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PId been wanting to do a trip to see some of the WW1 locations for some time, but never got around to doing it. So when a planned trip to Belgium Spa was cancelled at short notice, myself and a couple of mates decided to get our arse into gear and do a WW1 trip instead. Having read Mike P’s brilliant ride report (click here) I decided id like to visit some of the same locations.
Being the anniversary of the Somme, accommodation was hard to find, but I managed to book a room at Talbot House in Poporinge Belgium. Having pre programmed a few locations into my sat nav the three of us set off on 2nd July to catch the overnight Hull/Zeebrugge ferry…
Day 1
Arriving at Zeebrugge at 9am the following morning we decided that whilst the weather was perfect we ought to ride to the furthest location we wanted to see - Lochnagar Crater, south of Arras, France. After a 2hr ride in baking heat we had almost got to the crater when we saw our first cemetery, and decided to stop and have a look…
Warlen Court Cemetery
As expected the cemetery looked immaculately well kept…
I noticed that some graves were grouped right next to each other, I learnt that this signified a group burial...
Before we left we signed the visitors book located in a hatch in the wall...
Then we set off to see the crater located further down the road.
Lochnagar Crater
This is one of many craters resulting in underground mines being packed with explosives, this one was intended to clear a gap in the German defences for our troops to advance through. Many were killed. Its difficult to comprehend what it must have been like for anyone caught in this explosion, or even just witnessing it...
To get an idea of the size of this crater, if you zoom in you can can see three people sat under the trees to the left...
On the edge of the crater a cross indicates where a body had been found in 1998…
Heres the inscription on the plaque of the cross...
The chap from the parked up motorhome had been in the area for a few days and came across to show us a shell fragment he had found the previous day in a neighbouring farmers field….
I had hoped to visit Theipval Memorial whilst we were in the area, but time was ticking on and so we decided to ride back up norf to Poperinge, Belgium to check into our accommodation. I knew that Peace Pond was located en route, but sadly my sat nav was playing up and we never got to see it, but at least we got to our accommodation - Talbot House….
Talbot House
Toc-H (as it was referred to during WW1) was used by soldiers resting from the front line, and is now a museum as well as serving as accommodation. It has been kept almost the way it was during WW1 and is staffed mostly by volunteers
Talbot House website
The plaque on the main entrance door...
It is mostly run by volunteers and at the time of our visit a lovely elderly English couple were helping run the place, who made us a pot of tea on arrival (as they did for us every day). Its a very peaceful place and although it serves as an interesting museum the rooms are closed off to the public when occupied. None of the rooms are ensuite, but there are showers & toilets on each floor. Just be careful not to be walking back across the landing with just a towel around you as a group of visiting students are walking up the stairs, and ensure your mates don’t purposely lock you out of the room!!
There was a great photo on the wall of how Toc-H looked back in the day...
And how it looks now, hardly any different...
Some inside shots...
The original chapel on the top floor..
The communal kitchen for residents to use...
The garden...
Sadly Toc-H doesn't have a car park, but there is suitable on street parking around the back. After asking politely, we were kindly allowed to park our bikes a the bottom of the garden, just enough room for our three bikes...
Poperinge
Poperinge has a lovely old square, but frustratingly a fairground had taken residence for the weekend, spoiling its appearance. Though this didn't stop us enjoying a steak dinner and a few Belgium beers whilst planning our next day…..
Day 2
We had planned to ride straight to Mons first thing in the morning, but over breakfast we got talking to an ex serviceman (Royal Engineers) who was travelling alone, sightseeing on his BMW 1100RT. He was a bit of a historian on the subject of WW1, and so we decided to amend our plans by accepting his invitation to ride with him to the Pachendale Museum…
Passchendaele Memorial Museum
This is a great museum contained in an impressive mansion, with exhibits on the upper levels and the cellar converted to a mock trench ‘dug out’. There was also a small cinema. Outside are really good examples of the different kinds of WW1 trenches, both English and German…
Heres a photo taken in the car park of a tosser wearing a ukgser tshirt…
It was still a baking hot sunny day so a quick drink in the outdoor cafe and then it was off to our next location …
Tyne Cott Cemetery
This is one of the larger cemeteries, but is still a beautiful place to visit. It is located on the site of what was the German line, with some of the concrete German bunkers still visible. This cemetery had more visitors due to its size, with a large carpark adjacent to it...
On a wall surrounding one end of the cemetery are listed the names of all the missing soldiers..
There are 4 German graves, heres one of them...
Then it was off to Mons....
Mons
It took just over an hour to ride to Mons. The railway bridge over the Mons-Condé Canal was another location I'd read about in Mike P’s thread, and also recall it featuring in one of Richard Holmes (WW1 historian) tv programmes. Mons is significant for many events during WW1. It was the location of the first proper conflict between the Brits and the Germans, and was also where the first VC's were awarded. It was also where the first ever VC was awarded to a private. As well as containing the cemetery of where Lieutenant Dease is buried, it is also where both the first and last casualties of WW1 are buried.
Heres a quote from a wikipedia article regarding Sidney Godley VC and Lieutenant Dease VC...
On 23 August 1914, at Mons, Belgium on the Mons-Condé Canal, Lieutenant Maurice Dease and Sidney Godley were manning the machine gun after the previous crews were either killed or wounded. When Lieutenant Dease had been mortally wounded and killed, and the order to retreat was issued Private Godley offered to defend the Nimy Railway Bridge while the rest of the section retreated. Godley held the bridge single-handed under very heavy fire and was wounded twice. Shrapnel entered his back when an explosion near him went off, and he was shot in the head. Despite his injuries he carried on the defence of the bridge while his comrades escaped. His citation read: For coolness and gallantry in fighting his machine gun under a hot fire for two hours after he had been wounded at Mons on 23 August.
Sidney Godley VC
Lieutenant Dease VC
The bridge is very easy to find and underneath the bridge is a monument to the two brave soldiers...
An information board next to the bridge...
Whilst here we decided to do the short ride to see the graves of both Godley VC & Dease VC at the nearby St Symphorien cemetry.
St Symphorien Cemetery
This is the German cemetery for both the Allies and Germans who died in the Battle of Mons. Its was initially a German Cemetery, with the Germans securing the land from its Belgium owner who insisted that both German and Allied deceased should be buried there…
This graveyard is located in a small woodland and has a completely different feel to the previous cemetery we had visited, with graves organised in groups as opposed to long regimental rows found elsewhere. As well as containing the grave of Lt Dease VC, it also contains the graves for both the first and last casualties of WW1....
The grave of Lt Dease VC
Here is the grave of the first casualty of the war, Private Parr
Private Ellison and Private Price are believed to be the last two casualties of the war...
With time on our side, we decided to ride back up the motorways to Ypres, so we could watch the Last post at Menin Gate, something we all wanted to experience.
Menin Gate
I was surprised to discover we could ride through Menin Gate, which was a strange experience. We managed to park up next to the monument, but there is also free parking in the square just down the road...
Having looked around the monument we went off for a drink, returning at 7:30pm to ensure being able to get into the monument for that evenings Last Post which takes place at 8pm. It was already pretty crowded, but we got a decent view…
After a long day, we rode back to Toc-H for a few beers
Day 3
Our final full day of our trip, and the weather was thankfully cooler today. We decided to ride back into Ypres and take in the 'In Flanders Fields Museum' in the Cloth Hall that was suggested to me by quite a few Tossers on here. I had learnt that the Cloth Hall was destroyed during WW1, as well as the town of Ypres itself. Rather than rebuilding the town with modern buildings, they built them with a historic style.
The museum costs €9 (or €11 if you want to climb up the bell tower) and is highly recommended. We stayed about 2 1/2 hours but we could have stayed longer. There are some great little films to watch as well as some superb exhibits...
View from the bell tower..
Upon leaving the museum there was a definite change in the weather and an eerie feel to the town...
We had intened to ride up to Yorkshire Trench, just outside Ypres, being a real trench line initially discovered by amateure archaeologists in 1992. The items they found are exhibited in the Cloth Hall. Sadly the heavens opened up and so we decided to return to our accommodation to relax. On arrival at Toc-H a pot of fresh tea was thrusted upon us, along with a few buns and cakes. Bears like cake!
The lady running Toc-H told us that a parade was about to come through the town, due to a miracle that happened in Poperinge some years ago. A baby had supposedly been still born, but when it was being buried a couple of days later it suddenly came back to life. The pope happened to be visiting the town that day and claimed it to be a miracle. Each year this event is marked by local parading through the town, and was probably why the fairground was in town?
Time for another evening in Poperinge and some street food...
Washed down with some horrible black alcoholic treacle...
Day 4
At 7:30am we set off for the Dunkirk ferry. The port is quite poorly signposted. Having took a wrong turning and getting lost I asked some French roadwork's for directions. Whilst taking tho them I got stung on the chest by a French wasp, which didn't add anything to my poor grasp of French language. I may as well have asked if I could have shit in their grandmothers mouth for what use they were, sending me up a country lane that I soon discovered was blocked by a huge pile of steaming horse shit. Bastids
Eventually we arrived at the port...
Dunkirk port is a fuckin shit hole, with the seats in the terminal lounge all slashed, and shitty stale sandwiches in the vending machines. It was nice to eventually see the white cliffs of Dover as we approached good old Blighty. Overall a fantastic trip, and a return trip to the area is definately on the cards
RIP to all those who lost their lives during the war.
Being the anniversary of the Somme, accommodation was hard to find, but I managed to book a room at Talbot House in Poporinge Belgium. Having pre programmed a few locations into my sat nav the three of us set off on 2nd July to catch the overnight Hull/Zeebrugge ferry…
Day 1
Arriving at Zeebrugge at 9am the following morning we decided that whilst the weather was perfect we ought to ride to the furthest location we wanted to see - Lochnagar Crater, south of Arras, France. After a 2hr ride in baking heat we had almost got to the crater when we saw our first cemetery, and decided to stop and have a look…
Warlen Court Cemetery
As expected the cemetery looked immaculately well kept…
I noticed that some graves were grouped right next to each other, I learnt that this signified a group burial...
Before we left we signed the visitors book located in a hatch in the wall...
Then we set off to see the crater located further down the road.
Lochnagar Crater
This is one of many craters resulting in underground mines being packed with explosives, this one was intended to clear a gap in the German defences for our troops to advance through. Many were killed. Its difficult to comprehend what it must have been like for anyone caught in this explosion, or even just witnessing it...
To get an idea of the size of this crater, if you zoom in you can can see three people sat under the trees to the left...
On the edge of the crater a cross indicates where a body had been found in 1998…
Heres the inscription on the plaque of the cross...
The chap from the parked up motorhome had been in the area for a few days and came across to show us a shell fragment he had found the previous day in a neighbouring farmers field….
I had hoped to visit Theipval Memorial whilst we were in the area, but time was ticking on and so we decided to ride back up norf to Poperinge, Belgium to check into our accommodation. I knew that Peace Pond was located en route, but sadly my sat nav was playing up and we never got to see it, but at least we got to our accommodation - Talbot House….
Talbot House
Toc-H (as it was referred to during WW1) was used by soldiers resting from the front line, and is now a museum as well as serving as accommodation. It has been kept almost the way it was during WW1 and is staffed mostly by volunteers
Talbot House website
The plaque on the main entrance door...
It is mostly run by volunteers and at the time of our visit a lovely elderly English couple were helping run the place, who made us a pot of tea on arrival (as they did for us every day). Its a very peaceful place and although it serves as an interesting museum the rooms are closed off to the public when occupied. None of the rooms are ensuite, but there are showers & toilets on each floor. Just be careful not to be walking back across the landing with just a towel around you as a group of visiting students are walking up the stairs, and ensure your mates don’t purposely lock you out of the room!!
There was a great photo on the wall of how Toc-H looked back in the day...
And how it looks now, hardly any different...
Some inside shots...
The original chapel on the top floor..
The communal kitchen for residents to use...
The garden...
Sadly Toc-H doesn't have a car park, but there is suitable on street parking around the back. After asking politely, we were kindly allowed to park our bikes a the bottom of the garden, just enough room for our three bikes...
Poperinge
Poperinge has a lovely old square, but frustratingly a fairground had taken residence for the weekend, spoiling its appearance. Though this didn't stop us enjoying a steak dinner and a few Belgium beers whilst planning our next day…..
Day 2
We had planned to ride straight to Mons first thing in the morning, but over breakfast we got talking to an ex serviceman (Royal Engineers) who was travelling alone, sightseeing on his BMW 1100RT. He was a bit of a historian on the subject of WW1, and so we decided to amend our plans by accepting his invitation to ride with him to the Pachendale Museum…
Passchendaele Memorial Museum
This is a great museum contained in an impressive mansion, with exhibits on the upper levels and the cellar converted to a mock trench ‘dug out’. There was also a small cinema. Outside are really good examples of the different kinds of WW1 trenches, both English and German…
Heres a photo taken in the car park of a tosser wearing a ukgser tshirt…
It was still a baking hot sunny day so a quick drink in the outdoor cafe and then it was off to our next location …
Tyne Cott Cemetery
This is one of the larger cemeteries, but is still a beautiful place to visit. It is located on the site of what was the German line, with some of the concrete German bunkers still visible. This cemetery had more visitors due to its size, with a large carpark adjacent to it...
On a wall surrounding one end of the cemetery are listed the names of all the missing soldiers..
There are 4 German graves, heres one of them...
Then it was off to Mons....
Mons
It took just over an hour to ride to Mons. The railway bridge over the Mons-Condé Canal was another location I'd read about in Mike P’s thread, and also recall it featuring in one of Richard Holmes (WW1 historian) tv programmes. Mons is significant for many events during WW1. It was the location of the first proper conflict between the Brits and the Germans, and was also where the first VC's were awarded. It was also where the first ever VC was awarded to a private. As well as containing the cemetery of where Lieutenant Dease is buried, it is also where both the first and last casualties of WW1 are buried.
Heres a quote from a wikipedia article regarding Sidney Godley VC and Lieutenant Dease VC...
On 23 August 1914, at Mons, Belgium on the Mons-Condé Canal, Lieutenant Maurice Dease and Sidney Godley were manning the machine gun after the previous crews were either killed or wounded. When Lieutenant Dease had been mortally wounded and killed, and the order to retreat was issued Private Godley offered to defend the Nimy Railway Bridge while the rest of the section retreated. Godley held the bridge single-handed under very heavy fire and was wounded twice. Shrapnel entered his back when an explosion near him went off, and he was shot in the head. Despite his injuries he carried on the defence of the bridge while his comrades escaped. His citation read: For coolness and gallantry in fighting his machine gun under a hot fire for two hours after he had been wounded at Mons on 23 August.
Sidney Godley VC
Lieutenant Dease VC
The bridge is very easy to find and underneath the bridge is a monument to the two brave soldiers...
An information board next to the bridge...
Whilst here we decided to do the short ride to see the graves of both Godley VC & Dease VC at the nearby St Symphorien cemetry.
St Symphorien Cemetery
This is the German cemetery for both the Allies and Germans who died in the Battle of Mons. Its was initially a German Cemetery, with the Germans securing the land from its Belgium owner who insisted that both German and Allied deceased should be buried there…
This graveyard is located in a small woodland and has a completely different feel to the previous cemetery we had visited, with graves organised in groups as opposed to long regimental rows found elsewhere. As well as containing the grave of Lt Dease VC, it also contains the graves for both the first and last casualties of WW1....
The grave of Lt Dease VC
Here is the grave of the first casualty of the war, Private Parr
Private Ellison and Private Price are believed to be the last two casualties of the war...
With time on our side, we decided to ride back up the motorways to Ypres, so we could watch the Last post at Menin Gate, something we all wanted to experience.
Menin Gate
I was surprised to discover we could ride through Menin Gate, which was a strange experience. We managed to park up next to the monument, but there is also free parking in the square just down the road...
Having looked around the monument we went off for a drink, returning at 7:30pm to ensure being able to get into the monument for that evenings Last Post which takes place at 8pm. It was already pretty crowded, but we got a decent view…
After a long day, we rode back to Toc-H for a few beers
Day 3
Our final full day of our trip, and the weather was thankfully cooler today. We decided to ride back into Ypres and take in the 'In Flanders Fields Museum' in the Cloth Hall that was suggested to me by quite a few Tossers on here. I had learnt that the Cloth Hall was destroyed during WW1, as well as the town of Ypres itself. Rather than rebuilding the town with modern buildings, they built them with a historic style.
The museum costs €9 (or €11 if you want to climb up the bell tower) and is highly recommended. We stayed about 2 1/2 hours but we could have stayed longer. There are some great little films to watch as well as some superb exhibits...
View from the bell tower..
Upon leaving the museum there was a definite change in the weather and an eerie feel to the town...
We had intened to ride up to Yorkshire Trench, just outside Ypres, being a real trench line initially discovered by amateure archaeologists in 1992. The items they found are exhibited in the Cloth Hall. Sadly the heavens opened up and so we decided to return to our accommodation to relax. On arrival at Toc-H a pot of fresh tea was thrusted upon us, along with a few buns and cakes. Bears like cake!
The lady running Toc-H told us that a parade was about to come through the town, due to a miracle that happened in Poperinge some years ago. A baby had supposedly been still born, but when it was being buried a couple of days later it suddenly came back to life. The pope happened to be visiting the town that day and claimed it to be a miracle. Each year this event is marked by local parading through the town, and was probably why the fairground was in town?
Time for another evening in Poperinge and some street food...
Washed down with some horrible black alcoholic treacle...
Day 4
At 7:30am we set off for the Dunkirk ferry. The port is quite poorly signposted. Having took a wrong turning and getting lost I asked some French roadwork's for directions. Whilst taking tho them I got stung on the chest by a French wasp, which didn't add anything to my poor grasp of French language. I may as well have asked if I could have shit in their grandmothers mouth for what use they were, sending me up a country lane that I soon discovered was blocked by a huge pile of steaming horse shit. Bastids
Eventually we arrived at the port...
Dunkirk port is a fuckin shit hole, with the seats in the terminal lounge all slashed, and shitty stale sandwiches in the vending machines. It was nice to eventually see the white cliffs of Dover as we approached good old Blighty. Overall a fantastic trip, and a return trip to the area is definately on the cards
RIP to all those who lost their lives during the war.
not a good idea at all, 
