Skip to main content

Dunkirk Little Ships

I was lucky enough to be in Dunkirk at the same time as a Dunkirk Little Ships excursion to town. It is the 85th anniversary of Operation Dynamo. I had noted the event as I scanned UK news but hadn't really processed what that meant until after my Friday 23rd May bike ride I heard repeated blasts of a ship's horn; of course, the boats would be in harbour. 

The expanse of boats; 74 were planned.

My alarm call.


Papillon
LLANTHONY
Included in the fleet were a couple of Thames barges and one was offering impromptu tours. 

The same barge under sail.

A light atmosphere with most boats crewed by people in Yatch Club costume drinking chilled Chablis.

Summary information here and a link to the Assiciation of Dunkirk Little Ships (ADLS) here. 

Popular posts from this blog

Index

Posting daily updates is good though I do tend to go back and edit putting everything out of sequence so if you want to read sequentially this Index may help as might  the  Introduction  which sets the scene.  Index Introduction   Day 1 - Dieppe   Day 2 - Ferriéres-en-Bray Day 3 - Clermont   Day 4 - Chauny   Day 5 - Sorbais   Day 6 - Charleville-Meziere (arrival) Day 7 - Charleville-Meziere Day 8 - Charleville-Meziere Day 9 - Fumay (arrival) Day 10 - Fumay Day 11 - Fumay Day 12 - Fumay Day 13 - Fumay   Day 14 - Fumay Day 15 - Fumay Day 16 - Lobbes Day 17 - Tournai Day 18 - Ypres Day 19 - Dunkirk   Day 20 - Dunkirk   Concluding Notes Dunkirk Little Ships Bonus A monumental start on the ride to London Bridge. My bike looks so tiny.
Read more

Dieppe

Only those who will risk going too far can possibly find out how far one can go.  T.S. Eliot Dieppe is an excellent arrival point for a cyclist because you roll off the ferry and you are immediately in a beautiful port town. Docking at 14:45 means you miss lunch though that just forces a ride around town in search of pain . Saint Malo in Brittany is another example of a great arrival whereas the Dunkirk ferry terminal is somewhat remote and the feeling can be more of landing on a hostile shore; a feeling probably fuelled by the rich diet of WW2 films we get in the UK. Image generated by ChatGPT I say in search of pain and hopefully the italics has alerted you to the fact that I am referring to French bread. The un-italised version I don't need to go in search of because last Sunday I ran my first marathon and spent the days after wondering if I'd ever be able to walk without pain let alone ride a bicycle. I don't suffer from muscle soreness after exercise and it came as a ...
Read more

Fumay (D15)

did I not explain to you once before that no one is ever told what would have happened? Aslan in response to a question from Lucy about what could have been had things been done differently. The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe by C. S. Lewis.  My tours normally run from a beginning to an end with perhaps some rest days and I tend to think that, in part, it is the journey and the journey's end that keeps me motivated to move forward. Today is my last full day in Fumay where I will have stayed a full seven nights doing day rides and I haven't felt the need to be moving on and I haven't contemplated what would have happened if I'd arranged my traditional tour. In fact I have enjoyed the relative luxury of having access to a kitchen, beautiful surroundings in which to cycle and building some small degree of familiarity in the area. Today, I am heading out to do a repeat of yesterday's ride but hopefully without the dreaded bonk. With that in mind I will try not to re...
Read more