Overview
Uffington Wellington bomber walk. At 0105 hours on 25 August 1942 Wellington bomber DV595, on a night bombing practice flight out of RAF Harwell over Odstone Down (SSW of Uffington), collided with Wellington N2755 from RAF Hampstead Norris. N2755 survived but DV595 crashed, killing all the crew. A small memorial plaque was later put in place alongside FP19, which leads up onto the downs, in Uffington parish. Uffington Museum is commemorating the crew of DV595, and indirectly all the young men who died in accidents during WWII, with a special exhibition. From Uffington we’ll make our way, mostly by field path, west to the hamlet of Knighton and Compton Beauchamp. There we’ll have a look inside the lovely small, somewhat unusual, church of St. Swithun. Afterwards we’ll head south uphill alongside Hardwell Wood, site of an Iron Age ‘Camp’, to the Ridgeway. At this point we’ll be able to see Odstone Down, the site of the air crash. We’ll go east along the Ridgeway, walk around the top of the ramparts of Uffington Castle and then over to the Uffington White Horse. From there we’ll return to the Ridgeway then shortly afterwards head north, descending to Britchcombe Farm, then back along field and woodland paths to Uffington. On the final stretch we’ll pause at the memorial to the lost aircrew. Afterwards the Museum will be opened specially for us to have a look around (optional), including the special exhibition about Wellington bomber DV595. Bring a picnic. Park at the Thomas Hughes Memorial Hall, where there is a shop. Uffington Museum (www.uffingtonmuseum.co.uk) is open, free, on Saturdays and Sundays from 2 to 5 pm, Easter to the end of October. Vale Walk Leader DC 01367 820683 / 07544 979253
Thursday, 2 May 2024
- Start time:
- 10:30 am
- Estimated finish time:
- 2:15 pm
- Difficulty:
- Moderate
- Distance:
- 12.9km / 8.0mi
- Ascent:
- N/A
- Type:
- circular
Note that the walk Finish Time is just an estimate and that timings on the day may be significantly different. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Unless email is specifically requested in the walk description, please use the Walk Leader's telephone number(s) for any queries or bookings.
