# ROC - South Woodham Ferrers - OPEN - 07/12/11



## ooda55 (Dec 7, 2011)

*South Woodham Ferrers ROC Post (OPEN) & BAe Systems "Radar Hill" 07/12/11*

Easy parking at the north side of the hill (Workhouse Lane)
http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=%2B51%C2%B0+39%27+32.91%22,+%2B0%C2%B0+35%27+54.47%22&hl=en&ie=UTF8&ll=51.658977,0.598615&spn=0.002769,0.006968&sll=51.659482,0.598835&sspn=0.002769,0.006968&vpsrc=6&t=h&z=18
Hatch was not locked but had bricks placed on top due to damage on the hinges and counterweight mechanism that caused the lid to pop open.











A message left by a previous ROC enthusiast:





Upon entering the post i was surprised by the condition, the cupboards and some basic equipment remained. Polystyrene insulation tiles were still on the walls but the beds and most of the electronics were missing. Battery selection box, lighting and timer (for lights) were still in place and the timer was still ticking.














There was lots of litter down there (and a china candle holder?) Some of it dated from 1990 - 2001, along with a school book (from the local school?)

The post was not at all flooded and the pump still seemed to be functional, the wooden floor was mostly intact too apart from around the entrance.

Coming back up the hatch





Other notes:
Damage to hatch (padlock loops broken off, right side hinge broken)
FSM sealed
Ventilation shaft in bad condition





RADAR HILL:
After the ROC we went onto Radar Hill (A still functioning radar test site owned by BAe systems) which is visible when facing the inside of the open ROC hatch:




http://maps.google.co.uk/maps?q=south+woodham&hl=en&ll=51.657396,0.619923&spn=0.005538,0.013937&oe=utf-8&client=firefox-a&hq=south+woodham&radius=15000&t=h&z=17&vpsrc=6
As soon as we arrived we were greeted by a fairly nice security guard who made sure we weren’t up to no good (and declined us a guided tour) and confirmed that radar hill was indeed intended for use as a testing site for military equipment 
We did not take any photos but there are some fantastic ones here: http://www.tweakerzine.com/radarhill


----------



## smiler (Dec 7, 2011)

That looks in rather better condition than most, some nice bits left, I enjoyed it Thanks


----------



## highcannons (Dec 7, 2011)

Thanks for posting, its in much better condition than most 'unadopted' ones.


----------



## godzilla73 (Dec 7, 2011)

Nice - Woodham Ferrers is fascinating because of its connection to radar history, so its no surprise to find a ROC nearby. Radar Hill was home to a variety of top secret radar equipment which Marconi tested before it was flogged to other countries for their defence systems. When I were a lad (living in nearby Wickford) the skyline was dominated by two whacking great back-to-back rotating radar dishes that ran constantly. Happy cold war memories! They still do test stuff there - hence your encounter with security, who have given me a long hard look on the couple of times I have even driven past the front entrance, so consider yourself having done a good job here.
Well done lads!
Godzy


----------



## TeeJF (Dec 9, 2011)

Nice one!!! Great find...  Thanks for posting.


----------



## old git (Dec 9, 2011)

*Missing pics?*

Am I missing something or are there no pics of the main inside bits?


----------

