D-DAY 80th | NORMANDY 2024 – Part 3 – June 6th – Utah Beach and Sainte Marie Du Mont

We’ve now reached the big day, June 6th, 2024. 80 years to the day of the D-Day Operation in Normandy. While I knew this day would be the busiest day of the trip, it was also a day full of uncertainty and delays. But, I’m getting ahead of myself, so let’s back up a bit. This update is a long one, and only covers the first half of the day! Plus, it’s full of lots and lots of Jeeps (as shown here). So let’s dive in!

June 6th started very early in the morning, at around 5am. For the 75th anniversary, I was able to get onto Omaha Beach early in the morning before all the closures and spent the day there. We had left the hotel incredibly early in 2019, knowing that the big ceremony was going to be at the American cemetery, and just made it past the barricades for the closures. The beach was nearly empty due to most people not being able to get to Omaha because of those closures. This was due to all the security surrounding the dignitaries, especially the visits of the US President and French President to the cemetery ceremony. For 2024, they decided to host the big ceremony on Omaha Beach itself, which meant the beach would be completely closed. Furthermore, because of the traveling of, once again, the US President and French Presidents, it meant that most of the beaches were going to be closed and all the major roads and access points would be blocked. Normandy was essentially shut down for the 80th.
I had read online several people saying Utah Beach was the only place really open, and there were be some things to see there. So we decided that would have to do as the beach for the 80th. At least a mile and a half from the beach, we ran into the first sign of traffic.

Like the day prior, people were just abandoning their vehicles on the shoulder (without going into an unseen ditch) and walking to the beach such as the owner of this Willys MB Jeep. We decided to do the same.

And as we walked closer, it appeared many people had decided to come out to Utah Beach. In fact, the whole road was littered with Jeeps.

No, I mean it… so many Jeeps lined the road we walked heading to the beach. They were arriving in droves still!

This Willys MB had a bike-style lock going from the steering wheel to the side handle.

Interesting placement of the siren on the driver’s side fender on this Willys MB. You can see the line of cars on the shoulder. Some of them still tried to make their way closer to the beach, but with the amount of people walking on the road and the slow pace of the traffic, it was chaotic and time-consuming. I was glad we walked.

As we neared the beach, there was a large (and very full) grass parking lot. It was loaded with military vehicles, mainly Jeeps. I probably could have walked through the field of RVs and campers and would have found a lot more, but we needed to get to the beach. Some of the Jeeps, like the top right Willys MB, looked like they had been playing on the beach at some point.

And it wasn’t just Jeeps, though they are much easier to snag a small spot to part. This Dodge WC-54 Ambulance managed to find a park. And you can barely see it to the right, but several GMC transports also made their way to the front.

This French Citroen Traction Avant was tailing two Jeeps, no doubt they had waited a long time in traffic to get to this point. I realized as we walked past this area in a long line of people that this wasn’t going to be as quiet and low-key of people as Omaha was five years ago. It appeared everyone heard about Utah Beach being the ‘place to be’.

And silhouetted by the rising sun, we started to see this massive crowd of people lining the large dune of the beach. It looked packed!

And here’s a look at the long line of people as we traversed through the fields to get to the beach.

In a bit of a surreal moment, to the left was one of the D-Day monuments, and between that and us was a squad of reenactors in US gear and weapons. As they traversed through the tall grass, it reminded me of something out of Band of Brothers.

Coming up and over the dune, we were met with this sight. 80 years to the day where this spot would have seen a sight of sheer military might stretching as far as you could see. The sound of explosions and gunfire would fill the otherwise somewhat tranquil Utah Beach. The tide was out, but not as far out as it was for the 75th anniversary on Omaha Beach. Now, you might be wondering: “where did all those people go?”

Everyone was being pretty respectful and standing on the dunes leaving the beach clear. That is, except to the right side where people were gathering for the celebrations that were coming. It wasn’t until I came down from this dune and turned around that I realized where ALL the people were…

And there they were. It looked like this be it if you looked left or right. Hundreds of people lined the dune watching the sun rise. And there was a nice assortment of vehicles on the beach. Never thought I’d see a photo that makes a Jeep look small, but with all these people in an elevated spot and right next to this Halftrack, the Jeep in front here looks crazy tiny.

Unfortunately, we’d missed a landing by US Navy seals on the beach (I guess they happened just before we got there, which we might have seen had there not been so much traffic and us having to walk so far). But, while everyone was standing around waiting for the next thing to happen, these four US Air Force Lockheed C-130J Hercules aircraft came in front the sun ‘invading’ Utah Beach in a spectacular formation. We’ll come back to these Hercules aircraft in a bit…

Looking out towards one section of the beach, there were a lot of people. Truth be told, I’m not sure why the crowd was out there (I’m using my telephoto lens to get this). Those things near the shoreline in the water are oyster farming poles. Those large ‘islands’ in the distance are actual WW2 relics and they are, in fact, sunken ships to form an artificial breakwater. They are part of ‘Gooseberry No. 1’ and are two concrete-made ships (yes, you heard that right) named the S.S. Vitruvius and the S.S. David O’Slayor. They were purposely sunk in this spot on July 16, 1944. Both ships were built in Tampa, Florida in late 1943.

And a shot showing where everything is… to the left is the empty serene Utah Beach, while the right has the large crowd, oyster farm, and the two sunken concrete ships.

The next event to take place was the arrival of a US Air Special Operations MC-130 Hercules which dropped three military parachute teams.

First was the US Navy Leap Frogs bringing in several flags including a US 101st Airborne (ironic since it’s Army) flag. I’ve seen the Leap Frogs at many airshows here in the United States.

This was one of the reasons that all the people were crowded in one area and there was a large spot of no people, it was the drop zone for the paratroopers. At the top, one of the US Navy Leap Frogs brings the First Navy Jack flag (the original flag for the US Navy) in for a landing. Below, following the Leap Frogs the Red Devils British Parachute Regiment parachute team jumped from the same MC-130 Hercules.

Who did it better? On the left is the British Red Devils, and following their jump the final team to exit the MC-130 Hercules was the US Army Golden Knights, who I also often see at United States Airshows. It was great to see the Leap Frogs and Golden Knights teams somewhere other than the usual airshows (and I will, ironically, see them jump again at two different airshows here on the West Coast of California in a few months).

Once all the jumpers were on the ground and the MC-130 Hercules was returning back to base, that’s when I started to see military vehicles dart along the beach, such as this Willys MB Jeep with 101st Airborne reenactors.

Walking a little more down Utah Beach, I spotted a bunch of military vehicles that had come out to watch the morning jumps.

Lots of Jeeps! This is the ONE regret I have about not bringing out my Jeep… to have it on a Normandy beach on June 6th.

With the jumpers all on the ground, they all started to pack up to head off to their next destination. People also started to make their way down to the water as the tide slowly started to come in.

I wasn’t expecting as many vehicles on the beach that morning as I ended up seeing. Every time I walked over to a group of them, I found there were even more, like this Willys MB!

And this Willys MB with an interesting stencil on the side saying ‘Caution Please Respect The Pressure of the Pneumatics’, something I’ve not seen before.

And three more Jeeps after that, they just kept going! This shot shows a nice variation of three different Jeeps… a standard Jeep (with Europe required turn signals instead of marker lights), a radio Jeep with a large antenna, and a Jeep with a wire cutter bar mounted to the front bumper with a large chain.

And then they all started to pull out onto the wet sand and head off to their next destination. Suddenly the beach came alive with lots of vehicles like this GMC CCKW 2 and 1/2 ton truck and a Jeep following behind.

And I documented each vehicle as they left. I started to play with the photography trying to use a slow shutter speed and panning with the vehicles as they passed to get a sense of motion.

Walking further down the beach, MORE vehicles! This time a large assortment of GMC and Dodge trucks.

People were piled onto the trucks, like this heavily loaded Dodge WC-52.

I spotted this radio 101st Airborne marked Willys MB Jeep with a Bettie Boop and Vargas pinup (more on that in a second).

Another Willys MB kicking up wet sand. I can only imagine how these Jeeps would look after all this driving kicking up that sand. I’ve heard people say it took months to get all the sand out of their Jeep. But, for many, it’s worth it.

And a closer look at that hand-painted pinup on the windshield of that 101st Airborne radio Jeep replicating the pinup gal from the April 1945 calendar by Alberto Vargas.

Another GMC CCKW truck getting ready to depart with a group of people. That’s one way to get around Normandy!

Another Willys MB Jeep departs Utah Beach through the wet sand.

One of the more unique vehicles on the beach was this awesome-looking 8th Air Force, 91st Bomb Group Chevrolet M6 Bomb Carrier! I’d love one of those!

That 101st Airborne Jeep departed being followed by another 101st Airborne Willys MB. It was interesting to note that nearly all of the Jeeps I had seen so far that morning were Willys MB Jeeps, not many Ford GPW Jeeps.

Someone parked their Willys MB radio Jeep next to the water for a photoshoot. THIS is exactly the type of shot I’d want to get of my Jeep had I brought it out!

Switching angles, this little section with no one on the beach made for such a nice shot, and the shadow added some dramatic effect (This was shot on my phone).

And it was a mass exodus of vehicles and people heading out from Utah Beach framed by the German concrete bunkers of the ‘Atlantic Wall’.

A jolly old fellow looks to be having a great time front and center in this Willys MB Jeep called ‘Go to Hell’.

All these people loaded into the back of this GMC CCKW were having a blast. Who wouldn’t being driven around ON a D-Day beach in an authentic World War 2 US Army vehicle?

Another Willys MB with a very green paint job named ‘Little Kiss’.

Same Jeep, passing the large WN9 bunker. We’re going to take a closer look at this bunker in a little bit.

One of the rare few Jeeps driving the opposite way (I went for a slow shutter speed to really get some motion). Another Willys MB.

Yet another Willys MB, with a lucky dog getting a ride in the back!

So let’s talk about these concrete bunkers. Constructed by the Germans in 1941 as part of the ‘Atlantic Wall’ thought to be impervious to any invaders from the sea. These thick bunkers were strategically placed with line of sight down the beach and protection from direct fire coming from offshore ships. This bunker, named Widerstandsnest 9 (WN9), was shelled by the USS Quincy and USS Hobson on June 6th.

There are two sides to this bunker, both a short distance from each other looking almost north and south along the beach. From this vantage point, you can see just how much of the beach they had sighted with the large guns that would have been installed there.

It was at this time I heard the sound of low-flying aircraft. Running out of the bunker, it was those four Lockheed C-130J Hercules aircraft making an incredibly low pass over the beach. So low I had to zoom out completely on my lens to get the entire aircraft in frame. To my delight, one of the four aircraft was the specially painted 86th Airlift Wing (From Ramstein Air Base in Germany) with D-Day stripes and a large identifying letter/number just past the cockpit like Douglas C-47 Skytrain paratroop aircraft had during World War 2! The other aircraft (top) was from the 317th Airlift Group our of Dyess Air Force Base in Texas, USA.

With the C-130s in the distance, it was back to bunker WN9. Here you can see how the coastal side of the bunker has a fortified thick concrete wall that protects the gun that would be in there. And yes, some people left their trash around it.

While it’s hard to tell when it happened, this could be damage from allied forces hitting the bunker.

Standing atop the south-facing WN9 bunker, here’s a look back towards where we came from on Utah Beach. Note how far up the tide has come! The north-facing bunker, which you see in this photo, would have access to fire anywhere along the beach that you see here. So even though it’s not facing directly out at sea, it’s protected from naval bombardment and is pre-sighted along a huge stretch of the beach.

Shifting the view more towards the sea, one could only imagine the sounds going on 80 years ago to this day in this spot. (Note the color difference between this shot, from my phone, and the previous shot from my professional Canon R3 RF camera).

The remains of what could possibly be a lookout position at WN9.

Getting back to the beach, I spotted this nice-looking Willys MB Slate Grille Jeep in US Navy colors (marked as from the USS Nevada Battleship) nicknamed ‘Popeye’. First time I’ve seen a slate grille US Navy Jeep!

It was followed by this Willys MB having a joyride on the beach.

As seen from atop one of the German bunkers, this Dodge WC-52 named ‘Ernie’s “Pile”’ stopped in front of the WN9 bunker for some photos. That’s a lot of canvas!

This Willys MB Jeep with great windshield art called ‘Lady’s’ came by. Just love all the windshield artwork on Jeeps with pinups!

I only had a second to capture one of them, but several guys riding Cushman Model 53 Airborne scooters came driving by. Didn’t realize they handled so well on wet sand!

As we headed down the opposite side of the beach, I spotted this group of mixed 101st Airborne, US Navy, and US Army reenactors marching along the beach. They looked like they’d just come out from the water.

As we continued down the beach, another huge bunker came into view. This one was named ‘Blockhaus’ on Google maps, it appears to be a part of WN10, the side facing north. Unlike WN9, the two north and south-facing bunkers are spread much further apart. WN10 was the objective of the US Army 4th Division on D-Day.

Interesting to note the large hole damage on top, perhaps from naval gunfire or a tank? It certainly looks like something big hit it.

It is interesting to see the rusting remains of the windows, like this one which might have had a sliding panel to close the window when not in use or to protect from gunfire. Also the assortment of large and small slotted screws that are still in place. They probably haven’t moved since being screwed in when the bunker was built!

Here’s a look at the business side of the WN10 north bunker where the gun would be. Often times these would be either 75mm or 47mm guns which could hit targets 2 miles away. Again, you can see the triangular wall to protect the gun from direct fire offshore, making it hard to hit.

Taking a look inside the bunker, obviously, the gun is long since removed (although some of the guns still remain in various bunkers throughout Normandy!). It’s a bit eerie being inside the bunkers. Not just because of all the spider webs, but thinking about what took place there during World War 2. German soldiers stationed here had no idea what was coming for them on June 5th, the day before D-Day. Unfortunately, I didn’t notice it at the time, but there is very faint German lettering on the left side wall that appears to say “Jederzeit Frei Feuerbar” or “Free to Fire Anytime”. (bottom photo, on the left with the graffiti)

And here’s the look this north-facing WN10 bunker had down the beach. Anything in this area could be targeted up to 2 miles away!

Just outside this WN10 bunker, this one had a lot of bullet damage. The irony of the Jewish star on the German bunker was not lost on me for sure. Underneath that, there appears to be writing of the distance to Berlin in kilometers.

And a look at the whole bunker from the top. To get inside you have to go down into the opening through the grass.

Moving back towards where we started the day on the beach and walking along the top of the hill, you could easily see how all the bunkers were connected to make the ‘sea wall’. Most of the paths you could walk up on top were part of the bunker wall system, a lot of it covered with dirt and grass, but there were little concrete parts here and there as we walked.

Some were in better shape than others. It always made me to wonder how it got to be this way. A direct hit from a bomber? Destroyed by invading forces? Destroyed after D-Day? This is the south-facing WN10 bunker.

This one still retained a metal ladder going up the side to the top. Heavily rusting from the seawater.

It also appeared to have black paint on it. Perhaps camouflage? It’s too perfect of a line to be natural by any means.

Looking inside this bunker, it appears to be a lookout, or perhaps a spot for a smaller 47mm gun with an elevated spot to stand and shout out range for the gun through the armored viewpoint on the top right.

Here’s a look at the two bunkers that make up the WN10 south-facing side. The right bunker would probably have the larger 75mm gun, and the left one would the the smaller gun and/or command/range bunker from what I’d guess.

Finally back to the main monument as we headed back to the car, it was full of people.

The monument reads: ‘On June 6, 1944, the Allied souls landed at dawn’ and the bottom says ‘Here approached General Leclerc commanding the 2nd Div. armored’. The French 2nd Armored landed at Utah in August of 1944.

Two French armored vehicles in French 2nd Armored markings, a M8 Greyhound and M3 Halftrack.

On the other side of the memorial is a M4A2 Sherman Tank also in French 2nd Armored markings.

Getting back into the car, we headed down towards the main Utah Beach museum. Roads leading up to the museum were closed for a ceremony taking place later that day, so we walked there after finding some parking. I heard the unmistakable sound of radial engines and looked up to see two Douglas C-47 Skytrain aircraft, the first time I’d seen some flying over this trip. No doubt full of paratroopers about the be dropped somewhere in Normandy. I managed to snap this shot as they passed on either side of the US Navy monument and an American and French flag.

This was about as close as we could get to the Utah Beach museum, which I had hoped to visit again this trip because we were pressed for time in 2019 and had to rush through it (causing us to miss our ferry back to the UK, whoops!). They also have a large portion of the dunes closed off for rehabilitation.

After that short visit, we made our way to the next destination… the large encampment at Sainte-Marie-du-Mont. Turning down a small street on the way there, we found a convoy of Jeeps behind us.

And then soon we became part of the convoy with Jeeps in front and behind us! (note the random Jeep parked on the side of the road as well on the top shot).

And while being a part of this Jeep convoy, we even passed a different Jeep convoy on the other side when the road became two lanes! SO MANY JEEPS!

After finding some close parking to Sainte-Marie-du-Mont (which was a bit surprising), we made our way into the town square. This Willys MB Jeep nicknamed ‘Tata’ was parked on the side road.

We ran into that very sky-blue US Navy MB radio Jeep that we had seen the previous day at the Overlord Museum encampment with the white wall tires.

Looking at the iconic church of Notre-Dame de l’Assomption (Church of our Lady of the Assumption) in the middle of Sainte-Marie-du-Mont’s square. This church was built in the 11th century and during World War 2 was used as a lookout tower by the Germans (roughly 60 of them stationed in the town). Members of the 101st Airborne were dropped here, mainly on accident due to heavy flak fire and fog forced the pilots to drop them here and they landed much to the surprise of the paratroopers, under heavy fire from the equally surprised Germans. This town holds the title of being the first liberated commune on D-Day. The actual first liberated city is Sainte-Mère-Église.

Someone had brought out a M18 Hellcat tank destroyer (in 5th Armored markings) and had it on display in the square.

Interesting pinup art on the tank! Not sure if those shoes were standard issue GI or even 1940s!

The main sight to see (other than the church) is the large encampment that surrounds the church full of vehicles and reenactors coming and going all day. Unlike Sainte-Mère-Église, the church is in the middle of a busy roundabout, so there was a constant stream of military vehicles coming and going. We visited this camp in 2019 during the 75th, and it was one of the main areas we felt really immersed you into what it would have been like during World War 2 when the allies had liberated the town and set up camp.

Because there was so much activity of vehicles coming and going, I couldn’t get everything. And I’m sure just a few hours later most of the vehicles were swapped out with other ones. But let’s take a look at what was there when we popped by. Jeeps. Lots and lots of Jeeps.

And what a backdrop behind the Jeeps! You had all sorts, from Slate Gilles to (finally) even some GPW Ford-built Jeeps!

It’s always great to see so many variations of Jeeps. I liked the 8th Air Force 56 Fighter Group, 61st Fighter Squadron Jeep (top right)! But it wasn’t just Jeeps, this Dodge WC-52 in US Army 2nd Armored Division was nice to see. Not many of them with wire cutters on front!

I LOVED this 2nd Armored Jeep and how it was parked against the church. First, great color choice with the 33070 OD Green. Second, this is exactly the type of photo I’d want to have of my Jeep if it was there.

And there were some German vehicles as well, like this BMW R75 Wehrmacht with sidecar.

On the other side, there were a whole bunch of Jeeps parked along the church. Speaking of the church, not only was the top tower used as a lookout by the Germans, but there are interesting signs with stories throughout the town that talk about German and American snipers using the tower on June 6th.

Inside the church of Notre-Dame de l’Assomption, here’s a look at all the pews. I was told a story there that they used the church as a medical center once the town was captured by the allies, with doctors helping wounded Americans and Germans alike. It became a sort of ‘neutral zone’ where weapons weren’t allowed in. The story goes that a German soldier rushed in with his weapon in hand, and saw everyone staring at him. Once he realized that there were Americans and Germans in there, he slowly backed out and went on his way.

A Dodge WC-51 in US Navy markings with a gal in her 1940s best.

I loved the backside of this Willys MB Jeep with the Sainte-Mère-Église distance sign on the bustle rack.

More Jeeps! Including a nice MB US Navy Jeep marked as being from the USS Arkansas battleship and a 9th Air Force, 410th Bomb Group Jeep!

And another look at the line of vehicles at the camp. It wrapped around the entire church!

And there was some great artwork on several of the Jeeps, all done up in the 1940s/WW2 pinup styles of Vargas, Petty, and Elvgren.

I loved the matching pinup artwork on the tanker jacket sitting on the ‘Dorothy’ Jeep. It’s in the style of George Petty’s April 1941 Esquire magazine pinup that was also used on the B-17 Flying Fortress ‘Memphis Belle’.

Also unlike Sainte-Mère-Église, this town was a lot more quiet as you stepped away from the encampment. A quiet French town yet still a big part of the 80th celebrations!

On the outer perimeter of the town square are several restaurants, and more Jeeps!

Along with the Jeeps was the same Cushman Model 53 Airborne scooters (one of the four) I had seen earlier on Utah Beach!

And something I thought was funny, mounted to the wall on one of the buildings was this Jeep grille brightly painted in an American flag! That’s Jeep grille art for sure.

After touring around the town, it was time to head to the next destination. On the way out, I ran into all of these WLA Harley Davidson motorcycles parked on the side of the road.

One final look at the church of Notre-Dame de l’Assomption before heading out, wrapping up this first half of the day (although it was a little more than half at this point!). And I’ll leave you with a teaser of the next part…

How about a Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B (Tiger II) tank? That’s right, in part two we head to the Normandy Tank Museum where we were treated to a demo of the world’s only functioning complete Tiger II among several other famed tanks! Look for part 2 of the June 6th actual 80th anniversary of the D-Day story soon!
Till the next update…