Ever since I moved to Bellingham I’ve wondered about the abandoned property on the waterfront off of Cornwall. Fenced in with barbed wire and no trespassing signs, I’ve been intrigued but unable to photograph the crumbling buildings and honey-colored towers. Then, I learned through my friend Jen that the Port of Bellingham was offering tours of this old Georgia-Pacific property this summer. I was one of the lucky few who was able to sign up as space was extremely limited.
The former paper mill, operational from the 1960’s until around 2001 (some activities continued for a couple of years after), was acquired by the Port of Bellingham in 2005. There are plans to demolish most of the buildings on the 137-acre property, and after an extensive clean-up of contaminated materials, an improved waterfront will emerge with housing, businesses, and new parks.
So, these photo tours are sure to be one of the last looks at the decrepit property as it exists today.
My tour was last Thursday. Two Port employees rolled back the gates and allowed 8 photographers in for two hours on a supervised tour. There were several hard-hat areas and danger zones we were not allowed to cross. Here are a few of my photos. Others can be found on my photography Facebook page. Unfortunately, WordPress does not want to allow me to “link” anything in this post today…so you can click the Facebook link to the right and you should be able to view them. Oh yeah, and while you’re out there – be sure to “like” my page! (Shameless plug)
Jolene's Life in Focus 
I do feel lucky, Mike. Only a handful of people got to do the tour. However, there’s a lot of cool, abandoned stuff where you are now. Every now and then I get a little jealous. 🙂
Lucky you! I wanted to sneak in there when we did our last photo walk through Bellingham. Love the old abandoned places.
love all that rust!
It was a rust lover’s paradise! I was in heaven.
What a great opportunity! Love the images, especially the last one.
Thanks, Caryn. That door had split open, and it made for the most interesting shot.
Nice shots Jolene. I wish I had known about the tour. I’ve been wanting to shoot the place and have thought about sneaking over the fence… Glad the place is closed. I remember when I lived there while the place was still in operation. The nasty smell from the pulp mill would flow through my office window every day. Phew!
Fortunately, I didn’t live here during its years of operation. I’ve heard a lot of complaints about the smell! I don’t know that there’s any further tours scheduled, Emily, but you can always check the Port of Bellingham’s website for updates. The tour cost $20, but it was definitely worth the price of admission.
Great job Jolene!
Thank you, Ruth!