TooTallMike Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 At great personal risk to myself I did some excercise today, cycling all over the hills above the town of Monfalcone where I'm currently working. The hills are riddled with trenches dating back to the Great War when this was the front line between the Italian and Austo-Hungarian forces. Between 1915 and 1917 fierce fighting saw the loss of thousand of troops on both sides. The forest remains an incredible testament to the work that was put into these fortifications. There are thousands of metres of trenches from all the different stages of the battle, all hacked from the limestone hiding just below the surface. The trenches are supported by machine gun posts, observation points, pillboxes and huge natural caves used as stores and accommodation. Parts of some of the most significant trenches have been excavated and partially restored while others are being slowly reclaimed by the forest. There are public paths throughout and access is free and open. There's nothing but a gate with a sign on it to stop you entering the trenches and caves and there are pleasingly few barriers and fences. There are information panels at significant locations and they give a potted history along with maps and diagrams explaining the movements of the lines. Further off the beaten track in the forest there are the open mouths of further bunkers, some of which have collapsed, and you can also see buildings and other defences which are slowly eroding back to nothing. I'm going to post a few photos which try to capture the essence of this amazing place, but I cannot begin to illustrate the sheer quantity of trenches that criss-cross the forest. I worked out I cycled about 5 miles and there was barely a moment when I couldn't see something of interest among the trees. I hope you enjoy these photos! - Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooTallMike Posted December 9, 2007 Author Share Posted December 9, 2007 more... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TooTallMike Posted December 9, 2007 Author Share Posted December 9, 2007 These final 4 pictures show an Italian observation post of the on top of hill 121. The first shows the pillbox with 2 observation slits at what is now the level of the forest floor. The second photo is of the top of the bunker: in the centre of the picture is the access hatch which has been covered by a small pile of branches, the yellow lump above it is a ventilator. The third photo shows the entrance stairs filled with forest debris and another ventilator top right. The fourth photo is of the side of the bunker, viewed looking upwards out of the trench it was attached to. The white patch with the small hole is covering an entrance. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Great looking pics Mike, was it as eerie as the ones in France ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
abn deuce Posted December 9, 2007 Share Posted December 9, 2007 Thank you for going out and recording the Battle area .The photo's show how difficult it must have been to labor to creating trenches through such rocky terrain while dodging bullets and bombs ,compared to the largely stoneless area's in France where they had so many problems with muddy shell churned soil while fighting in flooded and collapsing trenches that had to be shored up with tremendous amounts of timber . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Any room in the suitcase for next trip? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeeEnfield Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Wow,.............amazing pic's; :-) Cheers for posting these; many Respects to those who fought over this terrain. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jack Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Great pictures Mike and a pleasure to see other areas of conflict that we have never seen before. Thanks for sharing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joris Posted December 10, 2007 Share Posted December 10, 2007 Very nice pictures, thanks for sharing! These trenches will remain for a long, long time.. Did you find any relics or are they all long gone? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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