Day Seven - No Blue Bayeux on Gail's Birthday

Looking Down the Cliff Face

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It looked far more daunting in person, but what I was trying to capture here was the steepness of the approaches toward these cliffs where the German guns were positioned. I really feared I might get blown off the parapet standing here and hurried my shot. You can barely make out the barbedwire facing the Army Rangers that eventually made their way up the ropes and ladders from down on the shingle beach.

Postcard Pretty Spot

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Omaha Beach was around on the other side of those cliffs in the distance. When the Rangers attacked here they were totally on their own with the only support coming from naval ships off on the horizon. Little did they know there was no need to fear the German cannons because there simply weren't any.

Entrance to a Gun Emplacement

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Considering how wind-swept, rain-battered and wide open the cliffs of Pointe-du-Hoc are, the old concrete bunkers are still in remarkably great condition all these decades later.

Not Much to See Inside

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It necessitated my leaping over a huge puccle and traipsing through some mud to get to the bunker entrance, but I kne wthis might be my only chance to get to see the inside of this artifact. My camera flash belies the gloomy darkness deep underground. I didn't even see the grafitti on the walls or the old iron doorhinges until I was able to blow up this photo. Hopefully someday in the future they decide to restore some of these old buildings.

Another Gun Mount

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Sadly there were no placards describing what we were seeing up here. I'm assuming this was some sort of swivel mount for one of the big guns. And no, that isn't Gail. It's a grey-haired old French guy.

No Chapeaus on these Cliffs

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Usually any vacation shot of Mr. Dougie has me wearing some sort of hat, but with the winds whipping in like Hurricane Pierre, I left my scalp naked. I might not see my Harris tweed cap until our next trip to Ireland with the way these gale-force winds were blowing out across the Channel.

Not My Crew

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The view on top of the Pointe was breathtaking. Zooming in on this picture you can acyually see church steeples and farms miles away on the Cotentin Peninsula.

Memorial to the Rangers

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As I said, there wasn't much on site documenting what happened here, but this memorial succinctly commemorates the sacrifices of the Rangers that eventually took this seemingly inacessible redoubt.

Where I Wouldn't Want to Be Today

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I was a bit surprised to see a number of fishing boats out in the English Channel on this sunny but very blustery afternoon. The seas were looking pretty choppy.

Observation Bunker

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On the very edge of the cliff and commanding the best view of the beaches and the sea stood this thick concrete bastion. Protected deep inside the German spotters could relay the positions of the enemy to their gun crews. That is if the site had ever gone fully operational.

Which Will Last Longer?

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I certainly won't be around to see the answer, but I have to wonder what will crumble first? This nature-made needle rock or the manmade German concrete bunkers?

Lovin' My Zoom

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This looks like a scene out of "The Perfect Storm". But actually this is one of those fishing boats lurking off the coast. It looks cold and uncomfortable but I guess somebody has to fetch all that smelly seafood they're serving in all those fancy French bistros.

Last Bunker Inspection of the Day

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I felt like I was in and out of damp, dank concrete buildings all day, but I had to check out just one more before we left Pointe-du-Hoc.

Coming to the End of a Beautiful Day

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Back at the parking lot we were pleased to find Cassie still alive but comatose in the car. She probably needed the nap after more than a week of enduring my snores every night and especially since the experiences in our sauna-like hotel room. By now my mild urge to fins a rest room had become rather urgent. As luck would have it a uniformed guard came over to the construction crew's trailer and after conversing with a couple of French women who were hopping up and down, she unlocked the bathroom. I went sprinting over there to take advantage before she locked-up again. As a result, I was able to think again and to realize we still had a couple more hours of daylight left.

Now What?

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Once again, we finished our day's activities earlier than scheduled. We actually had a couple of more hours of sunlight remaining so we pulled out the Green Michelin guide in order to find one more point of interest. The town of Deauville got a rather interesting write-up inside. It was lauded as being well known for its film festival and luxurious surroundings. There looked to be a rather bustling town of designer shops and seaside mansions. On the tiny map inside the guide the town of Deauville looked to be fairly close by. However, after setting the GPS we learned it was an hour and a half away. With nothing else to do except return to our hotel until dinner, we headed East. The girls napped and I somehow stayed awake. Deauville was indeed a robust metropolis with the heaviest traffic of the trip. There were plenty of stores to entertain the girls and some interesting super cars on the street, but after driving in bumper to bumper traffic for 20 minutes and finding nowhere to park, we detoured to the beachside residential section of town.

This is More Like It

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It required so much attention on both my part and Gail's as well just to get through the crazy traffic that we had no chance to take any photos of downtown Deauville. Finally, a few miles up the busy beachfront we found a saner avenue to take allowing us to get a glimpse of these world-reknowned beaches.

When We Win the Lottery

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then this will be our beach home.