Urra Moor

A day out above Chop Gate yesterday proved far more successful than our previous outing. As the photo shows, the area is pretty flat in the main, with some deepish gullies containing watercourses.

The High Ground Wrecks coordinates are absolutely rubbish in this area, as so often in Yorkshire, which we proved by finding the actual locations of two or three wreck sites.

The easy ground allowed us to get round the 15k planned, and visit the 6 locations where we though something might be found despite a late start.

We came down in the dark, but there was fair amount of moonlight, so it wasn't the big deal it might have been on a less forgiving bit of high ground, or less favourable weather. I didn't even get my jumper out all day...

Armstrong Vickers Wellington Mk.III BJ778 ZL-AD

All that remains of "A for Apple", (which was one of the most complete crash sites in the country) are these few rusty scraps, with previously molten and corroded scraps of aluminium all around.

Follow the link below to see what happened.

Location: SE 58035 99440

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Bristol Blenheim Mk.1F L1449

A few scraps which were missed by the multiple waves of looters who have visited the site of this Blenheim crash, found by an attractive waterfall in the pine wood planted since the crash.

Engines used to lie in the stream bed nearby, but we all know how those magpies love an engine.

As ever, no-one seem to know where the stolen parts are now, or exactly who it was who took them away.

Location: SE 60416 99817

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Avro Lancaster Mk. 1 W4233 or Blenheim L1449?

We found this bit far higher on the hill than the Blenheim remains by the waterfall. It is downhill from the hilltop thought by many to be the crash site of the Lancaster, and a long way uphill from the nearer Blenheim site.

Things tend not to fall uphill, though the flecks of green paint do look to be the same shade as those on the Blenheim bit in the previous pic.

Discarded by a souvenir hunter, or just maybe a bit from the Lancaster missed by the anoraks?

Location:SE 60366 99962

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Martin Marauder B-26G 44-68072

We went to Snowdonia's Y Garn for the third time yesterday, to document the wreckage trail we spied from the top on our last visit to the mountain.

Once you are in the right Cwm (Cywion), there are fragments everywhere, far more numerous and more sizeable than are suggested by other internet writers.

The right way up was such an easy walk compared with the wrong ways tried previously that we had time to try out the famous Pete's Eats in Llanberis afterwards-not bad at all. Big portions, if a bit pricey.

This undercarriage strut (around 1.5m long) is one of the three originally used in the Marauder's tricycle undercarriage. There is reportedly a second leg like this still at the site, but the third seems to have gone missing.

This one lies quite a short distance from the stream bed where much of the rest of the wreckage is to be found, but is not as visually obvious as the rest of the parts from ground level.

Location: SH 63149 60150

Martin Marauder B-26G 44-68072

This collection of parts we found by the side of the stream is clustered around a steel component around 500mm long. They are too mangled for accurate identification.

Location: SH 63146 60301

Martin Marauder B-26G 44-68072

At the top of the stream we found these fairly sizeable components, which used to support the undercarriage leg seen in the post above, according to the Aero Part Identify Board posters.

Location: SH 63112 60187

Martin Marauder B-26G 44-68072

These bits of armour plate were the highest fragments of any size we found. We are told they come from the crew's seats.

Other internet sites claim that only a few scraps of armour plate remain, but that is clearly not the case, as we have shown in this series of posts, which themselves only show perhaps 25% of what is there.

What happened to the remainder? We have little to add to David Earl's account.

Location: SH 63095 60149