ZonePet4 - RAF Wratting Common Traditional Geocache
ZonePet4 - RAF Wratting Common
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Difficulty:
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Terrain:
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Size: 
(regular)
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My second cache on the site of former WW2 airfields near Haverhill, this is a nice walk which can be a bit muddy, but is flat and has no gates. Parking on the side of the road is easy and you should mop this cache up in 20 mins no problem!
| This cache is on the runway of a disused second world war airfield called "Wratting Common", there is a public footpath which crosses the runway which can be approached from either side, however, during the summer the farmer lets his crops grow over the footpath on the shorter walk from the southern end, so you may have to take the longer walk and approach from the north, during the winter both paths are easily accessible, but you will end up with mudfeet the size of footballs!
The northern end of the footpath (Always accesible) is here: N52°08.046 E000°23.291
The southern end of the footpath (Sometimes inaccessible) is here: N52°07.481 E000°23.170
The cache is on the site of the actual runway, but don't be fooled, the runway is now a line of trees, which are very obvious on an ordnance survey map of the area, the concrete path next to the line of trees is just for farm use, it's a normal cache in a small ammo box.
The original contents of the cache were:
- Logbook & pen
- Disposable camera
- Executive toy
- Solar powered calculator
- Rubber ball
- Plastic toys
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Some History:
The bomber airfield built to Class A standard located on the Cambridgeshire side of the boundary with Suffolk in the parishes of West Wickham and Little Thurlow, three miles north-west of Haverhill, Built in 1942-43, This aerodrome opened in May 1943 as West Wickham, when 90 Squadron moved here from Ridgewell to fly Stirlings. In October, 90 Squadron moved to Tuddenham so that in November Number 1651 Conversion Unit could vacate Waterbeach to train new Stirling pilots at Wratting. This continued until November 1944. Number 195 Squadron arrived in October 1944 for concentrated attacks on oil targets in Lancasters. They also attacked Dresden, and finally Bad Oldesloe in April 1945. Number 195 then did eight supply drops to the Dutch and POW repatriation missions before disbanding on 14th August 1945.
Wratting Common continued as support for Stradishall, then as a camp for displaced persons.
After the war Bomber Command moved back to the more comfortable, pre-war establishments with their permanent buildings. Wratting Common was soon reclaimed for agriculture with much of the concrete taken for hard core. The hangars survived as did many of the larger Nissen huts, serving as cover for commercial enterprises. Most of the site is part of Thurlow Estates owned by the Vesty family.
Full history here: Bomber Command 60th Anniversary site
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Above: Old Nissan huts abound.
Left: The footpath through the beanfield.
Below: That line of trees.. that's the runway that is.
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Additional Hints
(Decrypt)
Jurer gur sbbgcngu pebffrf gur gerrf gurer vf n pyrnevat, ybbx ng gur onfrf bs gur gerrf nybat gur abegurea rqtr..