YOUR VISITS TO THE WESTERN FRONT .

[IanA]

Having toured the Somme and Salient extensively (haven't made it to Verdun yet) the two places which mean most to me are the cemetery at Poelkapelle - the first big impact driving from the ferry at Zeebrugge. The open country around, the chirruping from the aviary at the side, the soft Flanders rain (invariably!) and the poignant stork memorial in the town. It all gives me that wonderful feeling - "I'm back"! The second site which I wouldn't miss is Langemark cemetery. Those brooding sentinel oaks, the menace of the concrete pill boxes, the grieving figures at the rear, the crunch of acorns under your feet. If you arrive early in the morning, when the dew is on the grass, and the bus loads of kids haven't yet shmashed the silence, you feel very close to something imponderable.

Ian

[Bart150]

For me there is one place above all others: Langemarck German cemetery.

That is seriously heavy.

I never tell people exactly what they will find there. That way they get the full impact.

Apart from that, standing on Hill 60, looking down at Ypres, and thinking: yes, this is the view the German gunners had.

And - I'm not sure if this counts - personal experience of the Flanders mud.

Reversing my car into a ditch, and getting hauled out by a CWGC tractor.

[johnreed]

For me it is The Last Post Ceremony. I was fortunate to be staying at Varlet Farm the week 2nd to 9th April with my wife, always a great experiance. I had arranged with the Last Post Association for my wife to lay a wreath during the ceremony on the 7th April which was the 89th anniversary, of him being K.I.A. on a trench raid on hill 60. He has no known grave, it was a very moving experiance for my wife.

[Graham Smith]

My very recent visit to Ypres and having the chance to hear those bugles at the Menin Gate.

Awesome, simply awesome.

[Stephanie]

I believe it was in Poperinge.. the prison rooms of which prisoners were kept before they were shot at dawn, it has engraved messages of boredom and fear by the soldiers, and on the wall, framed pictures of the faces of the soldiers and by them, their piece of clothing with the bullet hole in. Another place was The Langemark Mass German grave of 500...

[chrrip]

The Bois des Caures, near Verdun - the trenches have just been left to nature to reclaim, as have strong points, shelters and barbed wire. The most amazing place to walk around, preferably being guided by Christina Holstein and with a copy of the relevant chapter from Horne's The Price of Glory.

A close second is the Butte de Vaquais (and I think I spelt it correctly). Between 1915 and 1916 soemthing like 600 mines were exploded by the French and the Germans, completely destroying all evidence of the village that once stood there. Even better if you can organise a trip down the tunnels.

Although these are the best visits my favourite place probably remains the Somme.

For a guided trip down the Vauquois tunnels contact the Amis de Vauquois at the Marie there; the Amis are restoring sections of the front lines; anyone particularly interested in Vauquois and tha Argonne battlefields ( and can read a little French ) should think about joining.

[susanhemmings]

Deninately the Last Post at the Menin Gate -

Sanctuary Wood and the museum - I threw up when I came out of there - it really got to me.

The hill near the museum where I laid some flowers on the Canadian memorial together with a maple leaf picked up off the ground from the trees. and said a small prayer of thanks

The battleground outside Varlet Farm and the exhibition within. The Tyne Cot cemetary and that wall with all those names. The endless crosses and the realisation of the futility of war. Walking back from Tyne Cot to Varlet Farm remembering the poem In Flanders Fields... of John McCrae

Heart rending stuff. And honoured to be able to pay my respects.

[Gunner Bailey]

La Boiselle crater - a truly awesome place.

Gunner Bailey

[better ole]

I found St Symphorian cemetery, in the Mons area, a very moving, peaceful and haunting place.

The burial place of the first and last British battle casualties, the first VC (Lt. Dease) and German graves and monuments.

The Russian memorial and cemetery, on the D21, near St Hilaire, in the Champagne region.

I didn't find anywhere, which I would not visit again however I was overwhelmed by the sheer number of graves and names on the tablets at Tyne Cot.

[Ken Wayman]

The tears-in-the-eyes, hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck moment must be the first time I heard the 'Last Post' at the Menin Gate, over twenty years ago. I was supervising forty-five rather stroppy, inner city fifteen year-olds, didn't know how they'd react, didn't know how I'd react. As the notes tumbled from the silver trumpets I felt the lump grow in my throat and the tears ***** the back of my eyes. What would the kids think? As I risked a sideways glance the ones in my eyeline were doing exactly the same as me.

That moment stayed with me and the students for as long as I knew them.

Ken

[susanhemmings]

The tears-in-the-eyes, hairs-on-the-back-of-the-neck moment must be the first time I heard the 'Last Post' at the Menin Gate, over twenty years ago. I was supervising forty-five rather stroppy, inner city fifteen year-olds, didn't know how they'd react, didn't know how I'd react. As the notes tumbled from the silver trumpets I felt the lump grow in my throat and the tears ***** the back of my eyes. What would the kids think? As I risked a sideways glance the ones in my eyeline were doing exactly the same as me.

That moment stayed with me and the students for as long as I knew them.

Ken

Well described Ken, I wholeheartedly agree with you. Tremendous wake up call for anyone who hears it.

[StAubyns]

When I go to the Somme I always go to Delville Wood and Serre but the most atmospheric place(s) I have ever been has got to be Point 110 New and Old Military Cemeteries. I walked with my wife from Mansel Copse, through Mametz and Fricourt and from there down the road towards Bray. We then cut across the fields to the above 2 cemeteries. We sat on the Cemetery Wall of Point 110 New Cemetery and had lunch. What a peaceful and thought provoking spot. If you have not been, you should. We did not feel alone.

regards

Geoff

[BIFFO]

sitting alone in The Chapel, Toc H, Pop. just thinking !! ,not in a far flung battlefield just a room ah but what a room,

[59165]

I wish I could transfer the long term memories of my 16 yr old boy,Callum to those of you who seldom,or haven't yet visited the WW1 fields/sites.

It amazes & saddens me that there are so many folks who haven't yet visited France & Belgium even though I know that it can be impossible because of mobility or finance.

The places that the kid has been dragged/taken to since he was 6 weeks old would serve well anyone researching/writing about the hostilities.

I reckon in my drunken mutterings here that what I'm trying to say is that Wherever you go,the 1st visit is gonna make the biggest impression on you.If you were on a tour & 1st stop was Tyne cottage,well....

thats got to stick in your memory but,for me,its the Festubert/Richebourg region for cemeteries.

For field walking it is Monchy.The lie(!) of the land is so true to 1916/17 to this day.see post 45.

Then there is 'our' cem on the outskirts of Auberchicourt.All the end of the war(except for some Aug.14 blokes),the place I go to when I feel pissed off or happy,even.see post 38.

Its like stepping next door to visit the neighbours for me now .

Oh,my 1st stop when we were on hols(1977)was Mons followed later by Le Touret.

Nice to stop in & say hi to the family

[Doc]

I have to date only visited a WW1 battle area once and that was when researching a relative as part of developing a Family Tree. He had been KIA on the first the day of the First Battle Ypres . I had also always wanted to visit the Menin Gate and witness the Last Post Ceremony and the opportunity to do so, occurred two years ago.

So in March 2005, my son and I flew across to Belgium and made our way by train to Iepers. We just had time to dump our bags in the B&B and make our way to the Menin Gate in time for the ceremony. In my many years of attending Remembrance Services and military funerals I have heard the Last Post played countless times however, when I heard the Last Post played by the members of the Ieper Fire Service and especially as the last notes were bouncing off the walls of the Menin Gate and fading off into the distance, I have never felt so moved! It took a good few whiskys later in the Ieper branch of the RBL before I was my composed self!

The following day, my son and I hired a couple of bikes and set off to find the CWGC cemetery which contained the headstone memorial to my relative (His grave having been lost in the ensuring later battles in that area). After a few hours riding (Stopping to admire the countryside, miliarty artifacts laying around or remaining structures from WW1) we found the Perth (China Wall) Cemetery in Zillibeck. (Strongly recommend if you are to tour the battlesfields of the Ypres Salient, the second best way is by bike - on foot being the best - to get feel of the country and some form of perception of what the soldiers of the day went through).

As I laid a small wooden Cross of Remembrance at the foot of the headstone, I realised that I was the first family member (abeit distant) to visit the memorial headstone since the 1930's! It was a very moving moment, to think for a generation or two - no one had visited ( I hoped though, still remembered in spirit).

Since that time I have vowed to return and undertake more field research (Armed now with more knowledge of the events) for not only is it a thought provoking experience, I also feel it is our duty to remember the Fallen of the Wars by actually visiting the cemeteries or memorials of family members or on behalf of others.

[Gongie]

I guess for us Canucks, the battlefields are far off, almost mythic places. Especially if you've never been outside of North America. I've always wanted to go, knowing my family's participation, but especially after reading a memorial book, give to me by my aunt, about a family friend (Capt. V.G. Tupper MC) who'd been killed at Vimy (age 21, as I was when I received the book). I wanted to make the re-dedication of the Vimy Memorial, but exams interfered and I left May 12, 2007. I was going to be the first person in my family to return to the Great War battlefields in 89-90 years.

I had two of my friends back out of the trip, decided to head out on my own, sold my car, bought a backpack and plane ticket and got it done (student loans/debts be damned).

Best experience of my life. I backpacked 60lbs across the western front. I landed in London, stayed there for a week, took the ferry over to Ouisterham, and from there to Courcelles-Sur-Mer (to check out where my uncle landed on D-Day). While on the Somme, I stayed at Ocean Villas. The owner Avril Williams was great (and her Cottage Pie = Amazing). She offered to give me a lift around the Somme (Bouzincourt, Corbie, Poziers, etc...) before dropping me off at Adanac (whereupon I'd make my way back to Auchovillers on foot) after we'd had a rather hilarious misunderstanding on my day of arrival.

After the Somme, I moved up to Vimy, which was quite an experience. The initial view of the monument was breathtaking. I saw the 3rd Canadian Div. positions around Grange and the tunnels, where my great uncle would have been. I did not however, get to see Commons crater (where he was badly wounded in a night raid and won the MC) as it is beyond the fencing. It seems I'm a few decades too late. By the end of the day, I was sunburnt beyond belief and weary of my damned pack; having gone up and down the ridge several times with it.

While in Ypres, I stayed at Talbot House (Poperinge). Silvia (the warden) was very kind and courteous. Upon entering, I was offered a cup of tea (being exhausted, I was all too happy to accept) and shown to my room (the officers single quarters). That cup of tea was possibly the best I've ever had, having slept very little the night before.

I walked from Ypres to St. Eloi on my second day there. Unfortuantely it began to rain, but I plodded on regardless. From St. Eloi I then walked back up to Chester Farm, over to Zillebeke (where the sun finally broke) and up to Railway Wood (after a miscommunication with a farmer). It then began to rain quite heavily, and by the time I reached Sanctuary Wood, it was getting dark and I was the only person in the museum. I walked through the trenches there, which were quite liquified, and attempted to get into the tunnels (which were now too flooded). When I left, they were closing up. It poured while I walked back up the Menin Road to Ypres, coincidentally coming upon the RCAF performing the Menin Gate ceremony. It was nice to hear some familiar accents. I caught my train back to Poperinge, soaked, muddied, and a bit wiser as to how crappy it must have felt to endure the fickle Ypres weather day in and day out.

Both Avril and Silvia were excellent hosts, I could ask for no better and recommend them to anybody.

I unfortunately didn't make it to Passchendaele (where my great grandfather fought with the 46th Bn.), as I was rather low on funds, and another 60lb, 24km walk seemed a bit much (suffice to say, I'd also had cemetery burnout by this point). I suppose it leaves something for me to come back to.

However, I must note that just before I took off from Talbot House, Silvia sent me off with a piece of amazing Belgian cake (a slab big enough to kill a man). It was very much appreciated. If I should ever get back there, I should very much like to stop in thank her again for her hospitality.

Altogether, I saw: Amiens, Albert, Bouzincourt, Corbie, Poziers, Courcelette, Mouquet, Thiepval, Beaumont Hamel (where I was kindly given a ride by Heert Delbecque of the Belgian Western Front Society, whom I wish to thank once more for returning my camera to me), Hawthorn Ridge, Arras, Vimy, Cambrai, Mont St. Eloi, Poperinge, Ypres, St. Eloi, Zillebeke, The Menin Road, Railway Wood and Sanctuary Wood. By the time I got back to Canada, it felt unatural NOT to have my rucksack on. The freedom of mobility was foreign.

In the end it struck me that I was quite lucky to have lived my short 23 years after seeing some of the head stones of the 16-18 year olds. With this in mind, I scrapped the rest of my backpacking itinerary and travelled the rest of Western Europe at will, meeting up finally with two friends in Milan for a tour of Italy.

Though showers were a luxury and food/money often tight... it was the best experience of my life and I'm not likely to forget it.

[Ozzie]

Every minute, of every day, that we were there.

Kim

[henri]

Tete des Faux and Hartmanswillerkopf, Vosges

the most impressive and beatifully preserved sites of the western front

[Nigel Marshall]

Hi,

A site with a personal connection.

The 49th Div Memorial on the canal bank at Essex Farm. Knowing that this memorial commemorates many lads whom he would have know is really moving. My granddad was a survivor, partly due to his job in battalion transport and partly due to his gassing which left him unfit for actual war fighting, but fit enough to police Fermanagh until his demob, he left many mates in Flanders who never saw Carlton Barracks again.

A site with no personal connection.

Tyne Cot. The numbers involved are brought home here. The huge scale of death spelled out in plot after plot of hedastones, and then there is the wall......

Cheers,

Nigel

[reubenayres]

My best trip was a guided tour of Ypres/Passchendaele with Grenadier Tours a few years ago. There were only about 8 - 10 of us in the minibus and the guide was brilliant - a real enthusiast. Having a small group meant that it was easy to interract and ask questions. It was a brilliant trip for a relative novice like me. My daughter who was about 8 at the time managed to get herself wedged under a toilet door at a German cemetery which was a bit of a blow for her. She screamed the place down and then smelt rather high for the rest of the day.

I'm planning to go back next year and do something of a personal pilgrimage, following the path of my grandfather who died in 1917.

Reuben Ayres

[cockney tone]

For me its the splendid isolation of the Redan Ridge and the area around New Munich Trench/Frankfurt Trench cemeteries which allow you a wonderful panorama of the battlefield.

If you get a chance take a walk there, take your binoculours, prop yourself against the cemetery wall and read the last chapter of Lynn Macdonalds The Somme, this is an account the the HLI's and assorted mens last stand in November 1916!

If you don't have a tear in your eye at the end of it you have a heart of stone!

Regards,

Scottie.

[bruce]

Certainly the eeriest spot...the Mur des Fusils in arras. I always go when in Arras...but my wife has been once and now won't get out of the car.

Greatest honour.....reciting the Exortation under the Menin Gate.....totally unforgetable.

But the spot where I feel closest to "them" in the seat at the back of the garden at Talbot House. Sitting there in silence, I can close my eyes and almost see them there in front of me. Then...up to the Chapel in the roof to say thanks for my many blessings.

Bruce

[59165]

Here's nice too

[Tmo]

My father and I have been fortunate to visit Flanders over the last couple of years. We do the self organised route and use Varlet farm as our hub, tending to go more off the beaten track.

Couple of points that really came home for me are,

Visit to Tyne Cot,

As we parked the car a few coaches had just pulled up, following the masses into the museum, people seemingly only glancing at the rolling pictures of those lost, and then nearly running into the cemetery, quick sprint round and back on the coach, 20 minutes tops.We meandered down to the cemetery walked up through the bottom gate to the cross of remembrance, at this point we realised we were alone, no coach parties, not a living soul, and remained so for over an hour.

Sat taking in the magnitude of the place and the vast views of the surrounding area, awe inspiring.

Minty Farm cemetery

I don't know why but Minty Farm is a very calming place for me. As many are, Minty is a classic, small well maintained CWGC cemetery, again we were alone and sat for a while, the sun shone, and we ate lunch. It felt as though 'the lads' were welcome of our company.

On returning this year, different day, different weather, grass needed a cut, we cleaned a few of the weeds away, but still the same feeling of calm and being welcome.

Attending the Menin Gate again this year, standard bearers from the British legion and post exhortation a lady playing Danny Boy on the violin. Whether it is good form or not I was fortunate to video the ceremony, I am glad I did, it was truly moving and will remain with my father and I for many years to come.

[stuartcphillips]

My favourite place (so far and it may well change over time!) is the battlefield around Loos. To some the slag heaps and flat land is uninspiring; however I just imagine what it must have been like fighting for that ground and the fact that it is not one of the more famous battle sites makes it special in my eyes. Amazing.