5th Fort
- darkometer rating: 3 -
A ca. WW1-era fort south-west of Brest, Belarus, that was once part of the ring of additional fortifications around the main Brest Fortress. It is now partially commodified for visitors. And more is in the planning.
More background info: In general see under Brest Fortress.
The 5th Fort was one of 14 such additional fortifications built just before the First World War to provide extra protection for the main Brest Fortress. All the others are now derelict and largely overgrown. But this fort was partly restored in the late 1990s and has been accessible for visitors since the year 2000. Just before, in 1999, it had been placed under the administration of the “Brest Hero Fortress”.
This has further plans for development of the site, including the installation of a proper exhibition inside.
What there is to see: From the ticket booth by the car park outside the fort a wooden footbridge takes visitors across the moat.
If you carry on straight you come to the only part of the inside of the fort that already has some commodification. It really isn't much, though – just a few photos, maps and plans, and no translations into English. At least that was so when I visited in the summer of 2016. There are plans to expand and enhance the exhibition, but when that may happen I cannot say.
The rest of the inside of the fort is otherwise empty. You can walk the length of the main part along the windows that let some light in. In order to go on forays deeper into the otherwise completely unlit and hence pitch-black dark passageways that branch off at various points you would have to have a good torch. Unfortunately I hadn't brought one, and my smartphone was clearly insufficient here. So I was quite limited in my explorations inside.
Outside on the lawn between the main part of the fort and the north-facing bulwark are several open-air displays of artillery guns of different types and sizes as well as one armoured vehicle that looks much more like a Soviet-era model than anything older than that.
Beyond that you can simply clamber about the partly overgrown fortifications, but there isn't really anything else to see that would be of particular note.
For real “troglodytes” and urbex fans there may be more to be had from this site (with a good torch), but otherwise that was it. Not much but the rawness of the site does have a certain appeal that makes the trip out here worth it. But if old forts as such plus only a few displays of military gear do not especially float your boat, maybe save yourself the excursion.
Location: ca. 3 miles (5 km) south of the main Brest Fortress and ca. 4 miles (6 km) from Brest city centre – as the crow flies, that is; by road it's more like twice that distance.
Google maps locator: [52.048, 23.673]
Access and costs: quite a distance from the city and Brest Fortress, not expensive.
Details: To get to the 5th Fort it's best to get a taxi, since walking it would take at least an hour and the route is anything but appealing. The ride from the entrance of Brest Fortress, where taxis are often waiting to pick up passengers, costs about 5 BYR, from the centre of Brest it'll be a bit more, something like 8 BYR. There is no public transport.
Opening times: daily from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m.
Admission: 2 BYR
Time required: nowhere near as long as at the main Brest Fortress, probably less than an hour, unless you have a good torch and want to explore the dark passageways inside the fort's ramparts to the max.
Combinations with other dark destinations: See under Brest and Brest Fortress.
Combinations with non-dark destinations: See under Brest and Brest Fortress.
