The original Vale Post occupied a former generator bunker for Strongpoint Grosshugel, a naval radar position on La Grande Hougue, a hilltop 200 yards north of Les Hautes Mielles. The bunker is situated in a hollow to the rear of the radar position. (WV34958361) It was permanently damp and was abandoned about 1991. It is now used for storage. A new Vale Post was opened in a small two room semi sunken shelter for Strongpoint Galgenberg 1.5 miles to the south. It overlooks a deep flooded quarry, 40 yards west of a right angle bend in School Road.
The top of the bunker is overgrown but an electric siren is clearly visible, there are also two masts, one with an anemometer and other sensors and detectors on it. Access to the bunker is down a flight of stairs into an entrance lobby. At the end of the lobby is a small storage area containing a Secomec hand operated siren and to the right a doorway, with a counter into the monitoring room.
The size of the monitoring room is similar in size to a mainland ROC monitoring post but the roof is constructed of semi-circular hoops. There is a long table along one side with cupboards at the end of the room. Equipment includes a telephone, fax machine, computer and monitor, transceiver and an old Eddystone communications receiver. There is a Mini Instruments 7-40, measuring temperature, wind speed, wind direction and radiation levels from sensors and detectors mounted on the roof. This data is then relayed to CD HQ at La Corbinerie. There is also a PDRM82F with an external probe as used as an ROC fixed survey meter. There is no FSM pipe to allow the probe to be pushed out of the bunker so it has to be fixed to one of the external masts with a long coax cable running into the bunker. There are various maps and charts on the walls.
A door in the middle of one wall leads into a slightly shorter room alongside. This contains two wooden bunks at one end with curtains for privacy. There is also a long food preparation surface with a microwave oven, toaster and a sink with running water. There was an emergency escape shaft from this room which has now been blocked. The bunker is connected to the mains electricity supply.
Those taking part in the visit were Nick Catford, Keith Ward and Robin Cherry.
