Accompanied by my photographer in crime, Blake, we made our way to Mittagong to check out the old, abandoned Maltings.
The Maltings were constructed in 1899, with later buildings being added in 1906, then 1916. The Maltings were owned by Tooth and Co, who later closed the place down completely in 1981. The three buildings still stand tall today, but have become slowly lost to the ravages of time. Plants grow through the cracks and the buildings are weathered and beaten down.
Some of the graffiti to be found inside.
We travelled to Mittagong not knowing what to expect. Honestly, I was wondering which one of the two would fall off the roof first. Luckily, neither of us did.
Arriving late afternoon, we got there just as the sun lost it's bite, making for some excellent shots later. There were three buildings, two stone, one sheet metal. All of those buildings housed old equipment and tools. For the most part they were either rusted, destroyed or taken away, leaving only the heaviest and bulkiest ones.
Light creeps in everywhere.
After a brief exploration of the first two buildings, we wandered over the Nattai River to the third and most impressive building. It stood the tallest of the three at four storeys tall, and was still mostly intact, save for a few missing floorboards and stairs. Out of the three it was the most fun to explore, with multiple layers and each floor creating it's own mood and scene.
As we climbed we found what was to be the highlight of the place, on the third and fourth floors, the sun started to seep into the open roofs and walls of the buildings, creating some amazing looking shots for us. We shot for a while up there before we set off for the day.
Abandoned, broken, but still standing.
The Mittagong Maltings are not just a great place to take photos out, but also are a great day out if you're keen to see and experience some history. Sure there isn't a lot of objects to look at, and rubbish and graffiti litter the place, but the overall history lends itself to a visit.
It's hard to get into abandoned places to check them out, but the Mittagong Maltings should be on your list.
Brendan