Insider’s author explored an abandoned WWII complex on New Zealand’s Waiheke Island. Monica Humphries/Insider Fort Stony Batter sits on the east end of Waiheke Island, New Zealand. During WWII, it was built as a coastal defense fortress with tunnels, bunkers, and gun pits.
The fortress sat abandoned for 60 years. Today, it’s open to the public to explore. Most visitors who ferry to Waiheke Island off the coast of Auckland, New Zealand, visit to taste local wine and explore beaches.
While I was eager to sip the region’s reds and whites, there was another reason I traveled here. Vineyards near the Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Waiheke Local BoardI came to visit Fort Stony Batter, an abandoned coastal defense fortress commissioned in 1942 during World War II, the fort’s archaeological project manager, Timothy Moon, told Insider.
A view from Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Fort Stony BatterThe fortress, which has tunnels, chambers, and gun pits, is a World Heritage site owned by the New Zealand government. It sits on the eastern end of Waiheke Island, surrounded by farmland land and vineyards, Moon said.
A Google Maps image of where the Stony Batter Historic Reserve is located. Google Maps The fortress was built after the US requested that Allied forces prepare defenses following Japan’s attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941, according to New Zealand’s Department of Conservation. The American destroyer USS Shaw explodes during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941.
Keystone/Hulton Archive/Getty ImagesSource: New Zealand’s Department of Conservation As an Allied force, New Zealand commissioned three defense fortresses, including Fort Stony Batter, which were all built in total military secrecy, Moon said. A cement building at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderBy the time the fortress was finished, the war was over.
New Zealand was never attacked, and Fort Stony Batter’s tunnels were never used, according to New Zealand’s Department of Conservation. Instead, the site became a ghost town. A close up of one building on the property.
Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: New Zealand’s Department of ConservationFor 60 years, the buildings and tunnels sat abandoned. The tunnels flooded with water, and according to Fort Stony Batter’s website, locals were often spotted exploring the underground passageways. A building at Fort Stony Batter.
Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Fort Stony BatterOne of those explorers was Moon. “We would often venture out into the fortress, explore its dark, underground tunnels, get lost, and scare ourselves silly,” Moon, who has lived on the island for 27 years, said. A person walks through Fort Stony Batter tunnels.
Fort Stony BatterThen in 2002, a group of Waiheke volunteers started cleaning up the tunnels. They disbanded in 2012, and the tunnels again sat empty, Moon said. An entrance to tunnels built during WWII.
Monica Humphries/InsiderIn 2017, Moon, who has an interest in archaeology and anthropology, had the idea for a one-off event inside one of the fort’s underground chambers. That’s what catalyzed a complete restoration, he said, and led Moon to reopen the tunnels to the public for daily exploration. An underground chamber now has a grand piano and hosts concerts.
Fort Stony BatterSo in 2021, after years of self-funded restoration, the tunnels reopened for tours and events like underground concerts, art exhibits, and meditation sessions. Since then, 12,000 people have explored the massive, underground fortress, Moon said. A section of a tunnel at the Fort Stony Batter.
Fort Stony BatterSource: Radio New ZealandThis summer, I was one of them. I arrived at Fort Stony Batter during Waiheke’s off-season in June, which is winter on the island. While the tunnels are open every day in summer, they were not when I arrived, along with the tour office.
Moon said this was likely due to the off-season and pandemic. The closed sign at the entrance to the Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderThis meant I couldn’t explore the underground tunnels.
Luckily, the public can access the 50-acre property any day, so I was able to wander around the fort’s historic above-ground buildings, which included gun pits and bunkers. A view of the interior of one of the buildings. Monica Humphries/InsiderI parked my rental car and set out on a muddy path to the defense fortress.
The trail that leads to Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderThe fortress is about a half mile away from the parking lot. Along the path, I spotted sheep and massive boulders in every direction.
The trail that leads to the Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderToday, the land is active with grazing sheep, which travel from the nearby Man O’ War farm and vineyard. The boulders, meanwhile, have existed on the land for eight million years after a volcano erupted, Moon said.
Sheep roam the fields at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderThis is the only part of Waiheke Island that’s scattered with boulders. The massive rocks worked to the military’s advantage — they were turned into concrete for the fort’s buildings, according to a sign I saw on the trail.
Boulders fill the fields near Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderBefore I made it to the fortress, I read signs that painted a picture of what life would’ve been like for the soldiers and workers here during WWII. A sign shines some insight into what life was like at the Fort Stony Batter.
Monica Humphries/InsiderFor instance, this now-empty plot of land was once a camp with 28 buildings, one sign detailed. Moon said that the workforce abided by strict secrecy. “The workforce of 200 men were not able to communicate with their families, and they weren’t able to leave the site of war.
They were locked down for three and a half years,” he said. A plot of land at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderNear the abandoned camp, I spotted a grass-covered foundation.
According to another sign, this lot was once a workshop for blacksmiths, engineers, and store men. Here, the men maintained generators, guns, and other equipment. A foundation on the property.
Monica Humphries/InsiderFinally, I arrived at another gate, which marked the official entrance to the historic fort. Another entrance to Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderJust past the entrance, I spotted more cement foundations.
A sign noted that this was once a carpenter’s store. Another was marked as an auxiliary engine. Foundations built during WWII fill the property.
Monica Humphries/InsiderIn the distance were three cement buildings. As I approached the structures, I learned from posted signs that they were used for storing diesel. Three buildings on the property.
Monica Humphries/InsiderBehind the buildings was a large, circular structure. This was one of the fort’s three gun pits. According to the Stony Batter Protection and Restoration Society, each pit was designed to house a 9.
2-inch gun. The shells fired would’ve been 9. 2 inches in diameter and the gun itself would’ve weighed about 242,500 pounds.
A gun encampment at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Stony Batter Protection and Restoration SocietyOnly two pits were completed, a sign stated, and the war ended before the last gun was installed. A gun encampment at Fort Stony Batter.
Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Stony Batter Protection and Restoration SocietySoldiers would’ve been able to access the gun pits from underground tunnels, the same sign explained. A gun encampment at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderAs I followed the path, I approached a forested area.
The trail continued into the covered canopy, where I spotted more relics from the past. A forested area leads to more buildings. Monica Humphries/InsiderI approached one large building with its windows barred shut.
A building at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderBehind the building was an entrance to the tunnel system. The cement walls leading up to the metal doors were coated in vibrant, green moss.
An entrance to tunnels built during WWII. Monica Humphries/InsiderThrough the two doors are . 7 miles of tunnels, 13 chambers, and stairwells.
The fortress was designed to take on direct enemy bombardment, and, in the case of an attack, the tunnels allowed soldiers to access the fort’s guns and ammunition without surfacing, a sign explained. A section of a tunnel at the Fort Stony Batter. Fort Stony BatterThe tunnels include a magazine room, which stored ammunition, that’s “larger than the average house” and a passage that descends 1,300 feet below, according to Radio New Zealand.
The interior of a tunnel at Fort Stony Batter. Fort Stony BatterSource: Radio New ZealandI imagined soldiers navigating the tunnels 80 years ago. I also pictured locals like Moon who explored the abandoned tunnels more recently.
My imagination ran wild as I pictured who — or what — came out of the tunnels. A building at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderFinally, I made it to the official entrance where tours are held.
According to Stony Batter Protection and Restoration Society, the entrance was repainted to its original bright red color. The entrance to the tunnels that the public can explore. Monica Humphries/InsiderSource: Stony Batter Protection and Restoration SocietyMoon said the restoration process has been extraordinary.
“When I arrived here, it looked like a post-war zone and now it’s a thing of beauty — it’s alive,” he saidBoulders at Fort Stony Batter. Monica Humphries/InsiderAnd while I thought roaming around the property in complete solitude made it feel as if I’d stepped back in time, I’m eager to return someday to go inside the underground passageways and see its new life. The author in front of the gun encampment.
Monica Humphries/InsiderRead the original article on Insider.
From: insider
URL: https://www.insider.com/fort-stony-batter-abandoned-new-zealand-wwii-complex-photos-2022-11
