...but not on the Western Front ! Just goes to show that you never know what you're going to stumble across on a walk in the country....my wife and I were enjoying the Spring weather in the Chiltern Hills near London today when we came across something which will be familiar to anyone who has visited Mametz Wood or Beaumont-Hamel on the Somme : - This area ( on Whiteleaf Hill near Princes Risborough ) has recently been cleared of undergrowth - a nearby information board states that this length of long-forgotten trenchwork was dug by locally-based British soldiers as practice prior to being sent to the Western Front ( the chalky ground here is very similar to that of the Somme ). Although now largely infilled with nearly a hundred years of leaves and soil, the trenches were originally full-depth, with traverses and fire-steps. Quite a bizarre relic......
My wife really thought we'd have a nice peaceful walk with no possibility of any Military-themed distractions ; we hadn't walked 250 yards from the car when I shouted 'Look at this !' and started lining up camera angles... ...she wasn't amused !
Martin, you need to promise your other half a day in the park mate.. Take her to the cafe in Abington park Northampton....sunshine...sit outside at the picnic tables....take in the ambiance....bottle of wine even....they have a licence.... Whats that mound over there my love...I'm just going to take a pic if you dont mind...thats right..stand on top of the hill darling....And thats apparantly a ww1 tank buried underneath...How was I to know dear....smile...
Martin -- You need to be more subtle. Tell you wife that you think the the trenches would make a lovely background to a photo of the two of you and then set your camera up with a timer so that you have time to get into the photo. Just make sure you also set up the shot so that the camera misses you and your wife!
Nice pictures and stories, I hope someday my wife and me have time to visit that place. Thanks for sharing
Here is a good one for you Martin, Hill 60 near Sheffield where (amongst others) 12th "City" Battallion the Yorks and Lancs Regiment (the Sheffield Pals) trained before being virtually wiped out at the Somme: redmires road - Google Maps Go east to the top of the reservoir and there is a big road that hooks round to the east, the field that encloses has some interesting looking lines, may have a destinct resemblance to this: More on the Sheffield Pals: The Sheffield City Battalion Archaeology of Hill 60 at Redmires
