Day 55 Sunday 28 June 2026
It was a busy day visiting some of the Normandy WWII D Day beaches. Very briefly The D-Day operation of June 6, 1944, brought together the land, air, and sea forces of the allied armies (mainly USA, Canada and Britain) in what became known as the largest amphibious invasion in military history. The operation, given the codename OVERLORD, delivered five naval assault divisions to the beaches of Normandy, France. It took another 11 months, 8 May 1945, for WWII to be declared over in Europe.
Although we have been through this area a few times before we thought it was worth another visit.
We drove just over 100km and stopped at Utah, Pointe Hoc, Omaha, the American Cemetery and Longues sur Mer battery before finishing our day at a paid (€12.50) parking area for motorhomes near Arromanches les Bains.
The morning began with another loss to the Bombers. So with that out of the way we set off to explore.
Our first stop was at Quineville Beach which hd a small museum and some information on the WWII landings.
The Utah beach American Memorial commemorates the achievements of U.S. VII Corps forces that landed and fought in the liberation of the Cotentin Peninsula from June 6, 1944 to July 1, 1944. The monument is a red granite obelisk set in a small park overlooking sand dunes of the historic site. There were also various statues.
VII Corps units landed by air and sea to pursue three missions: expand the Allied beachhead, seal off the Cotentin Peninsula, and thrust northward to liberate Cherbourg. The Utah Beach terrain differed from other invasion beaches. Its dunes were relatively shallow, followed inland by expanses of flooded and marshy terrain crossed by narrow causeways.
German defenses included multiple obstacles along the beaches, plus infantry and artillery capable of blocking exits inland. The Germans also reinforced their units throughout the Cotentin Peninsula and enhanced fortifications around Cherbourg.
Pointe Hoc was the stage for one of the most daring operations of the Allied landings. On the morning of June 6th, the cliffs were stormed by the Rangers of Colonel Rudder, who bravely aimed to secure this strategic position along the Atlantic Wall. Unfortunately there are extensive works being carried out at the moment that restricted our ability to explore the remnants of this crucial German stronghold.
Omaha beach was in the American sector, a name code assigned by the Allies. This iconic stretch of coastline extends from Vierville-sur-Mer to Colleville-sur-Mer in Calvados.
We next visited the American Cemetery which contains the graves of nearly 9,400 war dead, and nearly 1,600 names on the Walls of the Missing. We spent a bit of time in The visitor center which described the events and significance of the D-Day landings.
We then went out Within the picturesque trees and garden to view the immense array of headstones in their long regular rows.
There were many people here from all different nationalities paying their respects to those whom have paid the ultimate sacrifice in war.
Longues sur Mer Battery is located between the beaches of Omaha Beach and Gold Beach. It was subjected to intense aerial and naval bombardments which prevented it from being fully in action on June 6, 1944. It was then taken by the British troops the next day. It is one of the rare batteries of the Atlantic Wall that remained almost in its original state. It consisted of four 150 mm long-range marine guns, each protected by a reinforced concrete casemate, a fire direction station and various installations to serve and defend them.
We had a walk around and read the numerous signs with their explanations.
As it was getting on in the day we decided to stay at the paid parking area at Arromanches le Bains. It is situated at the heart of the D-Day landing beaches on the Gold Beach sector, and is now a world-famous village thanks to the remains of the famous Winston Churchill artificial harbour, code-named Mulberry B. This infrastructure which were floated across the English Channel, enabled the landing of 9 to 22,000 tons of material per day at the height of the battle.
After dinner we walk to the lookout and memorial garden.
The sculpture is of Second World War veteran Bill Pendell MM sitting on a stone looking out. In front of him are sculptures of young British soldiers coming ashore on the 6 June 1944.
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And so ends our day overlooking the beautiful bay with a tragic history.
