Report - Brinksway Deep Level Air Raid Shelter, Stockport - December 2013

[Snake Oil]

Brinksway Deep Level Air Raid Shelter, Stockport

Explored with Kenni and ViralEye

History (stolen from Tom Sherman)....

The Brinksway deep level shelter is one of three deep level shelters in Stockport. The air raid shelter tunnels were for civilian use, and were dug into the red sandstone on which the town centre stands on. Work started on the tunnels in 1938 and the first set of shelters was opened on 28 October 1939. Stockport was first bombed on the 11th October 1940 The smallest of the tunnel shelters could accommodate 2,000 people and the largest 6,500 people.
Stockport is only 6 miles away from Manchester, the local folk complained the Mancunians were taking up all the room inside the shelters.

The tunnels were 7 feet wide and 7 feet high and had electric lighting and wooden bench seating. There were toilets, mostly chemical although a few were plumbed into the mains. A warden’s post, a first aid store and a tool store were also provided. As the threat of bombing receded in 1943, it was decided that the tunnels no longer needed to be open every night. After the end of the War, the tunnels were sealed up and remained virtually as they had been. A real World war 2 timecapsule awaits the explorer.

Pict0rZ....

The obligitory urbeckZ lonely chair shot....

 

[unklegsif]

I appreciate that this is an annoying newby/guest post, but I have to ask....
I recently bough a house and the garden backs on to the Brinksway. I am desperate to explore these tunnels but obviously cant find much info on the loaction of the entrances... can anyone point me in the right direction?

Thanks

G

 

[FreshFingers]

Welcome

Well, for starters, Snake Oil has provided a very, I say very, handy map that can be utilized when coupled with other maps

It's damn obvious looking back, but we spent a few nights scraping around in thorn bushes and slipping down soggy bankings. A bit of electronic stretching here and there revealed all.

 

[Nickindroy]

I'll do a standard reply: Hello mate, why not start an intro thread and let others know a little about you? Once you've put a report or two up, people will see that you are serious and not about top kill/bum them. Captain Fingers has dangled a nice carrot there!

 

[Camera Shy]

I showed a mate around a couple of weeks ago, he wants to go back for some better shots so send me a pm, you can come along if your not a weirdo :-)

 

[unklegsif]

Hi all,
Thanks for the replies... to be honest I wasn't expecting any at all!

Ok, in response to some points raised/questions about me...
1, would said map be the low res one posted above? Is it available higher res that would be more usable?
2, I'm generally a sociable type, and could be open to a joint reccy, so that I at least know where to go back to, as its actually my buddy Dave that wanted to go look initially. Like I say, this I quite literally in my back garden as my house is on larkhill rd
3, definitely not a wierdo (altho the wife would probably say otherwise, esp if I say I'm meeting strange blokes in the woods at the bottom of my garden

G

 

[FreshFingers]

We've all done the 'meet new guys in a dark secluded area 'don't come over as a weirdo' thing Unless you tag along with CS, here, have an early Christmas present http://www.derbyscc.org.uk/caving/otherug_stockport.php

 

[unklegsif]

Smashing , thanks
So if the entrance is what appears to be the opening, second upper left of the map, and the others are the bricked up entrances I can work it out from there
Thanks guys

 

[unklegsif]

I showed a mate around a couple of weeks ago, he wants to go back for some better shots so send me a pm, you can come along if your not a weirdo :-)

PM coming.
Think I have sussed it out, but a definite would be most useful

G

 

[Nickindroy]

If you think it's the second upper left entrance, you haven't mate! Take C.S up on his kind offer.

 

[FreshFingers]

Yup, you'll be buzzin, totally transformed once you've seen it

 

[unklegsif]

If you think it's the second upper left entrance, you haven't mate! Take C.S up on his kind offer.

Already pm'd

 

[Dan Helsing]

Lovely stuff. Never got round to here after an 'incident' in the Dodge Hill shelters with a rather large chav and pickaxe which put me off the idea. The locals are weird, man

Is Dodge Hill still sealed up now does anybody know? Last time I wandered past there was some heavy duty metal in place.
Fond memories of jibbing back over the fence and nearly getting impaled on the palisade.

 

[Ojay]

Closed up 3 year ago, nothing a pick axe wouldn't sort though

 

[FreshFingers]

Attempts have already started.