Lochnagar Crater

[Tom Morgan]

Pals - in October I will be taking a friend to the Somme. He has motor neurone disease and is confined to an electric wheelchair. He's a long-time survivor of the disease, like Prof. Stephen Hawking.

Like Prof. Hawking, he is quite an inspirational person. The most amazing thing is that he is making this trip to the battlefields from his home in AUSTRALIA. I won't even begin to describe the difficulties he has had to overcome to achieve this.

I very much want him to see the Lochnagar Crater and to do this I have to get the wheelchair up onto the lip.

I know that there is now some kind of flat, paved area between the cross and the box for the visitors' book. This morning I spoke to Richard Dunning, the owner of the crater, and he thinks that it will be possible to get the wheelchair up to this paved area.

Although I'm familiar with the "duckboard path" up to the rim (and have got ordinary, lighter wheelchairs up it in the past) I've never seen this new paved area for myself.

What Richard Dunning says is good enough for me, but I want to leave nothing to chance and would like a look at the paved area.

So - does anyone have any recent photos of the crater which show this new feature? If so, I'd be very grateful for the chance to have a look.

Rather than clog up Chris's website with several photos of the same thing, I invite anyone who has one to email me a copy at

tom (at) hellfire-corner.co.uk

I'll be grateful for any help I can get with this.

And if any Pals are going to be around La Boiselle about the 8th October and could help give a push...........

Tom

[burlington]

Tom

By chance I am on the Somme with my wife for a non-WW1 trip (is there such a thing?)

I am taking her to Arras on the Sunday but the timing of this is uncertain.

Would you like to meet up? I could also give you a hand with the chair.

Where are you staying?

Regards

Martin

[Tom Morgan]

Martin - thanks for your response - I'll PM you this afternoon.......

Tom

[Peter Beckett]

Tom,

ramp photo as requested

Peter

[Tom Morgan]

Excellent Peter - I can see the new paved area around the cross. Can you remember - does the "duckboard ramp" which I'm familiar with go right up to and coonect with the paved area?

And is the new surface actually paved and not (God forbid) loose gravel as can be seen near the road??

Tom