Chatley Heath Semaphore Tower

Wonderful place for a walk. Large expanse of surrounding vegetation such as heather, wooded areas ... conifers, silver birch, chestnut trees, etc. A good day out with adequate parking and a cafe on site

Nice bit of history nestled in the woods.
No access to the inside but nice walks around it.

Interesting history but now a holiday let so not much to see on the inside. Bit of a view from the roof but some trees need to be cleared.

Fascinating bit of local history about a 20 min walk from the Wisley Common car park.

Originally built in 1815 and falling into disrepair after being decommissioned in 1847, it has since been restored into fantastic condition and remains now the only working semaphore tower in Great Britain.

An interesting and well restored historical landmark with limited opportunity to view internally (it is now in use as a holiday let and open to visitors on selected days only) but what makes this a five star attraction is the delightful walk through forest and heathland from the car parks situated off Old Lane. We commenced our walk from Old Lane car park taking the red trail to the tower, a walk of around 20 minutes an sandy and stony paths winding without any steep inclines though Silver Birch and haether. After spending a short time admiring the tower (the last remaining one of several semaphore towers that linked the Admiralty in London to Portsmouth Naval Dockyard) we returned via the blue trail which brings the vistor to the Boldermere car park where refreshments and toilets can be found.

Unique surviving semaphore tower which formed part of a communication chain between London and Portsmouth. Constructed in 1822, it remained in use for 25 years before being superceded by the electric telegraph. The tower was inhabited until 1963, after which it fell into disrepair. It was initially restored in 1989, and again in 2020. The tower isn't generally open to the public, now being let out as a holiday rental, but is still interesting to see from outside. The walk from Boldermere parking area takes around 20 minutes, through pine woods and open sandy heath.

We spotted this tower because it was listed as one of the attractions given the history. However it was odd taking a good look at someone else’s property! This octagonal tower was built as part of the Admiralty semaphore chain which operated between 1822 and 1847. It is the best preserved remaining tower and has a working semaphore mast. It is 60 feet (18 m) high with five storeys topped by a parapet built of red brick. It was occupied until 1963, when it was condemned as unfit because of lack of services. It then suffered vandalism and was damaged by fire in 1984. Surrey County Council and the Surrey Historic Buildings Trust restored the tower to mark the centenary of the County Council. Someone lives here now. I have heard it’s available on Airbnb for renting.

There isn't much to say about this as its a private property. A little odd, but I would not mind staying at this Airbnb. It would be nice if they would allow forest visitors to go up on the tower, even for a fee I wouldn't mind.

More than that I loved the woods, heathland, pine woods, redwood trees, lake and mausoleum.