"Normandy - Around the Merderet" Topic

Last week, I was on holidays in Normandy ( Northeast of Caen) and I did a small trip to the Cotentin Peninsula, around the Merderet.

It was a very moving trip when you're interested in History as nearly every name reminds you an event.

I went to Utah Beach, then towards SteMère-Eglise through the narrow sunken roads of the norman bocage. I visit the Airborne Museum in SteMère-Eglise with an impressive C-47 and a Wako Glider.

Then I drove towards, La Fière Manor, survived a low flight (about 150 feet above the Manor) of two Rafales (french jet fighters), Cauquigny and then a large loop towards Carentan before going back.

Some pictures

link

Olivier

Nice photos thanks.

My little boy went on a school trip to Normandy last weekend: Omaha beach, Pegasus bridge, a V1 launching site and a V2 museum.

Jealous of both of you!

Nice pics,
I have been meaning to ask where did the Octroi name come from, I haven't seen anything that mentions its name in '44 and was curious.

I just received an interesting letter from a friend of my fathers (both railway nuts) about a 2' narrow gauge railway that ran just behind the Sword, Gold, and Juno beaches (passes very close to the Pegasus bridge) and finishes up a few miles short of Carentan. Supposedly the train was left stranded on D-Day as the track and embankment was blown up either side of it. It never ran again and the line was closed.

Great memories of my trips to Normandy. Stayed outside of Caratan last trip. La Fiere bridge is wonderful, as is the pub there. Good food and company.

Thanks for sharing the pictures.

BravoX

>I have been meaning to ask where did the Octroi
>name come from,

Octroi was the place where duties were paid
for goods moving into cities.
Guess octroi duties were cancelled shortly before
or during the war.

>I just received an interesting letter from a friend
>of my fathers (both railway nuts) about a 2' narrow
>gauge railway that ran just behind the Sword, Gold,
>and Juno beaches (passes very close to the Pegasus
>bridge) and finishes up a few miles short of Carentan.

This RR line belonged to an extensive 2 foot network
which had been built at the turn of the century,
radiating from Caen and designed to service both
beach resorts and iron mines South of Caen, as well
as 'hinterland' towns (Bayeux, Lisieux, etc…)
This RR was called 'chemin de Fer du Calvados' from
the name of the area.

Most of its passenger traffic had ceased before
the war, with the notable exception of some Summer
service to Ouistreham and beyond, and perhaps some
mining traffic.
This line was one of the few built in 2 foot gauge
by regional companies (also in Tarn and Loiret), the
huge majority being built in meter gauge.
While many of these vanished in the 1930's or a
few years after the war, some kept on operating
in regular service up into the late 1960's/early 1970.

The only remaining regular service meter gauge
railway is in Corsica.