This is the site of the little known Exercise Tiger. It was one of a series of top secret large-scale rehersals for the D-Day nvasion of Normandy, which took place in April 1944 here on Slapton Sands, Devon, England. Coordination and communication problems resulted in friendly fire injuries during the exercise, and an allied convoy positioning itself for the landing was attacked by e-boats of Nazi Germany's Kregsmarine, resulting in the deaths of at least 749 American servicemen. Because of the impending invasion of Normandy, the incident was under the strictest secrecy at the time and was only minimally reported afterwards.
Devon resident and civilian Ken Small took on the task of seeking to commemorate the event, after discovering evidence of the aftermath washed up on the shore while beachcoming in the early 1970s.
In 1974, Small bought from the U.S. Government the rights to a sumnerged Sherman tanl from the 70th Tank Batallion discovered in his search. In 1984, with the aid of local residents and diving firms, he raised the tank, which now stands here as a memorial to the incident. The local authority provided a plinth to put the tank on, and erected a plaque in memory of the men killed. The American military honoured and supported him. Small died of cancer in March 2004, a few weeks before the 60th anniversary of Exercise Tiger. [Source: Wikipedia[
May the US Servicemen and Ken Rest in Peace.
To log this cache:
1. Take a picture of yourself, your GPS or your signature item with the Tank (please be very very respectful as this is a war memorial).
2. Contact iamapom via the geocaching app and answer the following questions:
a. What is the Surname of the very last serviceman commemorated on the Roll of Honour (bottom right).
b. "Danger Sharp Edges" ...you are asked not to do something... what is it ?
No need to wait for my reply before logging. However, logs without answers will be deleted.
Virtual Rewards 3.0 - 2022-2023
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between March 1, 2022 and March 1, 2023. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 3.0 on the Geocaching Blog.