models.

• SD card - I generally carry at least 2 SD cards with me when I’m out, I’ve been caught out in the past when I’ve gone to a spot, got set up then hit with the ’unable to read’ message across the camera screen. Newer Sony models have a handy feature of dual card reading which is useful if you ever happen to get caught by a jobs worth who demands you delete all the photos you’ve taken at once otherwise they’ll be trouble!. Simple show him your secondary empty SD card and avoid the unnecessary hassle. I use the SanDisk 128GB Extreme PRO SDXC as its great for capturing large RAW images or using burst mode shooting, as the fast write speed ensures data is recorded quickly.

• Spare Camera Batteries - There’s nothing more annoying than arriving at a location only to find that your camera is on 10% battery. My battery usually lasts me for most of the day and I only really have to switch them out if I’m out for a long day or doing an overnight stint somewhere, so there’s always at least 2 backup batteries in my bag.

• Spare Drone Batteries - Most drones have a ‘Fly more' kit’ option that comes with spare batteries, blades and some sort of storage bags. Ide always recommend this option if your planning on using your drone multiple times through out the day. I slipped up when I bought my first drone as I chose against the fly more kit thinking ill just buy some cheap batteries later on down the line. I later learnt that they don’t exist and I could have saved quite a bit the the kit option.

• DJI RC2 Remote - Some drones come with the RCN1 remote which requires operators to download the DJI app and connect there phone to the controller to use as the screen. A few issues I found with this was the app was always glitchy, took a long time to load up and connect and annoyingly most new phones don’t fit in the controller and require you to take your phone case off or carefully rest your phone loose on top of the controller. The upgraded RC remote has its own screen built in and has dramatically improved its functionality, I whacked an anti glare screen protector on just for good measure too.

• Go Pro Enduro Batteries - Since using the updated Enduro batteries with the Go Pro I generally get over an hour of fast on and off footage with them which is a significant improvement to the old ones to which I felt were constantly changing them out.

• Backpack - As mentioned when previously when talking about tripods I like to be able to store mine in my bag. To be honest i like to store a lot of things in my bag on most trips, my inventory will always include my general kit, camera and lenses, torches, snacks, drinks and room for a jacket. The Tarion bag is a strong rucksack with plenty of pockets for keeping gear separate, the interchangeable internal padding allows you to customize it for your intended use and it also comes with a waterproof cover.

• Gloves - There’s always a pair of gloves in my bag ready. You might encounter anti climb paint or find yourself ploughing through thick sharp brambles probably wondering why your doing this hobby in the first place?, a cheap pair of gloves can save the day so its best to buy a cheap multipack and just use them as you go.

• First Aid Kit - Ironically I only started carrying one with me after I was somewhere that I needed it. I was exploring the Methodist central hall in Birmingham, it took us about half an hour of faffing around before we were in and exploring the upper floors. I had climbed onto a window sill to get a better view of the stained glass and when I jumped down my big toe went straight through an unsuspecting nail in the floor. It was right on the joint and I could feel the blood filling up my sock fast, luckily a friend who was with me had a first aid kit and I was able to limp my way around and carry on. It could have been worse, we could have been somewhere that didn’t have such an easy exit or a place we wouldn’t want to get caught at. For this reason its always good to have a small one in your bag just incase, anyway they don’t take up much room and you may be very thankful you have one in the future.

• 4Gas Detector - I spend a lot of time down drains and mines, Often these kind of places can have ‘bad air’, this can be due to a lack of good airflow getting in resulting in low oxygen levels or the presence of dangerous gases. Typically in drains Hydrogen Sulfide (H₂S) can be found as a result of decomposing organic matter. There’s a lot of places I wouldn’t ever enter without having one of these with me.

• Waders - When exploring drains I wear chest waders 99% of the time, I’ve tried thigh waders but at least half of the drains I’ve explored would have made them useless as the water levels go over the top of the thigh. The Night Cat waders are really cheap and do hold up. I’ve gone through a couple of them over the years but that was down to me doing stupid acrobatic climbing along sharp edges in them instead of putting them on by the riverside. When used to wade through underground rivers and traverse drains there spot on.

• Helmet - A helmet is one the most important pieces of kit when exploring caves/mines, I’ve had a few encounters over the years with falling rocks where I’m certain it would have been game over without one. The Petzl Vertex is a cracking option as its fully adjustable, has closable vent holes and allows for a head torch to be easily attached.

This will be a subjective topic due to peoples varied interest but here is a list of books I’ve collected over the years that I’ve found personally interesting and would recommend to people.

• Access All Areas: A User's Guide to the Art of Urban Exploration - A complete guide to the art of Urban Exploration, this detailed book delves into the social engineering aspect of this strange hobby and encourages readers to explore their environment.

• Hidden Cities: Moses Gates - An in-depth account of an explorers exploits across the world. In his book Gates contemplates why he and other urban explorers are so instinctively drawn to these unknown and sometimes forbidden places.

• Below Manchester: Keith Warrender - This book explores the hidden underground layers of Manchester, revealing its history through tunnels, canals, and forgotten spaces beneath the bustling streets which the majority of its residence and visitors are completely unaware of.

• Race Against Time: History of the Cave Rescue Organization - Follow the development from the very beginning of the UK's Cave Rescue Organization, highlighting its pivotal role in saving lives and the challenges faced along the way. This book had me completely hooked from start to finish and I'd argue that you don’t need to be a caver to appreciate its contents.

• Lead mining in the Peak District - Being an active cave/mine explorer in the Peak District i’ve always found the rich history to be fascinating, I could list many other similar books but this one seems to capture the trials and tribulations of what it was like to be a Lead miner exceptionally well.

• The Fauld Disaster - Recounts the catastrophic 1944 explosion of an underground munitions storage depot in Staffordshire. Claiming the record for the largest explosion on UK soil.

• Subterranean Stockport: Emma Brown - Delve into the hidden underground spaces of Stockport, exploring its historic tunnels, air-raid shelters, and forgotten subterranean structures that reveal a unique perspective on the town's past.

• Pioneers Beneath the Peak - Recounting the cave diving explorations in the Peak District, showcasing the grit and ingenuity required to uncover its hidden underwater passages​.

• Manchester Oddities: Keith Warrender - Another one by Mr Warrender, exploring the city's eccentric history through fascinating anecdotes about its unusual residents, hidden locations, and quirky stories. Shedding light on the lesser-known aspects of Manchester's rich heritage.

• The Alderley Edge Mines - Due to living down the road from these mines most of my life I’ve always been interested by there rich history and in recent years had the chance to explore a lot of them. This book offers a comprehensive account on the mines ancient and modern history.