Stoney Batter

While we had the rental car, we wanted to drive to the WWII gun battery at the island's far end. Much of the road is unpaved and there is no bus service there. We had to make quick visit so I could return the rental car on time.
At the trail head.

An introductory sign.
The walk in takes 30-40 minutes and has great views of the sea, the sheep ranch, and the Man-o-War vineyard.
Vineyard.

Emily fell behind while taking photos.

Lucy and Benjamin with cloud and rocks.

We had visitors during the walk.

This fellow passed twice with three dogs enjoying the ride on his ATV platform.

We walk through the tunnels by torchlight. That percussion blast you hear is Benjamin's cough echoing through the network.

The sign asks us to avoid going down the stairs unless we are sure that we have the stamina to climb them again.

We took the short tour, which ends at the surface with a walk back through the sheep. Lucy looks for the ladder out.

Benjamin is first up the 'double time' stairwell to the gun emplacement.

After checking the pump room, we find the short flight up to the gun position.

Daylight again.



The ladder up.

The gun mount and the surrounding sheep ranch. The gun was cut up for scrap after the war.









Emily at the path through the sheep and to the road back.










Benjamin is saying--as we walk through the sheep--that he is glad to be wearing good hiking boots rather than sandals as the field is rather saturated with, well, stuff the sheep are finished with.


The view from the top.