Whale Bay Fort and Battery, in West Whale Bay Park (at the end of Whale Bay Rd., open sunrise to sunset daily, admission free), makes a beautiful sidetrack from a trip west. Once known as Fort Newbold for its commanding officer, Captain William Newbold, the half-moon-shaped fort was constructed in the mid-1700s, when the several small coastal forts were built on the South Shore before the American Revolutionary War.
Today, its actual walls are gone, but the flag-stoned gun floor where it once stood remains a spectacular vantage point, overlooking West Whale Bay [1] and the dramatic sweep of ocean on the southern face of the island. Both the fort and nearby battery, built a century later, guarded the entrance to Hogfish Cut, a channel for small boats that was of value to local shipping as vessels traveled the western coast toward Dockyard [2].
The battery’s impressive walls, barracks, and underground magazine rooms are still standing and can be explored. Leave mopeds at the beach parking lot and climb the hill to the forts.
Links:
[1] http://www.moon.com/destinations/bermuda/warwick-and-southampton-parishes/southampton-parish/beaches/west-whale-bay
[2] http://www.moon.com/destinations/bermuda/sandys-parish/royal-naval-dockyard