Portsdown Hill provides magnificent views over Portsmouth and beyond. shelter, shelters, airaid, air-raid, air raid, civil defence, widley, purbrook, Hi Johnny The ridge offers good views to the south over Portsmouth, the Solent, Hayling Island and Gosport, with the Isle of Wight beyond. In Victorian times it was originally built as the main magazine for the fort. Been up today, 1 entrance is open. Thanks, Portsdown Hill gives anyone (for free) the most amazing 360degree view of the area. end. In the far right hand corner, Any italicised comments in [] brackets are mine. Any way you can send me coordinates please? Went down there myself a few days ago to see the damage and it looks like a pretty substantial concrete wall. "As the years went by I still quietly absorbed information. You can easily imagine how cold it would be during winter, particularly with the open windows from the flanking gallery. truth if any there may be in these stories but, as they say, anything is The highest point of the hill lies within Fort Southwick at 131m above sea level. bunkers, and until that time I didn't know they existed, always saw the The report was submitted in 1860 and the recommendations were: 1) To prevent the enemy from landing on the Isle of Wight, 2) Protection of the anchorage at Spithead, 3) Defence of the Needles passage, Isle of Wight, 5) Land defences divided between the Gosport defences and the Portsdown hill forts. - Ghostly residents include a man said to be a sergeant-major who enjoys whistling while haunting the fort. We also saw another locked door behind which we were told Hampshire Fire & Rescue Service have conducted training in the past. Portsdown Hill is a great place for seeing the views of the City of Portsmouth, picnics, and dog walking. Used by a charitable trust as an outdoor activities centre. The platforms on the inner side of the rampart were for additional guns firing over the parapet. There are 9 tanks as I recall 7 are 700 feet long with 2 shorter ones. East of There are also ghost tour events held in the Fort Widley tunnels. As always you can unsubscribe at any time. There are bullet impacts dating from the turn of the 19th century Rather than white-washed brick walls, the tunnel was now bare chalk. The discovery of these remains has as interesting bearing Access to abandoned locations changes daily! If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. marked the tunnels walls with flint, with arrows so we could find our way Hi, I would like to know how to find the entrance unsealed Suggest edits to improve what we show. Portsmouth from Portsdown Hill - 1949 and 2021. way the brickwork was if it were a tunnel it would have been running from Besides five new batteries constructed along the sea front, there were six new forts built Gomer, Grange, Rowner, Brockhurst, Elson and Fareham. Pretty tough stuff, would take a bit of work to get through. It was refurbished and then became part of the Royal Navy's NATO communications network - leading to the Soviet Union classifying it as a 'Category A' target. The tunnels have been sealed up, so there is nothing much to be seen now. Youd go and have a look to see if theres a way in. Open year round (1 Jan 2023 - 31 Dec 2023) * Fort Nelson is open daily during school holidays and Wednesday-Sunday during term time, 10am to 5pm. I know you might not give an exact location of these other 2 entrances you know about but are they far from the 2 main bottom doors? Each fort was designed as a self sufficient unit and connecting tunnels would UPDATED: !!!! Can you please email, please of the location. Tunnels. Id like to go this weekend. The two main access tunnels in the side of Portsdown Hill are very similar, the eastern access tunnel leads to a dead end, while the main access tunnel passes over the aforementioned pump room (via a very oily ladder) and continues at a steep gradient around half a kilometre to the north compound. there is supposed to be a priests hole. Raising awareness of WW2 history in the New Forest and Hampshire area through community and learning. Both tunnels have nine recesses with winch gear and (inaccessible) ladders, one assumes to get to an inspection platform on the storage tanks. Portsmouth has so many famous landmarks and places to visit above ground - but you might not know about the world of intrigue and history beneath the city. The car being driven very dangerously on the wrong side of the road is a black Ford. The highest point of the hill lies within Fort Southwick at 131m above sea level. As you can see in the photos above and below, there are still remains on the wall that were created when the bunker was built, including electrics, signage, and even some old decor. What is the area on the southern slope directly below Fort Southwick, it is a tarmac road leading to a compound with a locked iron door going into the hill? Our gas meter didnt ping once, things must have changed considerably down there. We say where we are with coordinates, have the clothing, do underground stuff. as Southwick Priory which was then about three miles to the north. Oil is quite literally everywhere, a good couple of inches deep in places, and with several holes and ditches in the floor it makes this part of the fuel bunker pretty dangerous. Regards and keep up with this very interesting and local The forts are on the crest of the hill, overlooking Portsmouth and it's harbour. Park school which is the old Purbrook Park house. Wymering Manor is supposed to be connect to The slopes are home to impressive shows of wildlife that can be explored through miles of paths. below if you can't display frames. People will have the chance to explore the haunted tunnels below Portsdown Hill (Image: Creative Commons / Simon Burchell) A ghost hunting experience full of haunting spirits and dark history is being held next week in Portsmouth. SHARE. Now located all 4. Entrance to the tunnel system was via two inclined staircases from the surface. We use your sign-up to provide content in the ways you've consented to and improve our understanding of you. Ive looked online and everyone is saying its all sealed up? Most of the five miles of tunnel construction was made during WWII, when the south facing slope of the hill was countryside. With the fort buildings and extensive tunnels cut into the chalk they allow an unprecedented amount of space to investigate. Top ways to experience nearby attractions Portsmouth Historic Dockyard: Ultimate Explorer Ticket 145 The south entrance to West tunnel was concreted up with an RSJ in middle of doors. Totton Air Raid Shelters + Ashurst, Calmore, & Eling WW2 History, The Heroic Wartime Actions of Patrick Dumbo Taylor Who Crashed Near Blackfield & Fawley, How These Local Fields of Green Played a Huge Role in WW2, The German underground hospital tunnels in Jersey. Read More How These Local Fields of Green Played a Huge Role in WW2Continue. Here is During the Second World War, the New Forest area was a hive of aviation activity with airfields and bases such as RAF Beaulieu and Calshot. they watch as there was no visible signs of a hut or tower, just lots of We now walked into a different tunnel. tracy hurley vince clarke. The best job I had. Even a clue? vibrations what I thought was outside, but considering it was in the On the south side, two storey accommodation was living quarters for about 250 men, there were also married quarters for twelve soldiers. Our guide explained to use how the tunnels also had Cold War history during those decades and the fort was also taken over by Portsmouth Council in the 1970s. and paper to jot any markings or distances down as for a reference, we had below. portsdown hill tunnel entranceodyssey clone putters. Please note Fort Nelson ramparts are closed until further notice. After the talk in the museum room, they took us through a door, and down a flight of steep stairs into another room with a locked door. is also no evidence of tunnels, either physical or on plans, at the forts The fuel bunker was targeted by German bombing in 1940, luckily missing by a few hundred yards but sadly hitting several homes & two piggeries bringing loss of life to many of the pigs housed there. Is there any chance you could help? It featured heavily in the preparation and operation of OVERLORD in 1944. Pm me I will send you location. The corner of Fort Purbrook can be seen on the top left.. After finding the site about "Portsdown Tunnels", I found Further underground work in the 1940s led to the creation of a five and a half mile pipeline linking an oil reservoir on Portsdown with the Admiralty oil fuel depot in Gosport. Ugh! There was one very poignant carving though, and you can see that below. Explore! PLEASE NOTE: Your comment will be held in a queue until it's been approved. As we entered into the first corridor, there were a several doors to the left and right of us. Ive only ever managed to enter through the north entrance and walk the distance and go in the pump room, I dont suppose youve ever been in the east entrance? Built in 1872 they are part of the five forts along the top Portsdown Hill to defend the town from a Napoleonic attack. is the ditch on the Northern side of Fort Nelson, looking West. Or by navigating to the user icon in the top right. One criticism was that if the forts were in danger of being overcome by an enemy, the soldiers manning them would retreat down Portsdown Hill to Hilsea Lines. Registered Charity No 284744, Hampshire Genealogical Society, 2023 | Site by Wizbit, Palmerstons Folly The Story of Portsmouths Forts. Just found a possible way in, requires some climbing though! If I remember rightly, the compound with the road access is the east access tunnel. The roof was now lower, with the tunnels now becoming white-washed bricks walls, with various cabling and ventilation pipes running along them. The fort was leased to Portsmouth City Council in 1961 and was sold outright to the council in 1972. You been in there where you find way in I live this type of stuff, Hi, recently moved to port Solent and have started walking the hill. Tunnel entrance? Your email address will not be published. Dravenrotharg@gmail.com if you can help please! thanks to David Moore of the Palmerston Portchester Castle and Wymering Manor (which the ghost of Reckless Reggie There are four entrances to the fuel bunkers, officially labelled North Compound, Top Entrance, Main Access Tunnel & Access Tunnel. I found the 4th entrance but its been filled with a massive block of concrete, Shame to see it in the state its in we went in a few years ago now when it was in really good state I still have photos, I live in the area so always been interesting to me I remember going up the big ramp where the shed was and seeing urbex spray painted near the upper level bunker. When the military road running along the crest of the hill was built, it passed behind the forts on the south side and enabled good communications between them. The Calshot Air Crash Chronicles: Fatal Accidents (1914 to 1951). wheel disappeared into the ground. All Portsdown Forts played a role during the Second World War. / south and looks like a tunnel entrance. practice. Explores the tunnels, shelters and caves on Portsdown Hill Portsmouth The walls are approximately 1'-9" thick and extend 12 feet . In 1953 the Civil Defence leased part of the fort for county emergency planning and civil defence standby headquarters. Much of what is known about the Portsdown Tunnels has been collated by Bob Hunt, who has published his findings online. One day, being as inquisitive as young boys are, we managed to prise the top of the door open This Did you only try the 2 fronts or did you try one of the other 2? The escarp is about 10 - 15 feet thick, backed by earthwork and surmounted by a rampart. Theres plenty of information online. Please stop e-mailing me. is an aerial photograph east of Fort Purbrook taken in 1969 when Really want to visit this place could anyone help me with finding an entrance please ? Feel free to contact me if you have trouble. These gorge buildings protected the southern face and the entrance from direct manual attack. Would you mind sending me some information on where I can find an entrance please? Fort Purbrook, completed in 1870, was occupied by the Army until 1925. They then found a new lease of life in World War Two, when they became the communications "nerve centre" for the Underground Headquarters and Operation Overlord - the invasion of Normandy. The having also gone to Purbrook Park school I have a few comments. Theres 4 entrances in total, Baz. P.s Im a very good climber. Good luck! It's also the perfect lookout post on the rest of the world so get ready to feast your eyes!'. The ridge offers good views to the south over Portsmouth, the Solent, Hayling Island and Gosport, with the Isle of Wight beyond. The other point I would mention is that there was vehicular access from Birth, Marriage & Death (BMD) Unwanted Certificate Service. This is typical when you do a subterranean explore, so was not at all unexpected. My first ever visit to the fuel bunker that entrance was open, while its interesting its a bit of a let down in comparison to the rest of the site. Hi I live locally to this and have wondered how you get access to this facility. This is the sight that greeted us as the door was opened. The site was uncovered by contractors during a period of Could you please send me the details about the entrance sites if still open? There is what appears to be a fireplace in the middle section of the caponier for this very purpose. centre. Photos from just a couple of years ago show you could walk around the pump room without a problem, and it was this part of the bunker we had to revisit with protective clothing (alright, several carrier bags taped to our shoes!) The Rays Hill Tunnel was built in the 1880s for use with trains, but never saw a single locomotive and was eventually repurposed to carry automobile traffic. Checked the main tunnels but couldnt get in. - [Has anyone heard of this? This last section of the gallery is brick lined; the main magazine opens off its west side about half way between the spiral stairs and the barracks. An article written for Solent Fortifications Radio Club, author unknown. Email. We spent another hour in the museum looking at the fantastic display the have, before bidding our farewell to what was one of most interesting military explores weve done this year. The very narrow passage is the lighting passage for the magazine, where oil lamps would have been placed shining through glass windows into the magazine, so isolating the flames from the inside. I would like to give a big thank you to Nick and Chris at the Pompey Pals charity who kindly invited us down for the morning in November, 2021. The Fort Widley tunnels date from the 19thcentury, rather than being a more modern Second World War addition like the Fort Southwick ones are. Driving Test Centre. Also, improvements to the fabric of the Square Tower, Kings Bastion, Point Battery, Southsea Castle, Lumps Fort and Fort Cumberland were undertaken. apprentice in HM Dockyard Portsmouth in the early 1970s, I worked in Yard what were metal doors with "MOD Property - Do Not Enter" metal signs on, some variation at the entrance and exit. Hampshire Record Office "My mum then finalised the whole deal by telling me stories of how she sheltered from the blitz during World War Two by taking refuge in the Wymering Deep Tunnel Shelter. Does anyone have a location of an entrance? thanks to Peter Rogers, This topic has been moved to down the track, which is still there, at the western end of the side [This Is there still an entrance in by the pump room? Fort Nelson, Portsdown Hill Road, Fareham, Hampshire, PO17 6AN. Hampshire Fire Brigade going to the end of the service road where you Unless any local yobs have smashed through the wall that leads down into the tunnel (it would take some doing) its still blocked. AsSecretary you will work with the other Principal Officers to ensure the smooth running of the HGS. I can confirm the entrance is blocked with a full wall of concrete. archaeologist, in a tumulus during excavations on Portsdown Hill near underground, portal, portals, cave, caves, bunker, bunkers, pipeline, pipelines, We went down last Sunday and no way in. slightly and with the use of a torch we tried to see what was inside. AsMinute Taker you will work with the Chairman to produce the agendas. . onto which the small gauge train runs on at Portchester Castle, near to | Wymering chalk walls of the tunnel, it seemed as if we had walked a fair distance The walls were damp and cold to the touch. | The diagram was just inside the east access tunnel, however long gone now I expect someone has liberated it! The Fort Widley tunnels are rarely open to the public. In this particular area were we able to see various cracks and fissures in the chalk walls, which did make me feel a little but uneasy. Please email me at. jake.davi@yahoo.co.uk, Is there any possibility the wall could be climbed or is it completely sealed off. Four men were killed and the locomotive was trapped inside the tunnel. It may There is only two entrances to the tunnels. Also at the time when I lived in Hillsley Road, I was Fabulous picnic spot! PT after open, circa 1940s. I am an A Level student in film studies looking to do some shots for a horror film in a surreal style of horror, and I was hoping someone could point me towards entrances to the bunkers. Is there people living in there? Portsdown Portsdown is a 69.1-hectare (171-acre) biological Site of Special Scientific Interest on Portsdown Hill, on the northern outskirts of Portsmouth in Hampshire. Itd be great if more people did this and reported back accurate information on access. The most important of these is usually a will, which lists the deceaseds property and outlines who it has [], The Hampshire Genealogical Society requires your help. 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