As an electrical East of If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. We now walked into a different tunnel. There was also a dry moat around the five forts which varied in depth from 40 - 60 feet and width from 30 - 70 feet. The thing that sticks in my head the most walking around the Portsdown fuel bunker was the sheer feeling of infinity when looking down the entrance shafts with no end in sight. . Portsmouth. Today the 130 year-old Laurel Hill Tunnel has been re-purposed as an Area 51 of racing technology. portsdown hill tunnel entrance. The sludge meant that they were unsuitable for alternative use. It was then used by a number of units before housing members of the Royal Corps of Signals and Auxiliary Territorial Service supporting the navy command at Fort Southwick. Roundabout ahead 2 nd exit. The fumes would also be very strong Id imagine more so now there is no airflow. It was used for military purposes for over 100 years before being taken over by the council. Something went wrong, please try again later. Entrance to the tunnel system was via two inclined staircases from the surface. on Forton Road as well as both RNAD Frater and RNAD Gosport both being would be slightly helpful. A connecting tunnel within the complex under Fort Southwick, King George VI visiting the D Day HQ shortly after the Normandy landings in June 1944, An inspection of the Wymering deep tunnel shelter January 1942, shortly before it was opened. Some people may disagree with these statements and I Southwick to the HM Naval Dockyard and also to Gosport to the fuel depot my dad informed the council and it was promptly backfilled with concrete Probate records are official court documents concerning the settlement of a persons estate after they die. Fort Purbrook, completed in 1870, was occupied by the Army until 1925. 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. Portsdown Hill. But when I was in my teens, some friends and I decided to Fabulous picnic spot! Squirrel Hill Tunnel construction began in 1946 and opened to traffic on June 5, 1953. Went today and all four entrances are sealed. Both tunnels have nine recesses with winch gear and (inaccessible) ladders, one assumes to get to an inspection platform on the storage tanks. There are also museums etc to visit if you wish. The tunnels beneath Fort Widley do have an atmosphere to them. and of course locked, what I can remember is the doors were fixed on The site has become too dangerous in my opinion due to flooding after a water main has broken I will no longer tell of the entrance as Im not going to put people at risk. been proposed: Countermine gallery, where access was Would do but not local, never been there and a long way to go and fail. below. inside them, but that we will never know as all we had was a torch, no pen Thanks. There is more than one entrance/exit to the fuel bunker. "It was now that I realised how little information there was. The tunnels have been sealed up, so there is nothing much to be seen now. An FFP3 mask will not protect you if there are toxic fumes or a lack of oxygen. Underground tunnels went from the Barrack block to the caponiers in the moat. Hello mate where abouts are the entrances could you show me and a couple of mates we been trying to find them no luck. go to the chalk pits by Chalkpit Road, before Lime Grove was built to Underneath the busy urban landscape you can find winding tunnels and cavernous shelters which have long been the subject of fascination for amateur historians and urban explorers. Portsdown Hill gives anyone (for free) the most amazing 360degree view of the area. Scott, its nice of you to share the location but please bear in mind that generally the type of person asking these kind of details is what Id call an armchair explorer. Is there still an entrance in by the pump room? Mr Hunt's fascination began with a childhood day out on Portsdown Hill, and was cemented when he came across a tunnel entrance. Thank You! Magicward@hotmail.co.uk, Yes I know of a way in that has been forgotten, Went to site last Tuesday 24-10-17, all four entrances still sealed, Entrance is now fully sealed up with concrete and a steel beams unfortunately. The walls had loopholes for rifle fire. Is there really a way in? Sussex Street ground floor of Trinidad House and I was frequently woken by noises and OBSCURED Another tunnel entrance now lost in the undergrowth on the slopes of Portsdown Hill When the air raid sirens sounded, people would flee their homes for the night and make their way. Start photo slideshow. 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. Also at the time when I lived in Hillsley Road, I was For me though, this is a result of knowing the history of the place and the easily explainable change in temperature as you descend lower underground. Have found the two entrances at the end of Hillsley Road on Google Earth, the door that I came across was in a compound at the end of a road accessed from James Callahan Drive, is this a fuel bunker tunnel or a random were time tunnel? The dominant feature of this open space was a huge spiral staircase. true local legends. For more information about Palmerstons Folly visit the Palmerston Forts Society website. Both very much sealed. At Hilsea Lines the moat was widened and walls strengthened. Getting to the fork in the road Want in on this adventure? If you found a way, or anyone has, please let me know! hump in the centre of the picture was used as a firing step. Mandai Track 15 may not be the easiest to get to - and the trail itself is not a loop - but the sprawling route is especially popular with mountain . Fabulous picnic spot! Now located all 4. How would I go about getting in here please? Is there any other way? In the mid 1990s I toyed with the idea of writing a book, but gave up when I quickly realised that only a few hundred copies would sell, and the rest would collect dust in the local libraries.". And even if people cant be bothered to search for that, a good old fashioned walk on Portsdown Hill will uncover this mystery in no time at all. Fort Nelson was completed in 1871, it was so named because of its proximity to Nelsons monument a pillar erected after the battle of Trafalgar in memory of Lord Nelson. Im local and have been in there with my boy. Registered Charity No 284744, Hampshire Genealogical Society, 2023 | Site by Wizbit, Palmerstons Folly The Story of Portsmouths Forts. Portsdown Hill provides magnificent views over Portsmouth and beyond. vibrations what I thought was outside, but considering it was in the This means that we may include adverts from us and third parties based on our knowledge of you. the Crookhorn Pass was being built - the big chalk scar in the I can confirm the entrance is blocked with a full wall of concrete. Keep checking. During a few visits to the site, we managed to see the entire place. If I was a believer in ghosts, this is where I would imagine they might want to appear! chalk walls of the tunnel, it seemed as if we had walked a fair distance DTC. Please stop e-mailing me. 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. ago, has been found by :Lieut.-Col J. H. Cooke, a Southsea 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. Paid a visit last night with the missus. Fort Wallington, completed in 1865, was built on blue slipper clay. Our guide from the Pompey Pals Museum explained how this crucifix symbol and lettering and date (not shown) was carved by workers who dug the tunnels in 1860. Due to damage caused by the recent bad weather there will be no . Me and a few other explorers are looking to go up and have a look and we need some direction. Portchester Castle and Wymering Manor (which the ghost of Reckless Reggie Upon entering the tunnels, my first thought was how it had a very-1950s and 1960s vibe to it, even down to noticing some wooden flecked wallpaper on one of the walls. However, my son and I were recently invited by the Pompey Pals Museum to have a guided tour of the Fort Widley tunnels to let us explore and document them. Terms of use Anything please. Stay in the left-hand lane. there is supposed to be a priests hole. Didnt go all the way though so who knows. Is there people living in there? working as a HGV driver for a well known Portsmouth based builders If you are old enough you will recall there were water shortages occurring in the summer. I think it was the right hand corner, there was a small doorway with wooden makeshift door blocking access. We were still only a couple of minutes into the tunnels at this point, and saw another tunnel that branched off the main track, returning back onto the main tunnel in a loop. All are sealed. In other words, you did the hard work in locating your entrance, and itll be the lazy explorer that gets it sealed up! in order to see it. Driver's Guide ( mobile version) It also makes photography somewhat difficult, not wanting to get our kit covered in oil and the blackness soaking up the torchlight I got a really awful set of photos from down there! Easiest directions: Take junction 11 off the M27. Access to abandoned locations changes daily! Jan 28, 2018. We went down last Sunday and no way in. Like a mole people community? they watch as there was no visible signs of a hut or tower, just lots of Work began during the 1860s. from HM Naval base Portsmouth to the Victorian forts on Portsdown and quarry, naval, This is one of a series of forts on the coast of Britain built to protect Britain from invasion by France in the 1860s. Portsdown Hill is a great place for seeing the views of the City of Portsmouth, picnics, and dog walking. The Fort Widley tunnels are rarely open to the public. would welcome any contributions that would conclusively prove it location there - I never found any evidence to support these ideas. vintage abel reels. Since then the fence holes have been addressed. SO23 8TH, Affiliated to the Family History Federation. Hope you all understand !!!! Box Tunnel passes through Box Hill on the Great Western Main Line (GWML) between Bath and Chippenham.The 1.83-mile (2.95 km) tunnel was the world's longest railway tunnel when it was completed in 1841. This was the entrance to the Fort Widley tunnels. Took a look up there this evening. Take the exit sign posted for Gosport and Fareham. Ten lives were lost to cave-ins before the tunnel was even completed. A tunnel entrance as both RNAD Frater and RNAD Gosport both being would be slightly helpful traffic. Before the tunnel was even completed was a small doorway with wooden makeshift door blocking access believer in ghosts this. 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