Lochnagar Crater WW1

A fantastic if not haunting place to visit. A stark reminder of how shocking Humanity can be regardless of what side it shows the scale of the loss of the war. Some very interesting stories from the time dotted around and really does make you stop and think. If you are nearby I feel it's a mark of respect along with many others in the area to visit such places to remember the cost of living in peacetime and the loss of all those in war time never forget.

Incredible blast site from WWI. Lots of plaques, information boards, a cross to commemorate the 57000 men that died on the first day of this battle to push back the Germans out of France.

This looks like the gate to hell and at the time the young soldiers must of thought the same. The shear size of it is so unbelievable. All the information around it as you walk around definitely puts a lump in your throat. Can't wait to revisit it with my family. Rest in peace to all

Literally mind blowing (!) to walk around the crater that exploded in the mid of the German trench line system on 1 July 1916. Nice info panels with small details I never heard of. Excellent view on the Becourt woods from where the tunneling originated and from where the British walked into devasting fire sent from the crater side once the Germans recovered from the blast. Never knew that the British reached and fought in the crater and that the crater still may contain missing soldiers. In the background you can see the goal of that day: Pozières Ridge which was never reached or seized that day. And you can see the little town Ovillers-la-Boisselle (20+ houses) which of course was already completley levelled on that day.

Stayed at an air bnb nearby and the owner was kind enough to give us a tour of the crater. Thank you for all the people who take care of the site, which is privately owned. It’s a historic site for the battle of the Somme. So many died here during WW1 in 1916. Many are buried here too.

Sombre and emotional experience. You see the massive crater.....but then your hit by the small plaques and stories around the outside. Enjoyed seeing the bus load of bairns bringing a respectful hubub to the sight.

You can but fail to be awed by the magnitude of the explosion that caused this crater. They say the German soldiers here were simply vaporized due to the explosion! But you cannot say that you enjoyed it, because of the horrors of what occurred here! But it is a fitting memorial where you can take a moment to reflect on the futility of the First World War!

What a place. What a story. And the chair, well that says so much in itself. I wont ruin the experience. But go there.

As you wander around the Western Front you will occassionally come across these huge craters. Onkay, the weather has worn a lot of them down, but many of them are so deep that they have basically become a part of the landscape. Many of them were created by soldiers tunnelling under the ground and the packing the area with huge amonts of explosives, and then setting them off. The sad thing is that despite all of the effore they rarely did any good at all. However, a number of these craters have been left to the ravages of time, while others are preseved, such as this one, as a memorial to the horrors of war.