Why this ride
132 km from Sainte-Mère-Église to Sainte-Mère-Église, about 2 h 31 of riding. The stops in between: Pointe du Hoc, Beaches of the D-Day Landings and back through Pointe du Hoc.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Utah Beach and Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 132 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 2 h 31
- 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. 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 is where the day begins. Next is Pointe du Hoc.
2. 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
Pointe du Hoc comes up about 43 km into the recorded legs. Next is Beaches of the D-Day Landings.
3. 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
about 67 km into the recorded legs you reach Beaches of the D-Day Landings. Next is back through Pointe du Hoc.
4. 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
back through Pointe du Hoc, late in the day. Next is Utah Beach.
5. 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 at Utah Beach. That is the ride.
Leg by leg
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 back through Pointe du Hoc
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 Utah Beach
back through Pointe du Hoc → Utah Beach is 42 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.