Walkington Patrol

The Patrol's first OB was thought to be in a chalk pit at Walkington Wold but it was decided it would be too easy to find so a second OB was built by the Royal Engineers.

This OB is located within a wooded area on the side of a steep valley. It lies to the North West of the village of Walkington.

The OB was easily found from the footpath due to the escape tunnel being visible. The OB had been dug into the chalk of a valley side 12 feet down. When the roof had corroded the weight of the chalk had brought the entire main chamber down. The main shaft and escape tunnel are still very much intact. It was found that when exiting the escape tunnel you would have not had much cover to make your escape.

The OB is deeper than normal with its floor level about 12 feet below ground. Concrete blocks were used instead of brick and the entrance shaft had built in ladder rungs made from 2 inch piping. The OB is 20 feet in length and 9 feet wide.

Two small vestibules at either end were created by concrete walls. The escape tunnel was made from concrete pipes and was about 14 feet in length and had a right angle bend about half way.

Looking for an Observation Post, approximately 250 feet away there, is a small depression in the ground. It looked like a small 2 man trench and had filled in over the years to a depth of a foot. This could have been natural as the view from this post was completely blocked by trees and vegetation but may not have been during the war.

Other physical remains nearby included an old drawer made from metal with a riveted handle. It looked like a wartime old metal desk drawer.

A nearby field was used as a mortar practice range and against this background noise the OB was blasted out of the chalk. Tail Fins still turn up during ploughing operations.

CART's Andrew Lennard-White has made this 2020 video of the OB:

Previously CART's Andy Gwynne made this in 2012: