EARLY FORTIFICATIONS
Early Europeans found the Bluff useful for military purposes as a secondary fortress to the defence positions at the Point and the main camp (Old Fort). The Boers are reputed to have hauled 4lb guns to the top of the Bluff; they had captured these from the British garrison at the Point in 1842 following the Battle of Congella.
BLUFF FORTRESS
Durban entered the war with the 6 inch quick-firing guns of Bluff Battery; they were added to with two mobile 6 inch guns on Arrol platforms located between Two Gun Battery and the lighthouse. Thus began the process which transformed the Bluff into Bluff Fortress. Durban was to take on an important role as a southern hemisphere port for the servicing and refreshment of millions of service men and women and almost two hundred thousand ships in large numbers of security convoys. John Craig, a former Harbour Advisory Engineer headed the Fortifications and Coastal Works Section of the Defence Force. Lt. W. Wright was appointed to begin a series of defensive works around Durban at the centre of which was the Bluff and the harbour entrance channel.
POST WORLD WAR 2
In 1955 the Coastal Artillery and the radar sites were handed over to the South African Navy, which disbanded them as Active Citizen Force Units in January 1958. Major military expansions took place during the 1970′s including a large Reconnaissance Base which achieved prominence during the 1980′s in the Angolan Campaign; a Navy Ammunition Depot; and a Strike Craft Base sited over the position of the WW2 Bluff Battery. The South African National Defence Force has continued the Ordinance usage of the Bluff up to the present.
Start at the parking coordinates and make your way to the narrow trail. There is a lot of rubbish on the way but the final is worth it. As you can see from the picture above the trail is somewhat uneven and is rather treacherous in places. Don't go alone and please don't try this cache at night.