[Bringbackthedraft]

The worst was in The Hürtgen forest. 5 months in the worst terrain, with the worst weather, and the worst casualties. I was there a few years ago, I wouldn’t want to fight there. It just so happen it was raining and damp when I walked around the area so I can imagine what the guys had to go through on both sides. We visited a medical bunker that had a home built over it. We were also in Malmedy, the lot where I guys were gunned down has a memorial there. There was also a KIA? dealer across the street from it and a Honda? dealer behind it. Facing the street there was a burger place. Hurtgen Forest was all grown back, probably looking as it did before the first bombs and shells fell.

[jmacusa]

The Hurtgen was indeed a horrible place. I knew a man who served in the 28th. Inf. Div. in that battle. he said it was terrible. Damp, cold, rainy and fog. A German general remarked that the Allies had chosen to attack in a place where “It isn't light until 7 in the morning and it's dark at 3 in the afternoon’’. What an idiotic decision to put troops into such a place. Most days it was cloudy or it was raining. Couldn't really use armor or air power or artillery. The Germans had a lot of their bunkers just above ground level so a machine gun could fire. The poor GI’s would hit trip mines, the Germans would open up on them and rain down artillery bursts in the tree tops. The Americans went into the place in mid October ‘44 and called action off on Dec.,14, 1944. Two days later the Germans come barreling through the Ardennes.