The Big Guns of Mazzaron

An abandoned fort, last used in the Spanish Civil War at the end of a narrow precipitous road. Definitely not for wobbly drivers. If this place was anywhere else in Europe it would be tarted up, have a visitor centre and be closed at night, instead it seems just………abandoned.

It is a huge area with some very large guns still pointing out to sea.   The cliffs are about 1000’ above sea level so the views are superb! Two 400 millimetre calibre guns remain, which once had a range of 35kms and fired howitzers weighing 0.8 tons. A lot of people were needed to look after these guns so there are large underground areas that can be explored by the brave with torches and plenty of time. The guns were made at Barrow-in-Furness by Vickers.

Parts of the film The Guns of Navarone were filmed here. The film was about the Allies’ successful campaign to knock out two radar-controlled German cannons on the Greek island of Navarone. The rocky Costa Calida and the fortress of Puerto de Mazzaron were used in the movie to represent the Greek island, and the set and guns can still be seen today.

This is an outing by motor car. Take the road for Cartagena from Puerto de Mazarron, and just as you approach the filling station turn right towards Isla Plana. Keep going until you reach the turning for La Azohía - the road is a very pleasant costal drive and passes some nice bays and beaches. Do not turn to La Azohía, just keep going, now slightly uphill, until you see a turning to Campillo de Adentro to the right. Turn here.

Campillo de Adentro lies in the hollow of a pretty valley almost completely surrounded by mountains. There are a few houses and farms but little else; pass through the village and eventually you will come to the start of a military road with intimidating warning signs forbidding passage. Ignore these, they haven't been removed since the military abandoned the zone a few years ago.

This is a place which is certain to interest military historians, or simply those who fancy seeing something a little different. The centrepiece is two massive guns at Castillitos with their associated magazines, sighting points, control rooms etc. Although military architecture is often ugly, here the Battery has been built into the mountainside in the style of a castle, using a lot of local stone.