Why this ride
From Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue it runs 244 km to Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue; allow about 4 h 57 of riding. The stops in between: Utah Beach, Pointe du Hoc, Beaches of the D-Day Landings and Juno Beach.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l and Juno Beach
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 244 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 4 h 57
- Journey
- Recorded itinerary
Distance and timing basis
Ordered leg totals agree within rounding. Stop distances are approximate sums of rounded legs. Stops, delays, approach and any separate return travel add time. Basis: producer-declared routed record.
Reading history stays on this device. My road watch requires a separate selection; opening it does not subscribe this ride.
Distance and riding time are measured on the routed road. Check local closures and conditions before you ride.
Waypoint introductions and full write-ups
1. Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l
On the eastern shore of the Cotentin peninsula, in Normandy, the little port of Saint-Vaast-la-Hougue looks out at a low island called Tatihou, and on the island and on the headland of La Hougue stand two stout stone towers designed by Vauban, the military engineer of Louis XIV. They belong to the group of Vauban fortifications that UNESCO inscribed in 2008, and they are among the least known of the twelve sites.
Read the complete Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l is where the day begins. Next is Utah Beach.
2. Utah Beach
Low dunes, a wide grey-gold beach and a sky that seems to go on forever: the westernmost of the D-Day landing beaches looks peaceful today. On 6 June 1944, troops of the US 4th Infantry Division came ashore here, on the eastern coast of the Cotentin peninsula, after paratroopers had dropped inland during the night. A current pushed the first landing craft south of their intended sector, onto a less defended stretch of sand, and Brigadier General Theodore Roosevelt Jr., walking the beach with a cane, decided to start the war from right there. Casualties at Utah were far lower than at Omaha, a few kilometres to the east.
Read the complete Utah Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Utah Beach comes up about 30 km into the recorded legs. Next is Pointe du Hoc.
3. Pointe du Hoc
Pointe du Hoc is a headland of grey cliffs, about thirty metres high, between Omaha and Utah beaches on the Normandy coast, and it is one of the most moving places on the whole D-Day shore. On the morning of 6 June 1944, some two hundred and twenty-five US Army Rangers under Lieutenant Colonel James Rudder came in by landing craft, fired grappling hooks and rope ladders up the cliff, and climbed under fire to take a German battery thought to threaten both beaches. They found the guns had been moved inland, tracked them down and disabled them, then held the position for two days against counterattacks. Fewer than a hundred were still able to fight when they were relieved.
Read the complete Pointe du Hoc write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 73 km into the recorded legs you reach Pointe du Hoc. Next is Beaches of the D-Day Landings.
4. Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Port-en-Bessin is a working fishing harbour squeezed into a gap in the cliffs, and on the morning of 6 June 1944 it sat exactly on the seam between Omaha Beach to the west and Gold Beach to the east. British commandos took the port in the days that followed, linking the American and British sectors. Today the trawlers still come in with scallops in season, the boats crowd the inner basin, and a stubby stone tower designed by Vauban's engineers watches over the entrance. It is a fine base for exploring the whole stretch of the Normandy landing beaches.
Read the complete Beaches of the D-Day Landings write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Beaches of the D-Day Landings, about halfway. Next is Juno Beach.
5. Juno Beach
On the morning of 6 June 1944 the Canadian 3rd Infantry Division landed here, between Courseulles-sur-Mer and Saint-Aubin-sur-Mer, in the middle of the five Normandy landing beaches. Rough seas delayed the first wave, so the troops arrived after the naval bombardment had lifted and the German defenders had recovered. The fighting on the sea wall and in the seaside villages was fierce, and Canadian casualties that day were heavy, but by evening the division had pushed further inland than any other Allied force. Today the beach is a long, quiet strand of sand, with low dunes, villas with shuttered windows, and a few concrete bunkers still half-buried at the water's edge.
Read the complete Juno Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Juno Beach sits at 99 km, about halfway. Next is back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings.
6. back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Beaches of the D-Day Landings write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings comes up about 147 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Pointe du Hoc.
7. back through Pointe du Hoc
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Pointe du Hoc write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 171 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Pointe du Hoc. Next is back through Utah Beach.
8. back through Utah Beach
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Utah Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Utah Beach, late in the day. Next is Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l.
9. Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
The route ends here after 244 km.
Leg by leg
Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l to Utah Beach
Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l → Utah Beach is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Utah Beach to Pointe du Hoc
Utah Beach → Pointe du Hoc is 43 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Pointe du Hoc to Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Pointe du Hoc → Beaches of the D-Day Landings is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beaches of the D-Day Landings to Juno Beach
Beaches of the D-Day Landings → Juno Beach is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Juno Beach to back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Juno Beach → back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings is 25 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings to back through Pointe du Hoc
back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings → back through Pointe du Hoc is 24 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Pointe du Hoc to back through Utah Beach
back through Pointe du Hoc → back through Utah Beach is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Utah Beach to Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l
back through Utah Beach → Les tours-observatoires de Tatihou et de l is 30 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.