Today is D-Day theme day. Most pictures will be related to that.
I could say a lot about this subject – and much of it is surely familiar to many others, too. For quite some time, I wanted to visit some of the historical sites, towns, and regions associated with it. The fact that I could do so by bicycle was an added bonus. So, the journey took me from one significant city (Caen) to another (Cherbourg), with a stop halfway to pay a visit to yet another important city: Bayeux. Along with the other cities, Bayeux was of strategic importance; its location was so crucial that the Allies had to capture this city in order to advance quickly into the inner country, heading for Paris eventually (to free the German-occupied part of the country).
When I started my ride today in Caen, I decided to have a quick look at the old town, which was nice. However the way out of city turned out to be short.
It was clear from the start that I would go for specific places, that I have planned to visit. A lot of other locations and memorials I have just discovered on the way – whether a museum, a tank, a sign pointing to “Sword Beach,” or a German war cemetery. For me, the focus was on commemoration and remembrance, not on simply ticking off sites or indulging in a form of voyeurism. Consequently, the route and stopping points emerged organically; only the broad framework had to be established during my plannings.
Sword Beach was the code name for the easternmost landing area of the D-Day invasion on June 6, 1944, led by British and French troops along the Normandy coast of France.
Today, the scenery was delightful – though not quite as “provincially cluttered” as yesterday’s. By that I mean, I had quite some distances between the villages yesterday, once I have left the suburbs of Paris. Today, however, the picture is different. The route from Caen to the English Channel was stunning, except for the fierce headwind. Luckily it was just for a few kilometres however it reminded me of two canals back home: the lovely Havel Canal close to Oranienburg or the Voss Canal between Liebenwalde and Zehdenick – until, at some point, the memorials took center stage.
Since it was significantly cooler and cloudier than the day before, I made only one stop at a cemetery. That particular cemetery appeared not to have seen a burial in quite some time. To my surprise, however, there was still water available. Nonetheless, most of the cemeteries that I have visited did have the same style. Even the churches. And I liked it.
This is something I may need to explain to others since it is not known to everyone that cemeteries (in Europe) provide water sources to pour water to plants (on the grave). Usually this water is of good quality and can be considered drinking water. Plus it is cool, coming from 10-20 meters underground.
What I can say about today’s route is that there was either a good road or a good cycle path running along the beaches – and both were perfectly fine. There was just one section that was more of a gravel track – though I had known about that beforehand.
Overall, the ride followed the coast, constantly going up and down – reminding me of the Canary Islands. And it was quite windy, as you can see on the pictures. At some point my disc brakes gave some weird noice that I only know from using the brakes during rain. Later I realised that the wind has blown some sand and little pieces of sea water into the brake system – which had to be cleaned properly. Up until the cleaning I thought both of my brake discs are gone – which was unlikely, actually. I have seriously feared that I need to stop my journey. Phew.
There was plenty of nature along the way, and at times, hardly a soul in sight. Yet, the inhabited beach areas kept catching my eye; it was as if the houses near the shore had always been there. I particularly liked the small country roads that led from village to village, occasionally crossed a main road, and were frequently lined with fields of corn and grain. Also some nice or nicely decorated houses I could see every here and there. And again, for many times the horizon seemed to be visible but far away. Liked the view, best captured by a short video while cycling.
In some places, I was indeed surrounded by crowds of people. Yet they seemed to be a different kind of people – not the “mass tourism meets voyeurism” type. It didn’t bother me; I could always cover the “fast miles” away from those spots, provided the tail wind was with me. The wind was really strong today – with occasional strong headwinds that could get pretty exhausting (depending on the direction I had to ride of course). On the other hand, there were occasional bursts of powerful tailwind as a well-earned reward. And at time and again, I have managed to escape some rain clouds.
Again and again I discovered some memorial places and decided to not stop at each and every one. It was simply too much. However, know I had an idea of how extensive this military operation was and on how many different bigger and smaller battle fields human beings have fought for either freedom and democracy or occupancy and dictatorship.
The following installation simulates the troops heading towards the beach. Or the observed the beach. It was close to another bigger memorial place, the British Normandy Memorial.
The British Normandy Memorial is a war memorial near the village of Ver-sur-Mer in Normandy, France. It was unveiled on 6 June 2021, the 77th anniversary of D-Day, and it is dedicated to soldiers who died under British command during the Normandy landings. The memorial records the names of 22,442 people from more than 30 countries under British command who were killed in Normandy from 6 June to 31 August 1944. This number is hard to believe and even harder to understand. But given the number of deaths during the second World War, this number here seems to be little. However, every single death is one too much.
If you take a look at the map at the bottom of this page you will notice that I went for an extra stop in the city of Bayeux and I had to move away from the coast for a while. I should bring more time to explore those cities at another time. For now I just wanted to ride as much and as far as possible to see a lot of places. I will definitely come back with some more time. I could only pay a brief visit to the city today, so I drove quickly through the city center.
Even though it looks otherwise, none of the pedestrians felt accosted – or at least, none of them reacted that way. Like with all the other videos, I have recorded this video below in hyperlapse mode with an action camera mounted to my handlebar. Especially for this video I rode very slowly and decreased the playback speed afterwards to ensure a better playback.
There was an other cemetery on my list, the Normandy American Cemetery. Seemed to be a big deal. A large area, a large parking place, very crowded and I should leave the bike somewhere where I did not feel so comfortable with. Observing the sky – likelihood for rain – and not sure whether to pay for entrance, walking long distances to see the actual cemetery made me thinking twice. I could walk around there, or going to the “Overlord Museum” nearby or I can proceed to escape the rain clouds. A short contemplating. 😉
Operation Overlord was the codename for the Battle of Normandy, the Allied operation that launched the successful liberation of German-occupied Western Europe during World War II.
What came to my mind yesterday and today is the fact that army units from many other European countries – such as Denmark, Norway, and Poland – also joined the forces with the USA. They all shared one thing in common: they went to war, a war they had not sought, to liberate Europe. In the worst-case scenario, they gave their lives for that cause. I drove along most of these routes today, filled with thoughts on this and a sense of gratitude.
There was enough time between all the memorial places however I constantly thought about the time back then. I have already explained, that I may need some time to get my mind off it when I have visited these places.
Occasionally it felt like a journey through time. At some point I was close to the shore again and several different signs, places and things reminded me on what has happened in this area (on the beaches or away from the beaches). It was by far much more than I have expected – although I expected a lot without a clue what exactly I could expect. Except for the memorial places on my list.
There was kind of a German bunker close to the Utah Beach. It was called “Widerstandsnest 73” (resistance nest). Looked like it was used for shootings. That gives another idea of the battles that took place here.
Near the Utah Beach, in Pointe du Hoc, they also displayed something that appears to be a pontoon bridge. I believe it was used to carry all the vehicles, tanks, munitions and what not from the warships to the shore.
And then there was a German cemetery. I was a little bit surprised to find something like that, although I learned about it during my planning for this bicycle trip. In fact, it was on the list of places to visit however a short visit was sufficient. So many young men have lost their lives. All this never made sense to me. Like at the British Normandy Memorial I could see the names, ages and military rank of soldiers who have lost their life in a senseless war.
Other than that I also passed a lot of villages and small towns. Sometimes nicely decorated. Sometimes there was a building that appears to be a mansion. A “Château” in French.
Sadly I missed the Barfleur Harbour. It is the ideal place to take a break. It is located near the tip of the Cotentin peninsula. It is a small town by the sea. In the Middle Ages, this town was home to the most important port in Normandy – from here William the Conqueror set sail with his fleet to conquer England.
Nowadays, many people take a great deal for granted. The efforts of the Allies were not something to be taken for granted. And I have sometimes watched, with a certain sense of satisfaction, the lively bustle – something that, for a few years some time ago, simply did not exist in that way. However, I am grateful that i could be there today. And could explore so many places.
Short before Cherbourg it was already late. Quite late. Hoped to manage the check-in at the hotel (I did). The last miles towards the city of Cherbourg were relatively straight forward for quite a while, like 30 km, slightly downhill most of the times. Occasionally it looked like rain and indeed I fetched some drizzle. Not a big deal, just move on. And then, a nice view of the bay told me that I will reach my goal very soon.
Last but not least, the map of the day: Caen to Cherbourg
And a statistic for the day:
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