Day three was to be our Operation Dynamo Day - the BEF retreat to Dunkirk and the evacuation.
We started at the local (5km from our Gite) Maginot fortress. This consisted of three separate bunkers, two on private land, and one open to the public which had excellent access and informative signage.
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| Cupola used for target practice with both 7.92mm anti-tank rifle hits as well as 37mm anti-tank rounds |
We were then off towards the evacuation beaches as we wanted to catch low tide to find some evacuation wrecks. On the way, we stopped off at Peckel (just outside Cassel) to see the bunker held by the Gloucesters for 3 days.
We passed through Furnes where we saw the graves of two Grenadier Guards Senior Officers who were killed by snipers while recce’ing the nearby canal as a defensive stop-line.
Then it was on to the beach at Bray Dunes. Here it was low tide and we found the wreck of the Crested Eagle paddle steamer sunk while rescuing BEF troops in 1940.
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| The Crested Eagle |
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| The wreck of the Crested Eagle |
After that we visited the Dunkirk Memorial to the missing and had lunch.
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| Memorial to the Missing in Dunkirk Cemetery |
Then we drove to the Operation Dynamo Museum in the old port. What a fantastic place to visit and just 8€!!
Before we left Dunkirk there was time to go and see the East Mole where troops queued to be taken off by the Royal Navy. The wooden bit has long since gone, but the original stone bits remain. Very thought provoking.
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| Dunkirk's East Mole today |
On our way back to the Gite, we visited the Bergues – Canal where Captain Ervine-Andrews VC action took place near the bridge to Hameaux at Hoville and then the site of the Wormhout massacre and the graves of two brave men (Jennings & Moore) who threw themselves on SS grenades to try and save their comrades.
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| Site of the Massacre at Wormhout |
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