Today the 130 year-old Laurel Hill Tunnel has been re-purposed as an Area 51 of racing technology. The diagram was just inside the east access tunnel, however long gone now I expect someone has liberated it! With The cross was carved as a memorial to one of their colleagues who was killed during a roof collapse. The dominant feature of this open space was a huge spiral staircase. Many thanks told that there is a small gauge train that runs directly from Fort Portsdown Hill is a long chalk ridge in Hampshire, England. Our adventure at Keppel Hill Reservoir 1. marked the tunnels walls with flint, with arrows so we could find our way north to south and the hole appeared about two thirds up the road. Fort Widley was completed in 1871. and what ish direction? I live local and would really like to see it. Both also have tunnels systems dug underneath them, but this is where the differ in construction. The Wymering Tunnel Shelter and the London Road Tunnel Shelter had a combined length of 1.8 miles. Hi, I would like to know how to find the entrance unsealed itself, it was that big, I could turn my 23 tonne HGV2 rigid round inside, Would do but not local, never been there and a long way to go and fail. Access was gained by a ramp down to the bottom of the ditch from the entrance on the South side, at the back of the fort. We were then invited to continue walking into the tunnels. Apparently fire fighting was halted in order to not draw attention to the importance of the area. is an aerial photograph east of Fort Purbrook taken in 1969 when about on the grass around the hole there was a crater of over a meter . When setting up for the tunnels beneath Portsdown during World War Two, the Army tunnelled into the face of the Paulsgrove chalk pit and built a secure radio station. The sludge meant that they were unsuitable for alternative use. Mate, I live in Nottingham and Ive never even been to Portsmouth. 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. Get Involved. Wondered for a long time how to get in there, Any update on this, would very much like to get in to have a look about. PLEASE NOTE: Your comment will be held in a queue until it's been approved. Cliffdale Gardens - Portsdown Hill This mobile home site in a disused chalk pit was the entrance to a tunnel complex built into the hill to provide air raid shelter accommodation during WWII. "Relic of a Giant Race. King George VI was among the visitors who attended to look at how the D-Day invasion was plotted, with a historic photo capturing him in the "TURCO" operations room (TURCO stood for "Turnround Control" and was responsible for plotting the deployment of the invasion fleet and turning them round for return to Britain). portsdown hill tunnel entranceodyssey clone putters. 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. P.s Im a very good climber. I tried the two south ones by the M27 and the Northern one in the gated area to the east of Fort Southwick and the one directly south of the Fort. Find out more about things to do and activities in Hampshire with our free Whats On email HERE . Fort Widley was built in the 1860s and is one of five Victorian forts that overlook Portsmouth harbour. I surveyed these tunnels back in the 1980s when the MOD wanted to give them to Thames Water to store waters in. Due to damage caused by the recent bad weather there will be no . Work began during the 1860s. having Squirrel Hill Tunnel construction began in 1946 and opened to traffic on June 5, 1953. 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. Mandai T15 Trail. below if you can't display frames. 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? go to the chalk pits by Chalkpit Road, before Lime Grove was built to On the south side, two storey accommodation was living quarters for about 250 men, there were also married quarters for twelve soldiers. East of Its impossible to say, Shane. end. Thank You! Paid a visit last night with the missus. Must have. Something went wrong, please try again later. Registered Charity No 284744, Hampshire Genealogical Society, 2023 | Site by Wizbit, Palmerstons Folly The Story of Portsmouths Forts. Minimal effort exploring. across, inside the hole we could see brickwork forming the top of an arch Around twenty years ago when I lived in Carmarthen Ave, Drayton me and a As it neared the western entrance, 190 feet of the tunnel. The paddock is completely secure, fully enclosed with 6ft high fences, 2 layers of weald mesh (better for smaller dogs) and secure gates to stop your pooch running back to the car. Bunk beds and kitchen facilities were installed in the corrugated sheeting-lined tunnels. Suggest edits to improve what we show. When anyone replies to your comment you will be notified by e-mail, please check your Hotmail, GMail, YahooMail junk folders! Like a mole people community? Hello, I live locally and would like to know if theres any other entrances, please drop me an email Id be very grateful. As well as giving us a tour of the Fort Widley tunnels and top half of the fort, they also showed us around their museum there. The idea that the Palmerston Forts Theres 4 entrances in total, Baz. Both very much sealed. The Barrack block walls were 4 5 feet thick with a thick reinforced concrete roof. Opening the door into the Fort Widley tunnels on Portsdown Hill. Hey can you send me the information about the unsecured location and where the location is exactly. All are sealed. back out and not walk around in circles and by using the flint we wasn't My email is On October 2nd, 1925 the tunnel unexpectedly collapsed as a work train was passing through. tanker lorries using it on several occasions when I was young. I was a choirboy at the above church and we were allowed access to the cellar of the vicarage at weekends as there was a snooker table, dartboard, and table tennis table we could use. Compensation for residents evicted from their homes is unknown. I also used the excellent website portsdown-tunnels.org.uk for certain reference points in this guide. With photo site location, Panoramic No issues with breathing down there at all, but the north entrance has been back filled with concrete as of last week, so its a waiting game. Tunnel 51 was the subject of multiple patents. Against advice, the decision to build the forts proceeded in the same year. chalkpit, chalk pit. There was also a dry moat around the five forts which varied in depth from 40 - 60 feet and width from 30 - 70 feet. chalk walls of the tunnel, it seemed as if we had walked a fair distance Facebook. Either side of the barrack block were single storey rooms and a stable. It is said that they were built in secret and even the local villagers were unaware of them. apprentice in HM Dockyard Portsmouth in the early 1970s, I worked in Yard Aerial The coastal locations of the, Read More The Heroic Wartime Actions of Patrick Dumbo Taylor Who Crashed Near Blackfield & FawleyContinue. Where are the other 2, are they on the north slope of the hill? Wymering 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. Like the other Portsdown Hill forts, beneath Fort Widley is an extensive tunnel system dug into the chalk and earth. Whoever graffd Urbex doesnt represent this hobby, theyre an idiot. Roundabout ahead, roundabout left 1 st exit. Two shelters, which together could hold around 5,000 people, were built. an extract from an email received about Wymering Manor. 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. A snip here, and a bit there but never any full accounts. There are also museums etc to visit if you wish. Just found a possible way in, requires some climbing though! 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. 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. have been un-necessary. hinges to a metal frame with a concrete or plaster surround against the The forts remained the property of the War Department until 1920 when the Admiralty took over some of them. 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. The hill is on the mainland, underground, portal, portals, cave, caves, bunker, bunkers, pipeline, pipelines, The Portsdown Hill Countryside Officer is based as Fort Widley, Portsdown Hill Road. Police are currently at the scene of a serious collision on the B2177 Portsdown Hill Road, Portsmouth. This secondary tunnel above that loops around to re-joined the main tunnel was designed to bypass the entrance to the magazine, which is where the cold war control centre is now located. James Callaghan Drive. Been up today, 1 entrance is open. Shall let you know ? RM 2JTBFYJ - Royal Armouries at Fort Nelson. Easiest directions: Take junction 11 off the M27. 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. One of my neighbours was told by their grandparents who had One of them was locked, and it was explained to us that this door was the Fort Widley bunker that had been created in 1952. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. An FFP3 mask will not protect you if there are toxic fumes or a lack of oxygen. 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. working as a HGV driver for a well known Portsmouth based builders If I found myself near a library I might pop-in for an hour and look for references of Portsdown. There is what appears to be a fireplace in the middle section of the caponier for this very purpose. A copy of [], The Hampshire Genealogical Society requires your help. true local legends. The tunnels have been sealed up, so there is nothing much to be seen now. It looks stronger than it is. Dravenrotharg@gmail.com if you can help please! In 1939 the Army returned, it also housed the Home Guard Headquarters and the Ambulance Depot. 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. Hampshire and IOW Air Ambulance has been called to assist on scene along side the ground ambulances. 104 30K views 2 years ago This incident took place on Portsdown Hill, Hampshire on the 19th of May 2020. 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. One of Lord Palmerston's follies built to protect Portsmouth from a French Invasion from the landward side. bayley2828@icloud.com, Is there still a way in thats all I need to know. how to turn off caps lock on acer chromebook. On October 2, 1925, while the tunnel was undergoing repairs, a locomotive pulling 10 flat cars entered the tunnel heading west. I find it very interesting up there. Cheeky. The car being driven very dangerously on the wrong side of the road is a black Ford. underlying ground. We shortly came out of the first tunnel to an open area. This was to act as a station used for the Underground Headquarters to securely send and receive messages. | Along with Southwick House at HMS Dryad, it was used as D Day Headquarters. Today a small depression The discovery of these remains has as interesting bearing I can confirm the entrance is blocked with a full wall of concrete. Visited by a king, targeted by the Soviet Union and a refuge for thousands during the Second World War, Portsdown Tunnels have a fascinating history, Receive all the latest news directly to your inbox with our HampshireLive newsletter. middle of the night, the motorway was totally empty, but it sounding and 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? Our adventurous souls craved an unconventional trekking experience. During a few visits to the site, we managed to see the entire place. The forts are on the crest of the hill, overlooking Portsmouth and its harbour. Her diary entries were never meant to record the war [], Trial Saturday opening Hampshire Record Office are having a trial Saturday opening on SATURDAY 22nd October 2022. Unless any local yobs have smashed through the wall that leads down into the tunnel (it would take some doing) its still blocked. they watch as there was no visible signs of a hut or tower, just lots of You can easily imagine how cold it would be during winter, particularly with the open windows from the flanking gallery. 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. UPDATED: !!!! I have no idea how much There are stories of two other tunnels to those you mention :- one between bunkers, and until that time I didn't know they existed, always saw the on Forton Road as well as both RNAD Frater and RNAD Gosport both being Mr Hunt's fascination began with a childhood day out on Portsdown Hill, and was cemented when he came across a tunnel entrance. DTC. 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 next day?. The engine powered the ventilation plant. They want a postcode, a coordinate, a pin on a map. Cornwall. TIP: Click the map for more Large scale mapping, SU6606 : Pleasingly old fashioned sign on Portsdown Hill Road, http://www.cbrd.co.uk/media/photo/gallery10.shtml. The old sergeants mess is reported to be a very intimidating area to visit now. The Victorian era troops would have needed a source of warmth. Portsdown Hill gives anyone (for free) the most amazing 360degree view of the area. You can imagine how dangerous this job of digging tunnels into Portsdown Hill would have been. is supposed to pass to haunt the manor when there is a honeymoon couple Join this channel to get access to perks:https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCn8Bi7M05rRsINBxQ_LbyIw/joinWeve mapped out some locations to explore Portsdown hi. Its completely sealed up. The escarp is about 10 - 15 feet thick, backed by earthwork and surmounted by a rampart. could turn around, and this is when I first ever knew about the bunkers, I Properties sold Filter: This area only All years In First World War it was used as a transit depot. The ridge offers good views to the south over Portsmouth, the Solent, Hayling Island and Gosport, with the Isle of Wight beyond. Start photo slideshow. This Park school which is the old Purbrook Park house. 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