Why this ride
From Sainte-Mère-Église it runs 441 km to Sainte-Mère-Église; allow about 7 h 07 of riding. The stops in between: Beaches of the D-Day Landings, Sword Beach, Omaha Beach and Juno Beach. It suits an unhurried touring pace.
CURVESCOUT / MOTORCYCLE RIDE
Utah Beach and Juno Beach
Plan this ride
- Recorded distance
- 441 km
- Riding-time estimate
- 7 h 07
- 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 Beaches of the D-Day Landings.
2. 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 comes up about 66 km into the recorded legs. Next is Sword Beach.
3. Sword Beach
On the morning of 6 June 1944 this long, flat stretch of sand between Ouistreham and Lion-sur-Mer was the easternmost of the five Allied landing beaches in Normandy. British troops of the 3rd Infantry Division came ashore here, supported by commandos, including a small unit of French commandos under Philippe Kieffer, who fought their way into Ouistreham. The beach linked up with the airborne forces who had taken the bridges over the Orne and the Caen canal during the night, among them the famous Pegasus Bridge at Bénouville, a few kilometres inland. Lord Lovat's commandos marched to relieve the paratroopers there, led, according to the well-known story, by piper Bill Millin playing on the beach under fire.
Read the complete Sword Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 105 km into the recorded legs you reach Sword Beach. Next is Omaha Beach.
4. Omaha Beach
The coast here is long, shallow and sandy, backed by low bluffs, and on the morning of 6 June 1944 it became one of the most terrible places in the history of the Second World War. Omaha was the code name given to a stretch of beach in the Allied landings in Normandy, assigned to American troops, and it was the hardest of the five beaches: the German defences on the bluffs were strong, the bombardment had missed many positions, and the tide and weather scattered the landing craft. Thousands of men were killed or wounded on the sand and the shingle in the first hours, though by evening the beachhead held.
Read the complete Omaha Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
Omaha Beach, 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 191 km, about halfway. Next is back through Omaha Beach.
6. back through Omaha Beach
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Omaha Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
back through Omaha Beach comes up about 273 km into the recorded legs. Next is back through Sword Beach.
7. back through Sword Beach
Return visit. Read the place description above.
Read the complete Sword Beach write-up.
Recorded stop-planning note
May refer to an earlier itinerary; verify against your selected route before riding.
Planning note
about 342 km into the recorded legs you reach back through Sword Beach. Next is back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings.
8. 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, late in the day. Next is Utah Beach.
9. 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
The route ends here after 441 km.
Leg by leg
Utah Beach to Beaches of the D-Day Landings
Utah Beach → Beaches of the D-Day Landings is 66 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Beaches of the D-Day Landings to Sword Beach
Beaches of the D-Day Landings → Sword Beach is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Sword Beach to Omaha Beach
Sword Beach → Omaha Beach is 68 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Omaha Beach to Juno Beach
Omaha Beach → Juno Beach is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
Juno Beach to back through Omaha Beach
Juno Beach → back through Omaha Beach is 50 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Omaha Beach to back through Sword Beach
back through Omaha Beach → back through Sword Beach is 69 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Sword Beach to back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings
back through Sword Beach → back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings is 39 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.
back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings to Utah Beach
back through Beaches of the D-Day Landings → Utah Beach is 61 km of rhythm rather than effort. Let it flow and let the view breathe.