well pals
D day arrived and the race was on, the long awaited 2007 somme tour was on,last car to dover gets the beer in was the challenge ,so a team from the north and a team from the south west were off, but not before a certain member of the south west team packed his wardrobe into the back of an already heaviley laden vehicle
Both teams arrived in dover, south west team first so the beer was on the guys from the north,after a few pints of refreshment we eventually booked in dropped off our wash bags, tour shirts were issued and we all retired back to the bar for more amber nectar and of course some food an enjoyable evening was had by, I of course retired to bed earlier thsan most as i was in much need of my beauty sleep, and believe me i need to over dose

after a much needed sleep we all met up at stupid a clock, and made our way to the ferry to start our great adventure ,hope fully now you will be able to sit back and enjoy the antics of our 2007 somme tour
enjoy, WE DID

i will post a few more pics and thn maybe other tour members will have a chance to post thir pics as most had superior cameras to mine

but not before a certain member of the south west team packed his wardrobe into the back of an already heaviley laden vehicle

I wonder who that was?

Garron

Excuse my cameras pic's, i set it to low quality as the memory card I had was tiny and couldn't store many hi-res pics. so I had loads of lo res.






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From the Mueseum in Notredam da lorrette's chapel (upstairs)





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http://www.freewebs.com/snake43/weeklywar1916.htm

let her load - scroll down to the end and work your way up to November. Cheers Taf .. nice one. You know who I mean.

from the mueseum near Notredam da lorrette

Oi! Garron. You kept that quiet. How come you're out there, then? I thought you were still in college? Nice pics, keep 'em coming. Enjoy the trip (yeah, like as if you wouldn't...and don't get in a round with Tafski...')

Stick it, the Welsh!

Bernard

we kept it quiet as well bernard and he couldnt survive a round either

tafski

It was a last minute thing, friday night phone call, sailed monday morning.

I went awol from collage and work (awaiting field punishment for that)

Yep I been there, done it, didn't buy the t-shirt as it has a stupid spelling mistake

it was fantastic, the weather that was ordered off ebay didn't let us down, it was way better to do a trip with friends.

I went to Mametz aswell will be posting pictures of that later (once I sort out memory card reader, its on the blink)

Garron

Great pics!

So what was the tour schedule? (besides stopping at nearly every available pub to partake of amber liquid? )

Allie

as if keep reading the thread ye see the serious stuff

tafski

This is the in the tower.The ossuaries(bone house)outside have the remains of 20000 unknowns at Lorrette.



Theses stacked coffins are a mixture of known troops from the Great war up to Indo Chine/Maroc & go down about 5 levels.

In front of it are the ashes of someone who died in the concentration camps.



This memorial is to a Tour de France winner.

Keep the snaps coming you lucky so and so's.

Bernard

The man in the mask must be Kevin last seen appearing in Crimewatch! It was fantastic meeting you all...until then Trish though you were my imaginary friends... although now having met you i think she would prefer to have stuck with her original suspicion that I spent my time on pornography and gambling sites.

I know you have more pics sp lets see them

Mick

well mick
it was nice to meet up with you and yer good lady wife,and as her thoughts after meeting us tell her we will borrow a mag and have 10bob each way on a horse at kempton

more pics to follow
tafski

A monument in the chapel , to the french that fell

other pals may have more pics of notre damme de lorrette so i am sure they will post better now for a few pics from the museum to the rear of NDDL a few artillery peices

One of the field guns had a blackbird nesting in it also along with the blackbirds nest was a shell jammed up the barrel, when I went to look at the shell stuck in the barrel the blackbird flew out of her nest showing her 3 eggs. From a thing of death and destruction there was beauty and life.

part of the french german trenches at the museum to the rear of NDDL

some one playing soldiers

brill pictures,

as i see ye had a great trip

ya friend Malte

yep malte a cracker of a trip just waiting for the other members to post some pics
bruce

Very nice photos. Just a little plea from me....... More photos please


Ali

seeing as ye pleaded a few more hope the rest of the party post some

a little wire fence

more trench positions

Very nice Bruce. Bet you had a really good time.

Come on the rest of you guys more piccies please.

Ali

It has been said that you can see Messines ridge fromthe top of the tower.

Last time up there,I did see Mont des Cats which is en route.



These windows were payed for by us,as a gesture to all the French troops who died in this massive action before they moved to the Verdun battle/July Somme attack.

I have two difficulties with the museum at NDDL.
Firstly, just leaving all that equipment out to rot. In just a few years time, there will be nothing to see but rust.
Secondly, were the trenches really that close together there?
Bruce

some one playing soldiers

and the photo i was taking

[quote name='brucehubbard' date='Apr 3 2007, 10:52 PM' post='658117'] I have two difficulties with the museum at NDDL.
Firstly, just leaving all that equipment out to rot. In just a few years time, there will be nothing to see but rust.
Secondly, were the trenches really that close together there?
Bruce [/quote

I have read some French accounts of the fighting there. One of them states that they could throw grenades into each other's trenches, so they were pretty close.

Bruce,

we talked long & hard on that subject & I said(without proof)that they must be 1st & 2nd line together & not opposing but,having said that,if you read about the history down the hill at the Labrynth,you'll see that the French werent too bothered about seeing the whites of there eyes

One French history has them as both German(late 14,early 15,before the big push),no matter what the museum says.Still ,these trenches were taken & retaken a number of times.

After a wee run down the hill,the troop arrived at a place they all had planned in their itinira-itinerar-diaries.

The newly washed Vimy ridge memorial.

Magic to see this place without the covers on at last.Timings just right for the Canada 90th tour next week.



Still cant walk up to it for another week but,still one of the best ever to me...

Here we come to the Scots connection.

One of these thought he'd pull in five mins with all the French poule's there.



No one went native on this trip though.../Concrete sandbags at Vimy by the visitors centre in the trench system(20 yds from the opposing trench system)

There was a fantastic mueseum at NDDL, (the building next to the trenches), which has some breath taking things on display, trouble is you werent allowed to take pictures.

there were a few lewis guns, lots of dummies with kit, a MP 18, hotchkiss mg's, mg 08's 08/15s, smle's long lee's, relic weapons, helmets, you name it they had it.

Garron

and the gravel was sharp as well

Thanks for correcting me on the proximity of the trenches.
I still think it is a crying shame that all that ordnance will just rot.....a bit like the back of Tommy's......
Bruce

Vimy








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After a magnificent repas,some die hards hit the old fire water in the Shell hole/Bunker(I cant remember ever leaving it,never mind its name)



George Coles original minder & friend in an uncannily devoid of alcohol bar scene



You cannot fault Chavasse farm as a billet for the Somme.All you ever need & all you can make of it rolled into one.Got nice neighbours too.

christ diddnt realise grant mitchell was on the tour

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Garron

Bit dark this one.A cem not too far from the billet & photos a bit dark.

Had finished drinking etc.at 2am so I had a walk & slept in a field.This is what I saw at 6.40



My favourite time of day anywhere but,just outside of the village(Hardecourt)I took this,bout 7.30ish



So,met a nice bunch of pals in France,had a drink with them,then I slept on the line with some of our relatives,walked home & saw the sunrise.What a 1st day it was for me.

No one at all is correcting you,Bruce its just that at the Labrynthe(as the French called it)the French troops were in the actual SAME trench complex(& it was complex)as the Germans.Your talkin about days & weeks of sleeping with the enemy who where feet away from you.Bayonets were a mans best friend there(& all the other close range nasties).Think of a maze & just add infantry

D

Kev,yer a poet & you know it but,I reckon yer talkin bout yer POM-POM

Feel free to slap

"Hello big boy, wanna see what a fireman keeps up his kilt?"

or

"Hello big boy, wanna play with me hose?"

I wont bother posting up any more pics of NDDL as they all look fairly similar to the ones already on (albeit of a slightly better standard, mwahahahah ). I think this was the first night in the Rum Ration, but I confess the nights do seem to have blurred into one

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And who might this young chap be - drinking out a bottle too forsooth! Ah, the youth of today [sigh]

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