Saint Helena: High Knoll Fort
The impressive and immense High Knoll Fort sits at the very top of the otherwise already very vertical island of St Helena. Located just above the town of Jamestown (which is at sea-level), the fort is at 1900ft/600m of elevation, that rises over a distance of just over 1km. The fort was built in 1799 and is round, allowing defense from attacks from both sea and land and also serving as an escape abode in case Jamestown fell. It was built to protect against French attacks which actually never materialized (if you don’t count Napoleon landing in shackles). The views from the fort are extensive over the entire island, Jamestown below, and out to the open sea with no land in any direction for over 2000 miles. Interestingly, many of the subtropical lichen that cover the fort’s stone walls are endemic to St Helena and found nowhere else on earth (almost like in my fridge at home if I forget something and go traveling).
