Stack Rock Fort: Victorian island reclaimed by nature

Just disconnected the Pembrokeshire seashore lies a long-deserted land fort that has dilatory been reclaimed by nature.

For decades Stack Rock Fort disconnected Milford Haven has been disturbed lone by gulls and creeping weeds, but its caller proprietor invited lensman Steve Liddiard to instrumentality a look wrong the 19th Century clip capsule.

"When you archetypal locomotion done it takes your enactment away," said Steve.

"It's similar a immense cathedral, an oval shape, wholly overgrown with these oversea birds circling it.

"It doesn't look real... it looks similar a movie set, thing from Jumanji oregon thing similar that."

Steve, who works successful the IT section astatine Swansea's Morriston Hospital, started taking photos arsenic a hobby 5 oregon six years ago.

He spotted the long-abandoned fort connected the Milford Haven Waterway, took immoderate photos and shared them connected societal media.

Steve said helium past received a connection from the owner, who said helium loved the photos.

They began chatting and a fewer weeks aboriginal helium and a fistful of different photographers were invited to sojourn the fort by vessel and instrumentality photos from inside.

"When you commencement walking astir it you tin spot the existent standard of it, it's implicit 3 antithetic levels," said Steve.

"It is simply a implicit clip capsule with monolithic cannons inside.

"There's weeds and ivy increasing each implicit it which benignant of adds to it much than anything, I think."

The spot has been bought by Anoniiem, a assemblage involvement company, which plans to sphere it arsenic a "living ruin".

"We privation to sphere it successful its existent state, not successful its ceremonial use, truthful if it tin beryllium stabilised arsenic it is, successful this astonishing operation of quality and architecture, that's the goal," said the company's manager Nick.

The task began aft Nick and his woman were watching the BBC bid Coast and recovered themselves captivated by this portion of the Pembrokeshire coast.

They began looking into the area, stumbled upon the fort and were blown distant by its "fantasy and magic".

They discovered determination was a institution looking to crook it into a assemblage abstraction and contempt ne'er having taken connected a task similar this earlier decided to spouse with them.

"It's decidedly a passionateness project, it's decidedly not a wealth earner, there's nary plans for a five-star edifice oregon immoderate of these benignant of things," helium said.

"It's a stabilisation accessibility task and preserving it for the future."

The land fort was built betwixt 1850 and 1852 to support against an penetration by sea.

The archetypal thought for a fort connected Stack Rock goes backmost to Thomas Cromwell successful 1539 but it was not until the mid-1800s that immoderate program came to fruition.

The Royal Dockyard astatine Pembroke Dock was deemed successful request of further defences successful lawsuit of an penetration from France nether Napoleon III.

During World War I it was manned by conscionable a tiny fig of soldiers and yet disarmed successful 1929.

Taking connected a gathering with this past and successful this determination presents a myriad of challenges - it is simply a scheduled monument, portion of the nationalist parkland and tin lone beryllium accessed successful definite conditions by boat.

There are besides issues astir security, which person been referred to the police.

"People person been lighting bonfires connected there. It's not harmless for the docket monument itself but besides for the radical who are breaking in," said Nick.

Nick has a squad of volunteers moving to assistance unafraid the operation but admits they are "a beingness away" from being capable to unfastened it up to the public.

"In the meantime, we're looking to let for immoderate explorers, specified arsenic Steve to safely entree it successful a mode that lets it benignant of live," helium said.

Despite the overwhelming standard of the task helium is undeterred.

"It's a hellhole of a project," helium said. "It's been efficaciously untouched for 100 years truthful the preservation is connected different level.

"The information that that quality is taking implicit again is portion of the entreaty of it, it's each aesthetically truthful incredible."