I think it was about 15 years ago when I discovered it. Visiting locations in Belgium with friends, it wasn't well-known back then. You could only find locations through urbex forums.
Doel, I think
The excitement, and it's magical how nature reclaims buildings.
I found Chateau Noisy very special. A fairy-tale castle where you could really imagine how people lived there. The building had been through so much but was eventually completely demolished.
I think my favorite location that I discussed above. That was just really special.
Good shoes, flashlight, gloves, and always long pants.
Not really, fortunately. Once hit my head on a rusty point in a mine, it bled but wasn't serious.
We make a list of locations we're going to visit
Doing good research beforehand is important and always staying together.
Yes, an abandoned building that was about to collapse, made entirely of wood. We asked the owner of the property (who was around) if we could look, which wasn't a problem, but we weren't allowed inside due to the danger.
Finding the entrance and getting in unseen.
I always try to enter a location with as much respect as possible. Not breaking anything, not taking photos of family pictures that might still be at the location, for example.
Start as easy as possible, look for locations that have been known for a long time and therefore have lots of information available.
I take a lot of photos and videos, but don't do much with them.
In a mine in France, I discovered it was 3 or 4 times larger than I thought (and had seen the time before). That was quite a shock, I already thought it was incredible but it became even more impressive.