# Our first exploration around our local military areas.



## chaz_p (Aug 23, 2009)

We used to visit these places as kids all the time; this is the first time we took a camera.
I met up with mk1kabab after work and decided to visit these as a warm up before venturing to more complex places in the future.
The places we decided on were;
* Penlee battery 
* Maker battery 
* Maker redoubt 
* Underground oil tanks (WW2 I think) 
* Whitsand bay pill boxes 

Anyway here are the pictures enjoy.

*penlee battery *






This was easier to enter than last time thanks to someone removing the hatch completely.





Main tunnel.





Air vents was one in most of the rooms.





Old Stella.





Vents.

*maker battery *









Mooring point.





Shell lift.





Most of the bunkers were sealed up and the open ones were full of junk.









Gun mount.





Close up.

*maker redoubt *





In the moat.





Mk1kabab trying to look cool stood between the draw bridge supports.





Arch.





We entered this room through the roof and proceeded in through the opening in the end wall.





And this is what we found, so we crawled in.





Not sure what it was for but it was about 1ft wide and went round the back of the first room.





Then we decided to venture down here.









Fairly disappointing, one small wet room with vents in the roof.









Don’t we all!

* Underground oil tanks *





There were two tanks and this was the entrance to the first.





And this was the other.





Winch close up.





Vent.

















Filling points.





Going in.









Huge valves and tank entrance.





Mk1 having a look, they were full of water so next time we will be equipped with wellies and flares.









Inside a tank, these things were massive at least 100ft diameter id say.










*whitsand bay pill boxes *













Roof braces.









Rame head

Well that was our first day I think we did fairly well


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 24, 2009)

sweet m8, would be very interested in the whitsand bay site

well done on cremyll, theres actually 4 tanks there, did u find the tunnels?


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*Well*

The Whitsand bay pics look a lot like the PFC's at Maker to me ?

The view towards Rame suggests Freathy

Not pill boxes

http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=9693&highlight=Maker

Graybags


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## Badoosh (Aug 24, 2009)

Nice explores & pics guys. The Whitsand Bay stuff are actually the PF Cells as Graybags says. Six of them in total. The roofs are looking dodgy as hell nowadays.


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## night crawler (Aug 24, 2009)

Great explore that so much to see.


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## mk1kebab (Aug 24, 2009)

we only found the 2 tanks up in the woods there are more tank looking things and a couple of pump houses (I think) further down by cremyll, did not find the tunnels though! We would be very interested in going in them!


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 24, 2009)

if u check out a 1:25000 os map the tanks are clearly marked, u must of seen a 2 story building on the edge of the woods, it is next to the footpath that runs up into the woods from the road to lower anderton...

in the valley behind it is a tunnel, 150m or so long.

if you follow the road futher around towards millbrook you will pass a couple houses and a gate on the left.... look into the field and in the middle you will see some trees that look out of place.... the second is in there, although its gated and a major hassle to get in/out, and ultimately not worth the hassle! its totally empty although in great condition...that one was a magazine for a nearby torpedo boat station - never used as it was unfinished....

hope thats of some help, we've spent hours and hours up there over that last few yrs!


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## cptpies (Aug 24, 2009)

The narrow passage you found at Maker would have been the lighting passage running behind the magazine. For obvious reasons lamps couldn't be allowed into the magazine so it was lit through windows from behind. This passage allowed access to the lamps to light them.


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## Badoosh (Aug 24, 2009)

cptpies said:


> The narrow passage you found at Maker would have been the lighting passage running behind the magazine. For obvious reasons lamps couldn't be allowed into the magazine so it was lit through windows from behind. This passage allowed access to the lamps to light them.



I don't think they was lamp passages dude. The magazine is basically a room built within a room if that makes sense, more than likely designed to take the impact of an explosion & limit damage to the redoubts main walls. I've been in this & an identical room nearby at Grenville & the holes into the passageways have just been knocked through over the years. At some points a champion pie eater would actually get stuck they are so narrow! The rooms are also built into the accomodation so i'd say they were only used for light ammunition only.


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## DigitalNoise (Aug 24, 2009)

Every time I've seen a lighting passage it has been identical to that, and running around the edges of magazines....


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## mk1kebab (Aug 24, 2009)

I know exactly where you are talking about now Kernow! I heard rumors that there were tunnels round there, some supposedly running to maker redoubt and Kingsand don't know if there is any truth in that though!


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## Black Shuck (Aug 24, 2009)

Badoosh said:


> I don't think they was lamp passages dude. The magazine is basically a room built within a room if that makes sense, more than likely designed to take the impact of an explosion & limit damage to the redoubts main walls. I've been in this & an identical room nearby at Grenville & the holes into the passageways have just been knocked through over the years. At some points a champion pie eater would actually get stuck they are so narrow! The rooms are also built into the accomodation so i'd say they were only used for light ammunition only.



I am that Champion Pie Eater!


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## chaz_p (Aug 24, 2009)

the whitsands site is right next to the road and further round that freathy nearer the cafe than the holiday park. named them as pills as id never heard of pfc's before, if thats def what they are ill change it.
the narrow passage at redoubt did have some slots in the lower section of the walls but they didnt go through to the "magazine" room and the passage was only on one side and its head height was lower than the magazine room. can any one shed some light as to what the other room we went in was for (the one down the hole)?


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## Badoosh (Aug 24, 2009)

chaz_p said:


> the whitsands site is right next to the road and further round that freathy nearer the cafe than the holiday park. named them as pills as id never heard of pfc's before, if thats def what they are ill change it.
> the narrow passage at redoubt did have some slots in the lower section of the walls but they didnt go through to the "magazine" room and the passage was only on one side and its head height was lower than the magazine room. can any one shed some light as to what the other room we went in was for (the one down the hole)?



There's more Position Finding Cells further down the road, the ones at Penlee are buried in the field on the right as you driving into Penlee car park though look hard enough & you'll find traces of them, Bovisand & Maker Heights. Some interesting stuff around Picklecombe Fort too . I'm probably wrong on the passageway theory but i haven't bothered editing my post above as it's always good to find yourself wrong & lear from mistakes. The hole you refer to i'd guess was some sort of reservoir.


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 24, 2009)

the site of the old AA battery is just on the other side of the road, although the only above ground feature remaining is the familiar "P" shaped road!

theres a wierd two story building in the field nearby thats plain wierd tho! one small room, with no apparent access to whatever is above!


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## chaz_p (Aug 24, 2009)

where abouts is that building im trying to google earth it not sure if im looking at the right thing?


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 24, 2009)

http://www.flashearth.com/?lat=50.324755&lon=-4.204191&z=19.9&r=0&src=msl

its got a small blast wall covering the door


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*Apologies*

I stand corrected chaps, the PFC's are actually Treninnow or Knatterbury PFC's above Whitesands Bay - My Bad, sorry

And please, no more builders bums pics thanks 

G


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## mk1kebab (Aug 24, 2009)

yeah that is a weird building i've been to it but i haven't got a clue what it is! and i cant really remember much about it, i didn't spend long there though so it cant of been very exciting. but i may go back up for a look at the weekend


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*Building*



mk1kebab said:


> yeah that is a weird building i've been to it but i haven't got a clue what it is! and i cant really remember much about it, i didn't spend long there though so it cant of been very exciting. but i may go back up for a look at the weekend




According to the defences of Plymouth, possibly a lookout of some sort, similar to the one at Brownhill battery

G


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 24, 2009)

hmmm interesting! i had a look in the book but must of missed it! good dectective work graybags!


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*More info*

My info is up to date as possible, the PFC's are Knatterbury as evidenced by the instrument pillars I.I.R.C.

Maker Redoubt number 5 - had a couple of tents in the interior when I visited, and lots of evidence of clearing up, there was a tree coming out of the hole, that appears to have gone now. Careful of entering from holes above as the structure is pretty unstable and getting worse

G


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## mk1kebab (Aug 24, 2009)

the tents were still there when we visited at the weekend although they were wrecked and burnt, the floor sounds quite hollow in a woody way in the room that is possibly a magazine room, its definitely not at ground level though I would say there was another 15ft or so to the level of the moat. I wonder if there are anymore rooms that are underground in here?


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## graybags (Aug 24, 2009)

*Maker*

From entrance, turn into barrack room on right, there is a hole with a ladder, but you may have been in that one

G


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## mk1kebab (Aug 24, 2009)

yeah we went in that hole, it was the one with the hollow sounding floor, we also went in the small hole that is in the cleared area outside. I heard another rumor that there were four or five rooms under there! although there are no entrances that we found.


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## graybags (Aug 25, 2009)

*Maker*

don't believe rumours

http://www.derelictplaces.co.uk/main/showthread.php?t=10399&highlight=Maker

G


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## Badoosh (Aug 25, 2009)

From books & documents it's rumoured to possibly have magazines under the gun platforms but we found nothing after 2 visits.


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## cptpies (Aug 25, 2009)

kernowexpeditionary said:


> the site of the old AA battery is just on the other side of the road, although the only above ground feature remaining is the familiar "P" shaped road!
> 
> theres a wierd two story building in the field nearby thats plain wierd tho! one small room, with no apparent access to whatever is above!



This might have been the pedestal for the radar antenna if the guns were radar directed. Although they aren't usually that far away from the guns themselves.


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## chaz_p (Aug 25, 2009)

mk1 fancy taking a spade to that floor this weekend bud?


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## mk1kebab (Aug 26, 2009)

kernowexpeditionary said:


> the site of the old AA battery is just on the other side of the road, although the only above ground feature remaining is the familiar "P" shaped road!
> 
> theres a wierd two story building in the field nearby thats plain wierd tho! one small room, with no apparent access to whatever is above!



Kernow, i think i may have found something in reference to this building you were on about! don't know if you've seen it or not though? (http://www.cyberheritage.com/penlee_battery_plans/IMG_7351.html) doesnt show that exact building but shows quite a lot of other buildings in the field that its in


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## kernowexpeditionary (Aug 28, 2009)

interesting stuff thanks dude


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