# Penlee Steps, Rame SE Cornwall, Part of Penlee Battery



## steve_o (Aug 24, 2009)

*Penlee Steps, Rame SE Cornwall, Part of Penlee Battery - May 09*

Slightly different to your usual Explores. This site is open to the savages of the Seas, tho it has stood up very well considering how old it is. Parts of the Area were underwater, so needed underwater photographic equipment and me to don my wetsuit and snorkel gear! 

Bit about it 

Penlee Steps were originally built to aid the arming of Penlee battery which is situated much further up the Coastal slope giving an ideal position to see anything attemping to enter Plymouth Sound and attack the Dockyard.
The Battery itself was designed to be armed with two 6 inch BL Guns and one 13.5 inch BL Gun. The 6inch guns were mounted in 1892. The 13.5 inch due to its size and it weighing 67 tons! was floated from Plymouth on a barge to the massive steps you see in the Pics.
The Barrel of the Gun was landed on the steps in 1882 where it sat for a year. It then took a week to be hauled up the hill using 40 horses and over 200 men! The Gun was of an Elswick dissappearing design, which ment that the Gun was raised to be fired. It was then lowered hidden from enemy view where it could be reloaded then raised to be fired again. It was thelargest disappearing gun in the country. The Gun was finally mounted at Penlee battery in 1894 where apparently on its virgin firing it cracked its foundations. 












The steps as viewed from the sea











View out across the sound, Fort Picklecombe can be seen just along the coast 
















You can see my mate in the background, just shows how big the steps actually are! 






Rusting Anchor point for the lifting gear to land and lift the Gun. Not bad for 117 odd years being batterd by the sea






Tho this one hasn't done so well






Amazing this is the remains of a wooden post, with fragment of wood still visable






Post completly gone 






One of many Holes 










Base of the Pillar seen in above photos






Metal Pole pokeing out of the base of pillar






Anchor point and shackel.






The Local wildlife... A spider crab






Part of the route the Gun would have been hauled up 






Unclimbable fince that surrounds Penlee battery (now a nature reserve)


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## Badoosh (Aug 24, 2009)

Nice shots there Steve, especially liking the underwater shots. Last time i visited i found the old searchlights broken up in the woods just down the track. Not much to see but it was still interesting to find them.


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*Of course*

lovely pics.. but don't you mean 1892 and not 1982 ?

G


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## Foxylady (Aug 24, 2009)

Excellent explore, Steve. Interesting history and it's great to see the underwater archaeology too.
Good stuff!


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## apocalypse72 (Aug 24, 2009)

Excellent report Steve O. Nice pictures and some interesting info that i wasnt previously aware of. Well done mate!

apocalypse72


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## steve_o (Aug 24, 2009)

graybags said:


> lovely pics.. but don't you mean 1892 and not 1982 ?
> 
> G



Yes i did,  Thankyou


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## godzilla73 (Aug 24, 2009)

This is brilliant stuff and interesting history too! Well done!


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## jonney (Aug 30, 2009)

Great place steveo love the underwater shots looks like the viz was pretty good


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## steve_o (Aug 30, 2009)

It was pretty good that day, bit merky in places but in around rocks it was pretty clear!, Sun going behind the clouds did cut alot of the light down tho.


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## jonney (Aug 31, 2009)

steve_o said:


> It was pretty good that day, bit merky in places but in around rocks it was pretty clear!, Sun going behind the clouds did cut alot of the light down tho.



better than the 2-3m average we get up here mate. looks like a nice dive site


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## steve_o (Aug 31, 2009)

yeah is a nice site, quite sheltered from any of the washy swell coming up the english channel. Some parts are about 5 meters deep right off the rocks. Ive heard some parts are around 15meters! Not seen where that is yet. Working my way along the coast tho


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