We had a very full, busy day today...we covered a lot of territory in our rental car, seeing SO much! As usual, a lot of pictures were taken!
We did have a 'plan of action' for tackling all five D-Day Landing Beaches over the next 3 days...but when we started out his morning, somehow that plan went down the tube as we were trying to get the lay of the land. Our plan was to start at Utah Beach, the furthest away, but then decided to get to the closest part of the coast which ended up being the Juno Beach area.
Again, with my trusty Google Maps app on my phone...we followed the directions to Courseulles-sur-Mer...and Juno Beach...
(NOTE: Juno shows the old Canadian flag)
Click on photo to see detail
La Seulles River...
Some of the Juno Beach landing area right and left of pier...
Commemorates the Allied invasion June 6th 1944 and the return of Charles De Gaulles on June 14th 1944 in this area...
(Click any photo to enlarge)
A carousel...
We followed the coastal road (D514) toward Arromanches and
Gold Beach (in the British landing zone). This small town was ground zero for the D-Day invasion. Just before reaching Arromanches, we pulled into a cliff-top parking lot overlooking the town.
Arromanches...
The Allies decided it would be easier to build their own port rather than try to take one from the Nazis, so almost overnight Arromanches sprouted into an immense harbour, Port Winston, which gave the Allies a foot-hold in Normandy.
Mulberry harbours were temporary portable harbours developed by the British to facilitate the rapid offloading of cargo onto beaches during the Allied invasion. "Mulberry" was the code-name for all the various different structures that would create the artificial harbours.
Mulberry Harbour from left...
Centre...
To the right...
From Gold Beach overlooking Asnelles. Juno Beach is around the point...
Memorial recognizing the Royal Engineers contribution to the invasion...
Also located on the clifftop is "
Arromanches 360", a circular theatre. We went inside and watched the film "Normandy's 100 Days". The screen surrounding you shows archival footage and photographs of the endeavour to liberate Normandy. In addition to honouring the many Allied and German soldiers who died, it also reminds us that 20,000 French civilians were killed.
After we were finished on the clifftop, we drove down into the town, parked the car...and went for a walk through town. Not much of a sidewalk!
Looking north...
Not sure if we were here at low tide as it would have been during the invasion but Steve wanted to walk to the waters edge to get a sense as to how far these brave men had to run under machine gun fire with no cover. Wow...it looked like 200 - 300 yards!
Looking south...
We went for lunch at the hotel behind this gun. It was the worst service we've ever experienced. I don't know...maybe the staff resented us for not speaking French but we waited forever to place our order. Neither our coffee or my soup was hot. The waiter seemed quite put out when Steve asked for cream for his coffee. Our waiter never came over to ask us if our meals were okay or if we needed anything else. He was always staring at us though, while constantly biting and sucking on his fingers. He was even doing this in front of his boss and nothing was said.Yuck!
We went into the
D-Day Landing Museum but they were about to close for lunch. Really! Well, we don't have time to hang around for them to re-open, so we won't be seeing it...lots of other museums anyway!
So we toured the outside displays...
We continued our drive along the coast...
So many cool little villages dot the countryside...
Very narrow windy roads...
Our next stop was at
Longues-sur-Mer Gun Battery...situated between Gold and Omaha Landing Beaches. We parked...and went on a nice long walk to see the area.
The first of four Gun Battery's. These are the only coastal battery's left in France that still have their guns. We were told that nobody thought of tourism back then...
Totally destroyed...
That's the barrel partially buried in the ground...
Shell crater...
This damage is from a blast within the bunker...
The trail to the beach cliff was between Gun Battery 2 and 3 so we figured we would check out the last two on our way back. We no sooner got to the cliff when 3 bus loads of tourists showed up at the Gun Battery's so we took our time.
Machine gun nest...
Mortar pit...
Range Finding Post above the beach 300 yards ahead of the gun battery's...
From inside looking through the slit...
Rear view...
Down we go...
Inside, there was a small room off to the side...
Port Winston Artificial Harbour in the distance....
That's Omaha Beach along this side of that far point. Utah Beach is on the other side and to the left of that point in behind the branches in the photo...
All four Gun Battery's looking from the beach cliff...
Ammo storage bunker...
Battery 3...
Battery 4...
Top of a Battery 4...
Battery's 3, 2 and 1...
After our walk checking it all out, we were back in the car continuing west along the coast road...
Normandy American Cemetery and Memorial at Omaha Beach...
We started off by going to the Memorial first....
The small monument devoted to 5th US Engineer Special Brigade Monument and attached engineers units stay on the roof on former WW-II bunker above Omaha beach, circa 250 m of high-tide seashore.
All of the landing beaches have been so beautiful...
Bunker below the monument...
It started to rain so we decided to leave the Cemetery until later and go to the
Overlord Museum, just a short distance away, instead.
Overlord Museum chronicles the period of the Allied landing until the liberation of Paris. The collection was collected by someone who was both a witness to the conflict and involved in the reconstruction of Normandy. Personal items from individual soldiers and armoured fighting vehicles from the six armies in Normandy will be presented as a series of reconstructions showing over 35 vehicles, tanks and guns.
Inflatable boat...
French Resistance...
Amazing!
German prisoners...
I was finished going through the museum before Steve and decided to go sit out in the car and wait for him there. It was a very well done museum but so much reading...always, so much reading! LOL
Once Steve emerged from the museum, we decided that since the rain had stopped we would try and fit in the Cemetery today but what we didn't realize is that they had a huge Visitor Centre.
Sixty-three years after Allied troops stormed the beaches of Normandy to turn the tide of World War II in Europe, a new visitor center at the Normandy American Cemetery in France opened in May 2007 to tell the story of the 9,387 Americans buried there and put the D-Day landings and follow-on battle in Europe in perspective as one of the greatest military achievements of all time.
We hadn't finished going through the Visitor Center when an announcement came on...they were closing in 5 minutes. Winter hours have them closing at 5:00. Well, we'll definitely have to return to see the actual cemetery!
Mulberry harbours were temporary portable harbours developed by the British to facilitate the rapid offloading of cargo onto beaches during the Allied invasion. "Mulberry" was the code-name for all the various different structures that would create the artificial harbours.
After our walk checking it all out, we were back in the car continuing west along the coast road...
The small monument devoted to 5th US Engineer Special Brigade Monument and attached engineers units stay on the roof on former WW-II bunker above Omaha beach, circa 250 m of high-tide seashore.
It started to rain so we decided to leave the Cemetery until later and go to the Overlord Museum, just a short distance away, instead.
Once Steve emerged from the museum, we decided that since the rain had stopped we would try and fit in the Cemetery today but what we didn't realize is that they had a huge Visitor Centre.
It's unimaginable what those soldiers went through that day. We know one of them...he's still going strong...and the fortitude that carried him through that day still shines through. Great post!
ReplyDeleteYou're so right Jim. Glad your very brave friend is still doing well!
DeleteWow, it must have been incredible to visit those locations and just imagine what took place there.
ReplyDeleteIt is hard to imagine especially when the beaches and surrounding areas are so beautiful. Thankfully these areas weren't restored so that it's a vivid reminder of the past.
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