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Time to move the thread along a bit.

After a week in France it was time to head for the ferry at Cherbourg, an easy day, only 35 miles.

Two places on the way above Utah Beach I wish I woulda known more about at the time...

The German coastal battery at Crisbecq near St. Marcouf de L'Isle which according to this road sign was only about three miles out of my way...



The other I stopped at because it did have a sign for it, the Azeville Battery, seven miles inland. A collection of bunkers connected by hundreds of yards of underground tunnels. More than 200 men were assigned here.





Tho why they put a anti-aircraft fixture on top of a structure shielded by tons of concrete I dunno...



When I saw this one with trees and such painted on I thought it was the work of misguided hippies in the 70's, but it turns out the Germans themselves painted it like that, as camouflage...



The commander at Cribecq was a grimly efficient bastard who sank a Destroyer and killed a lot of Americans before making his escape.

http://h2g2.com/entry/A37321751

At Azeville a 14" shell from the USS Nevada eight miles out passed through an artillery bunker without exploding, killing by air compression or shards of concrete everyone in inside.

The Commander of the installation, one Dr. Hugo Treiber, was a less than ardent Nazi and very popular with his men. He saved the lives of most when he surrendered when defeat became inevitable.

http://www.oisterwijk-marketgarden.com/the_azeville_battery.html

Birdwatcher