The fort itself is now a council depot & the tunnels leading down to the mid & lower defences have been heavily bricked up to prevent access within. Two tunnels run from the fort to mortar batteries on the mid-ramparts, with one leading further down to the loop-holed counterscarp gallery that lies within the defensive ditch, complete with two pairs of gun casemates, magazines & a musketry gallery.
Fort Austin was one of the Northern Plymouth Defences sitting high overlooking Forder Valley. Around 80% of the gallery lies buried from infilling the ditch & lies within a nature reserve.
After a couple of visits here with Graybags, theterrorwheel & extrogg, we thought we may as well get some pics up from a place that was no doubt a local teenage haunt for some of the Plymouth peeps on here. It must have been great fun as a kid exploring this little gem!
Exterior view of the unburied section of the counterscarp gallery showing 1 of 2 pairs of gun casemates
Inside a gun casemate
View looking down the loop-holed counterscarp gallery...
...complete with a sally port entrance...
...at the end of the gallery, doorway on the left leads to the second pair of gun casemates & a small magazine room...the lower tunnel is the musketry gallery
Looking back down the musketry gallery...
...which leads up a long staircase now covered with rubbish. There was sunlight at the top but this was blocked by Captain Caveman Graybags negotiating his way up!
Just stepped out into where one of the mortar batteries would have been. This tunnel leads up to the fort, now bricked up at the end, but has a magazine at the right when you get to the top
Magazine loading hatch
On to the next tunnel, again bricked up at the top preventing access to the fort. This is sited at mid level on he hill & the location of another mortar battery
Same again at the end of this tunnel, with a magazine room, but this time on your left...
...although this tunnel had something different! A hole in the ceiling which was possibly to lower shells down.
Inside the magazine, we found this little beauty of a sign
On our second visit, we also found more old skool memorobillia in the ditch. What happened to PK's?
That's it from here from me. I look forward to seeing the pics from the others.
Fort Austin was one of the Northern Plymouth Defences sitting high overlooking Forder Valley. Around 80% of the gallery lies buried from infilling the ditch & lies within a nature reserve.
After a couple of visits here with Graybags, theterrorwheel & extrogg, we thought we may as well get some pics up from a place that was no doubt a local teenage haunt for some of the Plymouth peeps on here. It must have been great fun as a kid exploring this little gem!
Exterior view of the unburied section of the counterscarp gallery showing 1 of 2 pairs of gun casemates
Inside a gun casemate
View looking down the loop-holed counterscarp gallery...
...complete with a sally port entrance...
...at the end of the gallery, doorway on the left leads to the second pair of gun casemates & a small magazine room...the lower tunnel is the musketry gallery
Looking back down the musketry gallery...
...which leads up a long staircase now covered with rubbish. There was sunlight at the top but this was blocked by Captain Caveman Graybags negotiating his way up!
Just stepped out into where one of the mortar batteries would have been. This tunnel leads up to the fort, now bricked up at the end, but has a magazine at the right when you get to the top
Magazine loading hatch
On to the next tunnel, again bricked up at the top preventing access to the fort. This is sited at mid level on he hill & the location of another mortar battery
Same again at the end of this tunnel, with a magazine room, but this time on your left...
...although this tunnel had something different! A hole in the ceiling which was possibly to lower shells down.
Inside the magazine, we found this little beauty of a sign
On our second visit, we also found more old skool memorobillia in the ditch. What happened to PK's?
That's it from here from me. I look forward to seeing the pics from the others.
