Posts Tagged ‘salient’
Ypres Salient
Most summers we spend some time in the Ypres Salient. We both have an interest in the First World War and have now covered most of the Salient and many of the cemeteries it contains. Naturally we always attend the Last Post at the Menin Gate at least once whilst we are there.
If you are planning a visit to Ypres and the surrounding area, the following are well worth a visit and what we would consider ‘must do’;
- In Flanders Fields Museum, located in the Cloth Hall in Ypres. This is one of the finest WWI museums anywhere and should be first on your list when you arrive.
- The Last Post, every evening at 8pm at the Menin Gate.
- Tyne Cot cemetery, the largest Commonwealth Cemetery.
- Langemarck Cemetery, the largest German cemetery in the Salient.
- Hooge Crater museum and cemetery.
- Passchendaele Museum, but note it is in Zonnebeke not the village of Passchendaele.
- Hill 62 Trench Museum. Quite pricey to get in but worth it, especially for the large collection of WWI photographs displayed in old period ‘viewfinders’.
- The Brooding Soldier, the Canadian memorial to those killed in the first gas attacks.
- Yorkshire Trench, a recently discovered deep dugout near Boesinghe.
Further afield we would recommend a vist to Poperinge to see the cell where deserters were held and the shooting post. There is also Toc H in Poperinge which has a good new museum and if you’re lucky you’ll get a free cup of tea from the Wardens in the house. Other areas worth visiting are Kemmel, Hill 60, Messines, Island of Ireland Peace park, the various craters (e.g. Spanbroekmolen, Kruisstraat) from the massive mines that were blown on Messines Ridge, and the Ploegsteert Memorial.
If you are planning on staying in Ypres we highly recommend the Hotel Ariane which has excellent facilities, a decent sized carpark, fantastic beers and only a 5-10 minute walk into the centre of Ypres.
