XXX Corps, a modern Hells Highway route?

Discussion in 'WW2 Battlefields Today' started by Graham Smith, Jan 10, 2010.

  1. sapper

    sapper WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    What most people do not know, is that the drive North to Arnhem was a two pronged advance. Our advance took is up the Eastern sided of Holland,and resulted in us being cut off from behind.. With the result that we had to live on captured German ratios...And with no cigarettes. The Food was bloody awful, with great big tins of herrings, about the size and shape of a Teller Mine.

    A Friend in Holland got me to trace out my route north. Then cycled the route taking photo's if every place we saw action. Escaut canal, the lot..Its all changed completely...Trees are growing where we crossed the canal at night,,,The murderous Escaut canal.
    Sapper
     
  2. bommetje

    bommetje Junior Member

    hello, I,m bommetje from the south of netherlands. I,m living a few miles of the hells highway. there is a special route called ; airbornepad in de voetsporen van de bevrijders, produced by OLAT [walk and bike route in holland. this route gives the exactley route of the way to arnhem here the orginail name. Airbornepad Market Garden, In de voetsporen van de bevrijders september 1944 greatings from bommetje
     
  3. ronald

    ronald Senior Member

    Here is my copy, they divided the 220KM route from Lommel to Arnhem in pieces of 6KM so there are about 35 routemaps in it. It is in Dutch but it has 1 page called "How to use the Guide" but I am not sure if it is handy for foreigners.

    http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=279&pictureid=2894

    http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/picture.php?albumid=279&pictureid=2895


    Ron....
     
  4. Tom Canning

    Tom Canning WW2 Veteran WW2 Veteran

    CLI/ Sapper
    Thinking about the Red Ball express always gives me a chuckle as in my latter days in the UK - I was a contractor for the likes of Max Factor - BBI - Hamworthy Engineering et al in the Bournemouth /Poole area.

    A new group of owners appeared from the USA for Max Factors and bought up Mary Quant - Maybelline etc and so we were contracted to dismantle their existing warehouse in Sussex and transport it to Poole for re assembly - No problem so I outlined our sytem - not good enough - so instead of unbolting all the racking - we are to cut them into 10' lengths - stack them onto a bunch of Low Loaders - wait until a Saturday then move all in convoy to Poole.

    This was a recipe for disaster - but what did we know ? - they were experts and so the RED BALL express to Poole was organised.

    The Saturday arrived and we pulled out onto the Highway with our RED BALL EXPRESS convoy - to be enmeshed with 1st Armoured Division heading back to Germany from Southampton.The cursing was regular Army style !

    The overtime bill was ginormous with me giggling all the way to the Bank ! Strangely diddn't get another job like that !

    Cheers
     
  5. Paul Reed

    Paul Reed Ubique

    Ronald - where can you get that guidebook? In Arnhem?
     
  6. Drew5233

    Drew5233 #FuturePilot 1940 Obsessive

    Ronald - where can you get that guidebook? In Arnhem?


    It indeed looks good, but one query to anyone - Didn't 30 Corps set off from Neerpelt?

    <I'll have to leave now and come back later as I'm getting a nose bleed looking this far into the future>
     
  7. ronald

    ronald Senior Member

    Ronald - where can you get that guidebook? In Arnhem?

    Not sure, maybe in the Airborne Museum Oosterbeek. You can have mine for a low price, just shoot me a PM.

    Ron
     
  8. LBarto72

    LBarto72 New Member

    ____

    I see this is quite an old post.... Nevertheless, I recently launched a small website on touring the infamous Hell’s Highway; part of Operation Market Garden (WW2) in which British forces played a major role.

    The website might be of interest to cyclists who have had family members that took part in this operation (September 17-25, 1944). If so, they are kindly invited to have a look and maybe get some inspiration to cycle the different routes themselves… as remembrance or tribute.

    Cycling Hell's Highway

    I launched the site with no commercial intent and no commercial affiliations. This is simply a guy that loves cycling and has a fascination for this military operation that helped liberate Europe during WW2.

    Maybe this could be interesting for you to share amongst your members. If you, or any members have any questions, feel free to reach out.

    Happy miles!
     
    stolpi likes this.

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