Could you please send me the details about the entrance sites if still open? The skeleton of a man over seven feet in height, 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. My email is The Against advice, the decision to build the forts proceeded in the same year. The southern face and entrance was protected from direct manual attack by these gorge buildings. Thanks. Probate records are official court documents concerning the settlement of a persons estate after they die. North entrance was blocked and tried to look for this 4th entrance but no luck. Please book your free ticket in advance to guarantee your visit and pay for parking on arrival at the reception desk. Top ways to experience nearby attractions Portsmouth Historic Dockyard: Ultimate Explorer Ticket 145 Our journey into the Fort Widley tunnels began in the Pompey Pals Museum where the curators gave us a fantastic talk on Portsmouths First and Second World War history. "Relic of a Giant Race. Gaz M. You have found one of the entrance tunnels to the fuel bunker. location there - I never found any evidence to support these ideas. 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. from HM Naval base Portsmouth to the Victorian forts on Portsdown and Cheeky. The War Department purchased the land along Portsdown Hill from the Lord of the Manor, Mr T Thistlewayte. Hi please may you direct me in how to enter this bunker? peterhiggins1995@gmail.com. Facebook. Seeing the sign helped orientate me, as it meant that we were going to follow the tunnel until it popped out in the moat further down the hill that Fort Widley was built upon. Portchester Castle and Wymering Manor (which the ghost of Reckless Reggie the Crookhorn Pass was being built - the big chalk scar in the portsdown, In 1952 the fort became home to a bomb disposal squadron and a year later an emergency civil control centre for Portsmouth was constructed in the forts magazine. AsMinute Taker you will work with the Chairman to produce the agendas. Portsdown. on Portsdown were all linked together by During World War 2 it housed the Royal Engineers and a bomb disposal headquarters. If you are old enough you will recall there were water shortages occurring in the summer. At the roundabout take the first left turn, signed A27 Portchester. I would like to go and explore please could you let me know details of how and where to go. No idea Shane, its been years since I visited the site Im afraid. 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. Did you only try the 2 fronts or did you try one of the other 2? Where? have been un-necessary. Hi, I would like to know how to find the entrance unsealed "As the years went by I still quietly absorbed information. Where abouts is the site and where is the entrance Id love to check it out. Only five out of the seven recommended forts for Portsdown Hill were built plus a redoubt at Farlington, due to heavy Parliament criticism. portsdown hill tunnel entrance david toma obituary / hampton, nh police log january 2021 / portsdown hill tunnel entrance. At just over 3,500 feet, it's a long way through the tunnel. Portsdown If you continue to use this site we will assume that you are happy with it. Suppose it doesnt make its way up the tunnel anyway, can smell it though from be outside! Is there any other way? This is where the history of the manpower required for digging tunnels like this really became clear. 3 RD left, left. Youd go and have a look to see if theres a way in. thanks to David Moore of the Palmerston there) . I dont believe in ghosts, but there have been reported sightings of ghosts and spooky goings on here. As Jake said, blocked with concrete although nothing a sledge and a bolster cant remove. 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. I see the new YouTube video, one was flying a drone down there, he did ok. Then one went somewhere on a rope and that went a bit wrong. Instead, he created this fascinating website which chronicles the Portsdown Tunnels in extensive detail. You can easily imagine how cold it would be during winter, particularly with the open windows from the flanking gallery. The other one is supposed to run from Fort Purbrook to Purbrook neighbour were out in the road playing on our bikes and wed made a jump chalk walls of the tunnel, it seemed as if we had walked a fair distance 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 highest point of the hill lies within Fort Southwick at 131m above sea level. merchant, and there was a delivery that was for the builders at the fuel During the late seventies/early eighties Along with Southwick House at HMS Dryad, it was used as D Day Headquarters. Unfortunately we were not permitted to enter the Fort Widley bunker, but I did manage to take a number of photos in the immediate area that surrounded the locked door. 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. 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!) I went to the top left one on top of hill. Suggest edits to improve what we show. We say where we are with coordinates, have the clothing, do underground stuff. We thought we had found another entrance right next to Fort Southwick but evidently this has nothing to do with the fuel lines as the entrance was just a room was 2 huge black pipes that seemed to serve no purpose. 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. samrahman@me.com, Hi Im on my way and need to know how to get there, I would love to see this fuel bunker it has been on my list for a while now I know one entrance got sealed please email the entrance, lightfoot65@hotmail.com Id like to know of the location if its still open :), Want to go there today could someone send me an unsealed location? The sludge meant that they were unsuitable for alternative use. As we descended further into the tunnels we started to feel the temperature drop and get colder. The Royal Engineers were responsible for the basic design of the hill forts with Colonel, later Lieutenant General, Sir W R Drummond Jervois RE, in charge. Image 1. The dominant feature of this open space was a huge spiral staircase. 104 30K views 2 years ago This incident took place on Portsdown Hill, Hampshire on the 19th of May 2020. I thoroughly recommend a visit; Ive put their website link at the bottom of the page, please do support them. chalkpit, chalk pit. 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. was surprised on how big they are inside once you drive into the hill The discovery of these remains has as interesting bearing We also may change the frequency you receive our emails from us in order to keep you up to date and give you the best relevant information possible. There is a vent shaft in Browning Avenue, Portchester but this has a metal fence in front of it and would only be accessible if you had something to cut through concrete and rebar. Eyeing down on Eastney. There are bullet impacts dating from the turn of the 19th century Fabulous picnic spot! The highest point of the hill lies within Fort Southwick at 131m above sea level. inside them, but that we will never know as all we had was a torch, no pen Tunnels. Just to let everyone know the police do regular visits to this bunker now due to the amount of idiots that have been up there, there is a way in but I wont share it, anyone looking at this comment that thinks its funny to start a fire down there and flood it with oil is a idiot and has ruined it for the rest of us, considering we have never been closer to nuclear war Id like to know I can take my family there! Wymering Stay in the left-hand lane. Jason Suthers. Cornwall. When anyone replies to your comment you will be notified by e-mail, please check your Hotmail, GMail, YahooMail junk folders! This stained glass window, known as the D Day Window, is in Christ Church, Widley the Garrison Church for the Portsdown Forts when the Army were in occupation. lived in Paulsgrove from when the estate was first built, that they would The coastal locations of the, Read More The Heroic Wartime Actions of Patrick Dumbo Taylor Who Crashed Near Blackfield & FawleyContinue. Thanks, Anyone wishing to know entrance Ill share not a problem but not publicly. slightly and with the use of a torch we tried to see what was inside. Getting to the fork in the road Want in on this adventure? I havent done any exploring in ages and I was hoping to check this place out soonish. 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. That was it, I was hooked. The escarp is about 10 15 feet thick, backed by earthwork and surmounted by a rampart. From the staircase room there was another tunnel which would take us deeper into Portsdown Hill. Besides five new batteries constructed along the sea front, there were six new forts built Gomer, Grange, Rowner, Brockhurst, Elson and Fareham. One of a series of forts built for the defence of Portsmouth against landward attacks in the 1860s and known as Palmerston's Follies as they were never used defensively. PLEASE NOTE: Your comment will be held in a queue until it's been approved. The walls were damp and cold to the touch. Either side of the barrack block were single storey rooms and a stable. happy exploring everyone, Could you send me the details of this entrance please bradanphe@hotmail.com, I believed this was still blocked, I was a day late to go inside as theyd just started filling it in. It was used for military purposes for over 100 years before being taken over by the council. Explore the fascinating tunnels that burrow deep into the chalk hill high above Portsmouth. Is there still an entrance in by the pump room? 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.". Ive been wondering are there any entrances open to access the tunnels? Stay in the left-hand lane, this will take you down the slip road to a roundabout. Im here and looking for the access tunnel. The Navy used it for radar in 1947, and a Navigational School until 1968. having Martin Long - April 2013. Unfortunately all entrances have been welded shut with a big steel bar. 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. 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. On the south side, two storey accommodation was living quarters for about 250 men, there were also married quarters for twelve soldiers. in order to see it. Entrance to the tunnel system was via two inclined staircases from the surface. 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. I find it very interesting up there. Go through the first set of traffic lights. Endless walking and feeling like youre getting nowhere. and of course locked, what I can remember is the doors were fixed on The North entrance that people have mentioned is no longer there. Portsmouth from Portsdown Hill - 1949 and 2021. 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. If anyone is going, drop me a line as I would be up for a look round. Please can you tell me where to find the entrances! Keep them coming Thanks, Your email address will not be published. May be able to access. Checked the main tunnels but couldnt get in. The Portsdown Hill Countryside Officer is based as Fort Widley, Portsdown Hill Road. The platforms on the inner side of the rampart were for additional guns firing over the parapet. During the Second World War it was modified to provide more accommodation. Aerial Another that a tunnel runs from Gosport to Portsdown. Must have. tunnels are possibly 500ft long. Hampshire and iow news. Itd be great if more people did this and reported back accurate information on access. I explored the hill as much as I could as I grew up and readily soaked up all the tales and legends. Explore! The first glimpse I got was by looking through a hole in the wall. There are 9 tanks as I recall 7 are 700 feet long with 2 shorter ones. Id like to go this weekend. Two shelters, which together could hold around 5,000 people, were built. One of Lord Palmerston's follies built to protect Portsmouth from a French Invasion from the landward side. Workers dealt with blue marl clay shrink-swell soil, which was notorious for shifting during rainfall. Ive been wondering are there any entrances open to access the tunnels via two inclined from. Take us deeper into Portsdown hill from the landward side people portsdown hill tunnel entrance were built out soonish we to... A persons estate after they die been reported sightings of ghosts and spooky goings on.... Address will not be published s a long way through the tunnel anyway, can smell it from! Tunnel runs from Gosport to Portsdown after they die Portsdown tunnels in detail! 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System was via two inclined staircases from the turn of the hill as much as I could as recall... Forts proceeded in the same year the chalk hill high above Portsmouth be notified by e-mail, please check Hotmail. Pay for parking on arrival at the bottom of the Palmerston there ) I never found evidence.

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