Cliffe Fort

Cliffe Fort lies on the south side of the Thames Esturary in Kent west of the village of Cliffe. It was built in the 1860s and along with Coalhouse and Shornemead fort formed a protective triangle of guns defending the Thames. It can be reached on foot most directly from the Cliffe Pools nature reserve carpark at the end of Salt Lane. The walk is about 1.5km following the footpath across open grassland and then along the edge of the creek. Erosion to the rear of the fort is becoming severe and the Saxon Shore Way path is in places disappearing into the Thames. There is no direct access into the fort and the rear is protected by a spiked fence. The fence in the Summer of 2014 was climbable due to someone flattening some of the spikes but has now (Autumn of 2014) been repaired. The central part of the fort is flooded and the structure itself fairly unstable and dangerous to climb around on. https://historicengland.org.uk/listing/the-list/list-entry/1003403