I usually don't recommend accommodations but Chateau de Vouilly is an exception. U.S. war correspondents set up the first press headquarters in the Chateau after the invasion. The Chateau is an excellent location to tour the landing beaches and other sites. Check their web site for additional information (www.chateau-vouilly.com) on available rooms and amenities.
The following pictures gives you a flavor of their dairy farm. Their milk goes to the cooperative located in Isigny sur Mere. The cooperative has an excellent store and serves great ice cream.
Plaque Recognizing the Location of the First Press Camp
My Lovely and Talented Wife in Front of the Chateau
The Well Kept back of the Chateau
My wife has stitched the garden shed and plants in the far back right corner. She holds a diploma in technical embroidery from the Royal School of Needlework, Hampton Court Palace.
Utah beach is the furtherest landing beach on the right flank of the invasion force. The purpose of the allied force was to go inland and relieve the airborne forces dropped early on June 6. The landing was achieved with surprising ease suffering 200 casualties in the assault.
The direction is quite simple by taking Route 13 toward Cherbourg exiting at St. Mere Eglise and follow the signs to the beach. I am attaching two pictures for your consideration.
Wide Sandy Landing Beach
Visitor Center at Utah Beach
There are places to have lunch nearby.
Point du Hoc is located between Omaha Beach and Utah Beach. One takes Road 514 in the direction of Cherbourg and St Mere Eglise. After a few miles, take Road 514a out to Point du Hoc. There is a parking lot to leave your car with a short walk to the site. The area is just the same as D-Day with bomb craters and destroyed defensive positions. The Germans had built a number of casements holding large caliber artillery that could shell both landing beaches (Utah & Omaha). German commanders knew that the Allied air force would subject the redoubt to massive bombing raids. Just prior to the invasion, the German army removed the guns back to the safety of apple orchards and used large wooden poles placed in the casements to fool Allied intelligence.
U.S. Rangers were assigned the task of assaulting the cliff at Point du Hoc to destroy the guns. After suffering significant casualties, the Rangers reached the top of the 100' cliff and found out that the guns had been removed. The Rangers searched further and found the guns. They destroyed the guns with Thermite grenades that fused the operating mechanisms. The commander of the Rangers was Lt. Col. James E. Rudder from Texas. After the war, he would serve as the president of Texas A&M and would preside over a major transformation of that university. The following are personal pictures:
Picture of the Cliff at Point du Hoc
German Bunker
Bomb Marked Landscapes
I am starting the tour of Normandy at Omaha Beach and the American cemetery at St. Laurent sur Mer. The cemetery is located only a few miles from Bayeux. Purchase a good Michelin map to assist in your travel. If still available, I recommend Michelin Map 102 which is a historical map with the name of "Battle of Normandy." You might check online to see if one is for sale.
The cemetery is open all year except for Christmas and New Years day. Hours during the summer run from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. During the winter, the closing hour is 5 p.m. I recommend starting your visit at the Interpretation Center. The Center presents oral histories by WWII veterans who participated in the landing along with artifacts given to the Center. There is no charge for admission but visitors must go through a security check.
The cemetery is the resting place for 9,387 military personnel. One notable person buried here is General Teddy Roosevelt,Jr., son of President Teddy Roosevelt. Only a minority of these individuals were killed on D-Day with the rest killed in subsequent fighting in the Normandy Region.
For additional help, please google "American Battle Monuments Commission" which directs you to other American cemeteries in Europe
Pictures of the Cemetery
A small part of the impressive memorial at the start of the Cemetery.
Overlook of Omaha Beach
You can walk down to the beach and look back toward the bluff and see the challenge faced by the soldiers during the invasion. The German defenders had preplanned the fire zone with their machine guns. Their MG-42 machine gun had an extremely high rate of fire posing a real danger to the invading troops.
Row upon Row of White Crosses and Stars of David
Normandy is a picturesque part of France. The countryside is made up of many small villages and farms. The terrain is generally flat and is laced with many waterways. Over the centuries, local farmers planted hedges to separate their fields. This part of Normandy was called the bocage country (Basse-Normandie). The primary farm products of this region are apples (juice made into cider and further distilled into Calvados) and dairy products (camenbert and other cheeses). A great stopping point for tourists is the dairy cooperative at Isigny sur Mer). After a presentation by plant officials, you can purchase a soft-service ice cream cone at the cooperative store.
The sea coast from Quistreham to St. Mere-Eglise is generally comprised of flat sandy beaches with significant cliffs at Pointe du Hoc. Other cities and villages will be mentioned in subsequent postings.
You can travel to Normandy by train or rent a car in Paris for the approximate three hour drive over toll road #
13. If you are going by train, you go to Gare St. Lazare in Paris and later disembark at Bayeux. A car can be rented in Bayeux. I highly recommend a rental car to fully enjoy your tour.
Check with a recent travel guide for accommodations. You should allow yourself at least three or four days to appreciate the visit.
I recommend a day trip to Portsmouth from London. Portsmouth is the historic base for the Royal Navy and a key embarkation point for the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944. You take a Southwest train from Waterloo station to Portsmouth Harbor Station. After arriving, I suggest a guided tour of HMS Victory, the flagship for Lord Nelson at the Napoleonic period engagement at Trafalgar in 1805. He was shot by a French Navy sharpshooter and died during the battle. You can learn a great deal about the life of British sailors during this period of time.
Another stop is the new museum holding the remnants of the Mary Rose, a Tudor period warship. The ship was raised from the sea bed, preserved, and placed on display.
The last stop is the D-Day museum located a short distance from the above sites. A cab is recommended for travelers to save time and energy. In the museum is a detailed embroidery of events and personalities in operation "Overlord". A young artist was retained to draw the necessary pictures illustrating the invasion. The staff and students of the Royal School of Needlework (located at Hampton Court Palace) hand embroidered the various picture panels.
Portsmouth D-Day Museum
Air War Over Western Europe
The Imperial War Museum has a branch located at Duxford airfield near Cambridge, U.K. Visitors can travel from King's Cross station in London to Cambridge. Check with information on arrival for a local bus to take you to the museum. Duxford is oriented to the air war in WW II. Besides restored aircraft, the facility also has a building displaying armored land vehicles. The airfield has a restoration building for military aircraft.
The U.S Army Air Force in the European Theater of Operations had casualties (killed and wounded) of 62,021 in the air campaign. The general strategy was for the Americans to bomb during the day with the Royal Air Force conducting night operations. Without long range fighter support in the initial bombing phase, American losses were significant. Once the new P-51 mustang was refitted with detachable fuel tanks and the Merlin Rolls Royce engine, losses were reduced. Fighters could go all the way to the target with the bombers.
It was critical for the Allies to buildup air assets prior to the Normandy invasion. French railways, rail marshaling yards, and beach fortifications were targets of opportunity. A trip to Duxford is important in understanding the contribution made by Allied air forces. A couple of my pictures from Duxford.
Nose Art
Workhorse of the American Bomber Force
