Well, my week in Manchester was cut short unfortunately, but I wanted to make sure I did something worth the journey, so with some help from The new Mendoza and Chewy (thanks guys!
), I managed to squeeze this place in before I left.
This place is becoming well known, with a few reports about already, so some may know the history. For those that don't...
The Brinksway shelters were dug between 1938-9 as a precaution in the run up to war and expected to hold four to five thousand people. The tunnels were dug into the red sandstone, originally with eight portals. These have all been sealed, but some genius found a way in. There are still hundreds of bunks lining the tunnels, many of these have already been broken down for scrap. The network of tunnels is huge, and it is easy to spend hours on end inside. Many explorers have mentioned bad air due to the lack of ventilation, but on my visit I felt no ill effects. For anybody that does, somebody has kindly painted arrows everywhere, all pointing towards the entrance, you can trust these, unlike in other places. Here's a plan of the shelter, although there are others floating about on the net...
Upon entereing the shelter it was incredibly humid, heavy showers added to this and I was worried how I would get any photos. It cleared up further into the shelter.
There are a series of portals at the roadside, all bricked over.
Just inside the way in
First impressions
Mmmmmm, Mouldy.
The first features you come to are the toilets. These are a bit beaten, but most aren't as intact.
They were simply moulded ceramic pipes with a seat formed on top.
Some interesting deposits are forming on the walls
The bunks stretch for as far as the torch will shine
Partially scrapped bunks
The condensation was bad in places
One of the bricked up portals
Each portal had at least two layers of heavy felt curtain at the entrances to defend against gas attacks.
There were plenty of these lamps dotted around the place
Another blocked portal
And another. The piles of rubble would be the remains of the outer blast wall, swept in as the tunnels were bricked up.
More Tunnels
Some vintage rubbish
A bit of playing around
), I managed to squeeze this place in before I left.This place is becoming well known, with a few reports about already, so some may know the history. For those that don't...
The Brinksway shelters were dug between 1938-9 as a precaution in the run up to war and expected to hold four to five thousand people. The tunnels were dug into the red sandstone, originally with eight portals. These have all been sealed, but some genius found a way in. There are still hundreds of bunks lining the tunnels, many of these have already been broken down for scrap. The network of tunnels is huge, and it is easy to spend hours on end inside. Many explorers have mentioned bad air due to the lack of ventilation, but on my visit I felt no ill effects. For anybody that does, somebody has kindly painted arrows everywhere, all pointing towards the entrance, you can trust these, unlike in other places. Here's a plan of the shelter, although there are others floating about on the net...
Upon entereing the shelter it was incredibly humid, heavy showers added to this and I was worried how I would get any photos. It cleared up further into the shelter.
There are a series of portals at the roadside, all bricked over.
Just inside the way in
First impressions
Mmmmmm, Mouldy.
The first features you come to are the toilets. These are a bit beaten, but most aren't as intact.
They were simply moulded ceramic pipes with a seat formed on top.
Some interesting deposits are forming on the walls
The bunks stretch for as far as the torch will shine
Partially scrapped bunks
The condensation was bad in places
One of the bricked up portals
Each portal had at least two layers of heavy felt curtain at the entrances to defend against gas attacks.
There were plenty of these lamps dotted around the place
Another blocked portal
And another. The piles of rubble would be the remains of the outer blast wall, swept in as the tunnels were bricked up.
More Tunnels
Some vintage rubbish
A bit of playing around
