Rancourt National Necropolis: The French necropolis and the Souvenir Français chapel dominate the landscape. Located to the south of the village of Rancourt in the commune of Bouchavesnes, the French national necropolis and its chapel dominate the agricultural plateau.
The memorials of Pozières, Thiepval, Ulster Tower and Beaumont-Hamel. Nearby, more paranormal sightings have been recorded at Ancre British Cemetery, Sunken lane, Hawthorn ridge crater, Serre road cemetary, Sheffield MP and Knightsbridge Cemetery.
Although the front has moved on, the dead are left behind and a series of disorienting flashbacks superimpose the horrors of the past over the present.
Lochnagar mine crater: The crater was created by the explosion on 1st July 1916 of two charges of ammonal (36,000 lbs and 24,000 lbs, 60 feet apart) under a German position called Schwaben Hohe. The crater originally measured some 300 feet across and 90 feet deep. Despite this, the attack in this sector on the 1st of July was not successful, and the losses sustained, particularly by the Tyneside Scottish and other units of the 34th Division, were heavy.
La Boiselle and the Glory hole. Here, the British and German front lines were extremely close together, and small mines had been blown by both sides to try and gain some advantage.
The Most Haunted woods of the Somme
Mametz Wood :During the first twelve days of July 1916, the Welsh Division was practically wiped out in their ultimately successful attempt to take the woods from the *Germans. Over 4,000 men were killed; most just simply getting to the area in the face of fierce machine gun fire, and the rest in unrelenting hand-to-hand combat amongst the trees.*The Lehr Infantry Regiment held that position against all comers for eleven days, while the Welsh casualties piled up. On the twelfth day, the Welsh broke through.
Trônes Wood: *Trônes Wood was bisected by the railway line from Montauban-de-Picardie to Guillemont and could be used by either side in the event of an attack. The wood itself had not been maintained for two years and consisted of dense scrub, making it extra difficult for soldiers to make their way through it. Along the upper edge of the ridge between Montauban and Bernafay Wood was Trônes Alley, a German communications trench.
Delville Wood: Delville Wood was sometimes known as Devil’s Wood, and the fighting there during the battle of the Somme was particularly ferocious. Delville woods is going on my list of impressive places. The woods are hauntingly serene, scarred by the left overs of war. Walking the Moss covered old trench lines and seeing the stone markers for the road names the soldiers had given their trench lines. Amazing creepy experienc
The Hell they called High Wood: The Bois des Foureaux, known to the British as "High Wood," was the scene of a months-long battle that lasted from July to September 1916.
High Wood saw some of the fiercest fighting of the Somme. More than 8,000 British and German men were killed in attacks on the wood. It was called "the rotten place on the Western Front."
The Montauban – Bernafay Wood position: The village of Montauban lay behind the first German defensive system, which in this area consisted of two principal fighting trench lines connected by many communication trenches, To the east of Montauban lay two woods, Bernafay and *Trones, both largely undamaged and with very thick undergrowth after two years of war.
Fricourt, Bazentin and Quadrangle woods – Encounters with fallen
More unusual and paranormal encounters along “La Ligne Rouge”
Oise & Aisne: An underground world where the presence of soldiers can still be felt.
Carrière de La Botte in Cannectancourt:Located on the heights of Cannectancourt, the underground passages of the La Botte quarry are unique in Picardy. This quarry is one of the most emblematic examples of military development in our region and of underground warfare.
The Carrières de Froidmont: The Froidmont quarry in Braye-en-Laonnois was home to German, French and then American troops during World War I and houses hundreds of graffiti and sculptures left by American soldiers in 1918.
The traces left in this quarry are of exceptional quality because they are not easily accessible and their diversity lies in the fact that they were left by Germans, French and Anglo-Saxons alike. Hundreds of soldiers still lie under the rubble of collapses caused by bombings. One never feels alone there.
The Elephant Quarry - Elephanten Höhle: The "Elephanten Höhle" is a quarry not far from the Chemin des Dames. Situated on a hillside, the underground network extends under the forest, where a dense network of trenches runs.
The Elephanten höhle conceals a number of treasures, which I invite you to discover...
Chemin des Dames: The plateau over which the road leads has played an important role in history many times, even though the Chemin des Dames first and foremost evokes memories of the First World War. The sometimes more than 200 meters high ridge forms a magnificent natural barrier and this strategic location.
