Operation Switchback - Paulinapolder Monument

[David Dunlop]

Hello Hanno.

Are those mud flats exposed most of the day or subject to the usual twice in/twice out tidal flow?


David

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by David Dunlop

Are those mud flats exposed most of the day or subject to the usual twice in/twice out tidal flow?

The mud flats are exposed to the tidal flows, the areas with growth on them only once in a while with spring tides, storms, etc. The photos were made from the foot of the dyke which protects the polders behind them. The monument stands on the other side of the dyke.

I have yet to find out if this was ‘Green Beach’ or ‘Amber Beach’. One of them was more to the West directed at the town Hoofdplaat, this one is the most Eastern one of the two, directed at taking the town Biervliet:

Map_-_Battle_of_the_Scheldt_(Breskens_pocket).jpg

[Jakko Westerbeke]

They’re tidal. The areas with the plants don’t flood every day, else there wouldn’t be anything growing there at all, but I would guess they are underwater when the tide is unusually high. There is a dyke behind the photographer to stop the sea from flooding the farmland and industry here:

Braakman.jpeg

The photographer probably stood somewhere near the blue parasol icon. The green near the water is the green in Hanno’s photos, the grey road running east–west is on the inside of the dyke, which is the green line right next to the road.

This whole area has changed a lot since the war, though:

Braakman 1944 & 2023.jpg

[David Dunlop]

IIRC, the tracks on the Buffalo were somewhat narrow. I suspect if the mud was softer than anticipated, the tracks may have dug into the mud enough the hulls simply bottomed out and the Buffalo would be going nowhere until either enough tide came back in to refloat it, or a LAD could retrieve it.

Either way, pretty uncomfortable for the troops.

Is there any mention in the records about sufficient air cover being provided for the landings?


David

[Jakko Westerbeke]

Though I’ve never been there, if the beach there is the same as here on Walcheren (only about 20 km away, on the other bank of the river) then it’s sand and not a mudflat. Perhaps a relatively thin layer of mud over sand? I don’t remember any reports of LVTs getting stuck on the beach here, three weeks after the Switchback landings.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

From Project ‘44:

The forgotten D-Day: Canada’s amphibious assault through the flooded fields of the Scheldt.

Early in the morning on the 9th of October 1944, 9th Canadian Infantry Brigade struck behind German lines in the Breskens Pocket. An amphibious assault from Ghent carried two columns of Buffalo amphibious vehicles across the flooded terrain.

At 2 AM, the North Nova Scotia Highlanders landed on Green Beach and the Highland Light Infantry on Amber Beach. Three hours later, the Stormont, Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders came ashore, completing the landing. With a full brigade now behind enemy lines, the Canadians had bypassed the elaborate German defences designed to block an advance from the south and west.

This bold move forced the Germans to fight on two fronts and marked a turning point in the battle for the Scheldt.

The map shows the path of the Amphibious assault on the western side of the Breskens Pocket. It notes “LVTs out” and “Terrapins out”, which helps to pinpoints where the photos were taken.

IMG_2787.jpg

IMG_2789.jpeg IMG_2790.jpeg

[Jakko Westerbeke]

Interesting! Let’s overlay that map on a modern one:

Switchback landing sites today (map).jpeg

And on an aerial photo:

Switchback landing sites today (aerial photo).jpeg

Interestingly, Green Beach is now some way into the sea, probably only reachable when the tide is very low. Amber Beach, though, is easy to locate in the model landscape: find the field full of solar panels, go to its northwestern corner and cross the dyke there.

[Hanno Spoelstra]

Originally Posted by Jakko Westerbeke

Interesting! Let’s overlay that map on a modern one:

Interestingly, Green Beach is now some way into the sea, probably only reachable when the tide is very low. Amber Beach, though, is easy to locate in the model landscape: find the field full of solar panels, go to its northwestern corner and cross the dyke there.

Hi Jakko, thanks for doing that overlay. I reckon the scaling of the hand drawn sketch is a bit off, as GREEN and AMBER BEACH are more to the left.

Switchback - Amber Beach.jpg Switchback - Green and Amber Beach.jpg