This virtual cache takes you to a plaque dedicated to the 10 service personnel who died on the night of 28th December 1943 when their plane, US Navy PB4Y-1 Liberator 63926, crashed high above the West Okement Valley.
The aircraft was travelling back to Dunkeswell, in the Blackdown Hills after an unsuccessful mission to locate enemy Destroyers in the Bay of Biscay. The weather was poor and visibility was limited due to low cloud. The pilot sent a message to Dunkeswell indicating they would arrive in 5 minutes despite being 37 miles (60km) from the airfield.
The aircraft crashed into the hill above the valley, ploughing a gouge in the soft ground before descending over the ridge and breaking up in the valley. Much of the wreckage has been removed but several pieces remain to this day. Pieces of the aircraft can can be found to the northeast of the memorial stone almost as far as the West Okement river.
Compulsory logging tasks:
- Visit the memorial stone and take a picture of you, your device or a piece of paper with your Geocaching username written on it.
- Post this picture with your log.
Optional tasks:
- Head northeast from the posted coordinates and see if you can find a piece of the aircraft. Take a photo and try and identify which part of the plane it came from.
- Undertake some research about a member of the crew and add this to your log entry.
Virtual Rewards 5.0 - 2026-2027
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between February 3, 2026 and February 3, 2027. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards 5.0 on the Geocaching Blog.
***** PLEASE NOTE IMPORTANT *****
CACHES ARE NOT ALLOWED TO BE PLACED ON ACTUAL MEMORIALS OR WITHIN THE BOUNDARY OF SUCH
AT ALL TIMES PLEASE TREAT LOCATIONS OF MEMORIALS WITH RESPECT