#australians on duckboards

[richo1915]

They went with songs to the battle, they were young,

Straight of limb, true of eye, steady and aglow.

They were staunch to the end against odds uncounted,

They fell with their faces to the foe.

They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:

Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.

At the going down of the sun and in the morning

We will remember them.

[historydailyfrancischappellblack]

The Battle of Passchendaele (Also Known as the Third Battle of Ypres) Ended on November 6, 1917, with a Hard-Won Victory by British and Canadian Soldiers at the Belgian Village of Passchendaele. November 6, 1917.

Image: Soldiers of an Australian 4th Division field artillery brigade on a duckboard track passing through Chateau Wood, near Hooge in the Ypres salient, 29 October 1917. (Public Domain) On this day in history, November 6, 1917, after more than three months of vicious combat, the Battle of Passchendaele (also known as the Third Battle of Ypres) ended on November 6, 1917, with a hard-won victory…

[myfairynuffstuff]

David Keeling (b.1951) - Duckboard Circuit. 2014.

[thisdayinwwi]

Oct 26 1917 

The camouflaged positions occupied by Australian 4.5 howitzers from which they assisted in the last fight for the Passchendaele Ridge that commenced on 26 October 1917. The 1st Australian Division was associated with Canadian and British Divisions in this, 'the culminating effort of a battle which had lasted through three and a half months of disastrous weather, producing conditions of warfare, the difficulty and misery of which had never been equalled'. This water-soaked area is typical of the major portion of the Ypres sector in the last six months of 1917. The limbers of a field gun are visible near the road (centre right). Note in the foreground a duckboard track and in the background a patch of denuded trees. - AWM E04591

[scrapironflotilla]

Australian Pioneers laying duck boards near Zonnebeke 5 October 1917.

[theworldofwars]

22 October 1917 Four Australian soldiers at Chateau Wood near Retaliation Farm, walking over duckboards in the waterlogged fields to Zonnebeke, Flanders, Belgium. This was over a portion of the country captured by the Australians in the fighting of the Third Battle of Ypres, during September and October 1917. The three soldiers on the left are unidentified, however the soldier on the right is 26-year-old Gunner William Henry Joyce. 

[aiiaiiiyo]

Australian soldiers of the 4th Division field artillery brigade on duckboard track in Château Wood, near Hooge, Ypres salient, 29 October 1917. Photo by Frank Hurley [3392x2480] Check this blog!

[chilling-seavey]

Passchendaele - XIV

A/N I wrote this chapter in my backyard on a beautifully sunny day...I got my first sunburn from that...

T/W Mentions of death

Daniel kept his arms crossed over his chest, staring out the window at the grim yet sunny surroundings as Christian drove them back towards the Ypres Salient to prepare for the advance. His mind was focussed on Elizabeth and his heart ached with how much he missed her even after only just parting. She might have been safe in the hospital, about to be sent back to England, but it didn’t make leaving her easier. Daniel leaned his left arm against the door of the truck, the uneven terrain making it difficult to even sit still and he pressed his hand to his eyes to keep from crying, wishing he never enlisted in the first place.

“Men don’t cry, Seavey.” Christian snapped from the driver’s side, his hands gripping the steering wheel tightly, his jaw clenched with aggravation as he stared straight ahead.

Daniel ignored him, his anger near boiling over with how much he despised this new version of his brother he was given when he was sent over. He was no where near what he was like back home and the intensity of him made Daniel sick with hatred. Hatred that he forced onto his brother as a subconscious projection of his own internal feelings.  

“You better get rid of this mood swing before we get to camp. You’re acting like a woman.” Christian grumbled.

“Shut up.” Daniel said through his teeth. “I came with you, didn’t I? That’s what you wanted.”

“I wanted one of my men but instead it appears I left with nothing more than a hormonal female. Man up, Private, this war has no room for your tears.”

Daniel jumped out of the truck before Christian could even put it in park, slinging his rifle over his shoulder as he stormed off towards camp where more of the soldiers were packing up, the tents and supplies already loaded into trucks. Zach and Corbyn were tying a tarp over one of the truck beds, Zach holding it down as Corbyn stood on top of it, shirtless, a cigarette balanced between his lips has he tied the rope securely. He glanced up at Daniel who was approaching them quickly.

“How’s the sweetheart?” Corbyn asked, sending him a crooked smile.

“Fine.” Daniel answered dryly. “How can I help?”

“We are actually done here, I think.” Corbyn jumped onto the ground and took a step back to admire his handiwork. He rubbed his hands together before taking the cigarette from his mouth and took one last drag before stomping it out on the ground.

“Elizabeth is okay, right?” Zach asked quickly, shielding his eyes from the sun as he looked up at Daniel.

“She’s fine, yeah. They’re sending her home at the end of the week.” Daniel said, setting his hands on his hips but kept his stare on the loaded truck.

“That’s good then.” Zach mumbled, glancing over to Corbyn who shrugged in response to Daniel’s obvious edge.

The three made their way to the transport truck, piling in with other men from their battalion in preparation to move farther inland to their next destination. Daniel couldn’t deny he was relieved to leave Ypres as it had not treated them nicely although it was a given that wherever they were taken next wouldn’t be much better either.

The morale had generally gone down amongst their group after spending almost two months in the battlefields, exposed to the elements and the utter brutality of humans. The drive without Jack’s usual witty humour was not the same and everyone seemed to sit in silence for most of the drive. Daniel bit the inside of his cheek to keep his emotions at bay, his eyes focussed forward out of the front window of the truck as they drove steadily northwest. The low-lying clouds in the distance were dark grey and flashes of thunder could be seen over the generally flat land in front of them. The short drive took much longer than it should have as navigating No Mans Land by truck wasn’t an easy feat.

The craters that littered the upturned earth were terribly deep and most were filled with rainwater, unclaimed waterlogged bodies rotting in the mud and now home to the rats and other creatures infesting the open flesh. It barely even phased them anymore, Daniel’s eyes barely giving a second glance to the plentiful dead along their trip. It was also getting hard to navigate around them, the driver ending up having to roll right over the bodies, each excess bump simply keeping the men on board that much more silent. There was simply nothing to speak about.

The rolls of thunder got louder as they drove right towards the heart of the storm, the grey skies starting to engulf them. Daniel reached into his jacket and pulled out his metal tin, opening it to reveal the photograph of Elizabeth over top a few stacks of blank parchment. He smiled softly as he ran his fingertips over the image; already missing her terribly, especially after such a rushed goodbye. He honestly couldn’t wait to be on the boat home to her.

He remembered Lieutenant Marais speaking of dispatches before Christmas if the Ypres Salient went well and if the Germans were retreating back towards Passchendaele…wasn’t that the best news yet? Where were their dispatches? Daniel closed his tin a bit harder than intended with annoyance and tucked it back into the inside pocket of his uniform jacket. He didn’t want to curse the dead but his frustration of still being forced through the war was nearly eating him alive and the sense of false hope was certainly no help.

They were five minutes from their destination, the rain coming down steadily around them as they gathered their things, falling against the fabric covering the truck with heavy drops like a drum rolling with anticipation.        

“Why is it always raining when we travel?” Zach grumbled as the truck came to a stop and they started filing out, joining the other soldiers along the rain-soaked ground.

“God is spiting us.” Corbyn sighed, ducking his head as he stepped out of the truck into the cold rain.

“God is testing our strength.” Daniel corrected softly, following the men into the beginnings of the trenches. At times like this, faith seemed to be the only thing Daniel had left but even that seemed to be dwindling sometimes.

The Lieutenant Colonel led them farther along the line as the sun began to set behind the rain clouds, the mud under their feet squelching with each step as if trying to pull them under. Daniel kept his face straight-lined, staring daggers into his brother’s back as they walked on, his hair plastered to his forehead with rain that dripped along his cheeks and down his back as Christian walked under a black umbrella.

The New Zealanders and Australians had taken that station of the front-line weeks earlier, fighting long and hard from those same trenches and a few of their remaining men stared at the British as they passed.

“We will be repairing the trenches and the duckboards.” Christian halted and turned to face his men, a few of them bumping into each other with the sudden stop. He tapped his boot against the pieces of wood that lined the bottom of the trench, mostly being swallowed up by the mud and not achieving their purpose. “Be careful when pulling these pieces from the ground…shipments are tight and there are no new supplies. We must reuse all we have.”

No one protested, the line up of men staring at their officer through the sheets of rain, uniforms soaked through.

“Get on with it.” Christian snapped, stepping to the side to encourage them on.

Daniel didn’t even look at him as he walked past to find an empty place to start, Corbyn and Zach following him. The three knelt down in the soft mud and began pulling wood from the ground and stacking them up, the rain rinsing the planks with ease. They worked quietly, the thunder and heavy rain drowning out any possibility for conversation and the waning hours demanding all their energy.

Zach’s sudden shriek had everyone looking over at him as he fell back against the soaked ground, a half rotten hand topping next to him from where he had been digging.

“Bloody hell, what is that?” he cried loudly, the first voice heard in a while.

“You came across a grave, Private Herron. Just deep digging.” The Lieutenant Colonel ordered coolly, stomping right past them, splashing mud over the men’s uniforms and faces.

“Bastard.” Daniel spat under his breath, wiping his mouth with the back of his sleeve. It didn’t do much to clean him, only smudging more dirt over his already soaked through skin. From his peripheral vision he could see Christian stop a moment and turn to look down at his brother, but Daniel kept his head down, not giving him the satisfaction to know he was getting to him. He just kept working, digging his hands into the cold ground as the rain plummeted around them. 

Christian’s tired sigh couldn’t be heard over the sound of the rain as he continued walking down the line. 

[spunknbite]

👀

(A little snippet from an ineffable husbands fic that takes place partially during WWI, featuring field nurse Crowley. This fic burned hot in late summer and I wrote little else for at least a month, but it’s since been sidelined. Gonna get back to it in the New Year. Warnings for descriptions of war injuries and period-typical field medicine.)

Got yourself a beau?” Jane had asked once. 

They were drunk. They shouldn’t have been. Leave had become a thing of the past; breaks, mornings off, down time, all belonged to months ago. It was 1917 now, and the shelling was constant, the war ramping up to another Somme-level disaster, Crowley was sure; too many demons lurking about the place. There was always another group of soldiers to triage - battered and broken open, femurs exposed, fears exposed - and there were never enough nurses. Jane would show the new recruits the operating theatre, a moulding wooden cabin built hastily, without a foundation like so much of this war, and she would warn them that the west side of the building was sinking, and that they - the heftier girls, that is - should avoid that end, lest the duckboards give way beneath their feet and they end up in the shit and mud below. She said this all with an empty sort of smile, a kind of ritual of hers, while Crowley rolled bandages behind her, surveying the new girls with lazy curiosity. Which ones would stick it out, he’d wonder. The recruits would try to catch a reassuring expression behind his (her, Crowley supposed; although he didn’t often think of himself as herself even when sporting the name Antonia) tinted glasses while Jane showed them the bone saws and warned them that Doctor Reeve was particular about their hanging order. “It’s like you want us to be short-handed,” Crowley would say as half the girls boarded trains back to comfortable London homes, romantic daydreams of wiping handsome brows dashed. “Need to weed out the weak ones. They’ll only slow us down,” she’d reply. “Smoke?”

And yet they were drunk. Well, Jane was drunk. Crowley was doing his damnedest to get drunk, which was difficult when splitting a single bottle of wine in the back of a medical supply tent, quarters too close to miracle himself something stronger.

“You must have one back home. Fetching red hair must drive men wild.” She was laughing, genuinely laughing, not something she did often. “The soldiers like you enough.”

“I’m estranged.” 

“How mysterious.” 

“It’s a terribly long tale.”

“We have the time.”

They didn’t really. Enemy artillery fire at their door, the front line less than three miles up road. CCS No. 32 had taken direct fire two weeks ago. An Australian nurse had been killed; a doctor lost his arm. The end was coming for them; their time felt borrowed, even if their own medical station hadn’t been attacked.

“He’s in the war.” I think. Crowley had thought he’d sensed him last November at Verdun. Somewhere near the front with the French infantry, presumably. Crowley had been been holding a lad down on the operating table, drop mask pressed tight to the boy’s burned face, his left leg gone, right hanging on by only fibrous-thin tendons as a surgeon finished the amputation. They’d miraculously found more chloroform just before the surgeon made the first cut, and then Crowley’s attention was suddenly elsewhere - he was sure Aziraphale was nearby. Closest since 1862. He’d swallowed, waited, on edge for the first sign of something wrong. But it had never came. Aziraphale had lingered near the front for the better part of two days before leaving for - somewhere. And Crowley idly wondered, after the initial panic that he’d been hurt had passed, whether his French had improved any.

[theimperialcourt]

The Battle of Passchendaele during World War One. Soldiers of an Australian 4th Division field artillery brigade on a duckboard track passing through Chateau Wood, near Hooge in the Ypres salient, 29 October 1917. The leading soldier is Gunner James Fulton and the second soldier is Lieutenant Anthony Devine. The men belong to a battery of the 10th Field Artillery Brigade

[theboatingemporiumau]

The Best Inflatable Pontoons in Australia 2022

One of the many good things about living in Australia is being surrounded by beautiful beaches, rivers, and lakes. It’s filled with water sports and activities that can be enjoyed by people of all ages.

It is also because of the surge in these water activities that a lot have turned to venture into manufacturing water sports accessories, boating gear and equipment, and water inflatables.

There is a myriad of choices when it comes to water sports accessories, and one is making waves for its variety and innovation—the inflatable pontoon!

What is an Inflatable Pontoon?

By definition, a pontoon is a “flat-bottomed boat or hollow metal cylinder used with others to support a temporary bridge or floating landing stage”. An inflatable pontoon also does all of these, only that they are, well, inflated with air.

Inflatable pontoons can be used to add buoyancy to a structure, hence the innovation of inflatable pontoon boats. There are different types of inflatable pontoon boats; frameless, framed, motorized, or propelled. These inflatable pontoon boats can be ridden across beaches, lakes, or rivers.

Another use of inflatable pontoons is as inflatable decks or docks. In this article, we will take a look at this type, and how the company Big Sky Innovations pioneered a new docking system that is centered on inflatable pontoons.

Inflatable Pontoons by Big Sky Innovations

Pontoons as we know them are used to add buoyancy to boats, and other watercraft. However, Big Sky Innovations had other things in mind. Through their creativity and continuous innovations, they were able to create the now-famous ���Inflatable Pontoons”.

These inflatable pontoons are unlike the usual ones that you see on inflatable boats—they are made so you can “walk on water”.

It all started when founders (and husband-and-wife) Gavin and Lydia found it inconvenient to get into their boats all muddy and scratching their boat’s hull. To avoid soiling their boat, Gavin had to carry Lydia in, and soon, they were also doing it for family and friends.

These minor inconveniences then lead to an innovation that is now enjoyed by many in the Australian boating community. Their inflatable pontoons come in different shapes and sizes and are introduced to the world as parts of a new inflatable docking system.

Big Sky Innovations was founded in 2012 and is celebrating 10 years in the industry this year. In the span of a decade, they were able to produce inflatable pontoons that are portable, heavy-duty, and can be used in any body of water.

Their Inflatable Pontoons for sale are made from PVC horsetail material and can be inflated and assembled within 3-4 minutes. They currently have five types of inflatable pontoons available, from decks to walkways, and are continuously working on innovations.

Designed on the Gold Coast, Big Sky Innovations’ inflatable pontoon structures are used not only by hobbyists but also by sporting associations all over the world, and marine biologists working on the restoration of the Great Barrier Reef.

With a clientele as prominent as these, Big Sky Innovations is, without a doubt, committed to delivering inflatable pontoons that are user-friendly, durable, and worth investing in!

The Best Inflatable Pontoons from Big Sky Innovations

Now that you have a background on Big Sky Innovations and their products, let us now look at their inflatable pontoons for sale in Australia and other parts of the world!

Inflatable Pontoon Y Ski Pontoon

Price: 1,485.00

The Y Ski Pontoon is what BSI calls the “ultimate docking station for Jetskis”. You can easily park your jetski within the inflatable pontoon’s “Y” section and safely walk to and from your boat through its sturdy deck and walkways.

The Y Ski Pontoon is made from PVC horsetail and takes approximately 2 minutes to inflate and assemble. It is made to slide under the duckboard of a cruiser boat and designed to act as a deck extender, walkway, and parking for your jetski or tender.

Features and Benefits:

Designed specifically for docking jetskis.

Can be tied anywhere, but ideally, slides under the duckboard of most cruisers for safe and easy parking of a jetski within the 'Y' section.

Allows for a safe and easy way to tie a jetski to your boat.

Additional parking for tenders or water toys on either sides of the 'Y' section.

Elegant finishing created with an additional layer of EVA foam matting in teak wood.

Includes built-in anchor points on the top and underneath sides

Built-in 2mm thick ribbed rubber matting at crucial points for added protection

Ideal for most boats

Portable

Lightweight

Very robust

Very stable to walk on.

Easy to clean with just a hose off.

Quick & Easy to inflate/assemble and dis-assemble/deflate (approx 10mins).

Enable you to launch Water Sports safely from the pontoon.

Enable you to moor multiple boats or jet skis to the pontoon.

Eliminate getting wet when embarking or dis-embarking your boat.

Enables children, ladies, elderly passengers to get on and off your boat or jet ski safely and with ease.

Want to know more about the Y Ski Inflatable Pontoon? Click here!

Inflatable Pontoons Deck Extender

Price: $1,485.00

The Deck Extender Inflatable Pontoon is designed to do one thing; create more space in your boat. This inflatable deck extender is designed to let boaters enjoy more time outside of their boats to relax, fish, or bask under the sun.

The inflatable deck extender is also stable enough for you to walk on. Installed with 5 anchor lugs, this Inflatable Deck Extender from Big Sky Innovations is perfect for parking your jetskis, tenders, and other water toys.

Features and Benefits:

Portable

Lightweight

Very robust

Very stable to walk on.

Easy to clean with just a hose off.

Quick & easy to inflate/assemble and dis-assemble/deflate (approx 10mins).

Enable you to launch Water Sports safely from the pontoon.

Enable you to moor multiple boats or jet skis to the pontoon.

Eliminate getting wet when embarking or dis-embarking your boat.

Enables children, ladies, elderly passengers to get on and off your boat or jet ski safely and with ease.

Want to know more about the Inflatable Pontoons Deck Extender? Click here!

Inflatable Pontoons Straight Pontoon

Price: Starts at $1,550.00

Another model that comes from BSI’s Inflatable Pontoons collection is the Straight Pontoon. With a choice between a 5m and 8.5m platform, the Straight Pontoon is the ultimate docking station for your jet skis, ski boats, tenders, and other water toys.

The 5m straight inflatable pontoon is a sleek pontoon that provides parking for your watercraft and water toys and is ideal for ski boats and fishing boats that do not need a long walkway from water to shore.

On the other hand, the 8.5m straight pontoon has a full walkway that allows easier access when getting on and off your boat. It is also a favorite when it comes to launching off wakeboards, kneeboards, and water skis.

Features and Benefits:

A sleek straight pontoon

For safe, quick and easy parking of your boat/s on either sides of the pontoon

Additional parking for tenders, jetskis or water toys

Allows easy access on and off the side of your boat

Includes built-in anchor points

Built-in 2mm thick ribbed rubber matting at crucial points for added protection

A favourite amongst Watersport-enthusiasts for launching wakeboards, kneeboards, waterskis off the end

Ideal for Ski-boats, Fishing boats

Portable

Lightweight

Very robust

Very stable to walk on.

Easy to clean with just a hose off.

Quick & Easy to inflate/assemble and dis-assemble/deflate (approx 3-4mins).

Minimize the damage to your boat/jet ski by not beaching it on shore.

Enable you to launch Water Sports safely from the pontoon.

Enable you to moor multiple boats or jet skis to the pontoon.

Eliminate getting wet when embarking or dis-embarking your boat.

Eliminate getting mud or sand into your boat from wet & dirty feet.

Enables children, ladies, elderly passengers to get on and off your boat or jet ski safely and with ease.

Want to know more about Straight Pontoons? Click here!

Inflatable Pontoons Y Pontoon Dock Floating Platform

Price: Starts at $1,850.00

A larger version of the earlier Y Pontoon, the Y Pontoon Dock Floating Platform is a perfect parking space for your bowriders, jetskis, and other watercraft and toys. Its docking system is safe and easy, and both sides of the “Y” allows you to park 2 more boats on the side.

Both the 4.5m and 8.5m variants have sturdy walkways that allow the boater or the rider to get on and off the sides of their boat without breaking a sweat. Its long walkway also avoids your boat from getting soiled by mud, sand, and other unwanted materials.

Specifications:

Y-Pontoon 4.5m

Length: 4.5m

Width: 1.4m

Thickness: 0.2m

Weight: 26kg

Y-Pontoon 8.5m

Length: 8.5m

Width: 1.4m

Thickness: 0.2m

Weight: 42kg

Want to know more about the Y Pontoon Dock Floating Platform? Click here!

Inflatable Pontoons U Pontoon Dock Platform for Boats

Price: Starts at $1,950.00

The U Pontoon from BSI’s Inflatable Pontoons collections is a docking station best suitable for W-Hull boats, and pickle-forks, with additional space for smaller vessels like jetskis, tenders, et al.

Just like the Y Pontoon, the U Pontoon provides extra room on both sides of the “U”. The 5m pontoon has a sturdy 1.5 walkway for passengers’ easy access to and from the boat, while the 8.5m model has it in 5m.

With built-in anchor points and 2mm thick ribbed rubber matting protection, the U Pontoon is a compact accessory and one of the sturdiest platforms that can protect your boat from damage, while keeping it clean and accessible.

Features and Benefits:

Shaped as a ‘U’ this pontoon allows you to easily park your boat quickly in the centre of the ‘U’.

It also allows parking stations for another 2 boats or water toys on either side of the ‘U’.

This model provides access on and off your boat from the bow, and both sides of your boat.

Most of our clients with Pickle-fork or W-hull boats have purchased this model.

This model comes in 2 different sizes a 8.5mtr and a shorter version 4.5mtr.

Portable

Lightweight

Very robust

Very stable to walk on

Easy to clean with just a hose off

Quick & Easy to inflate/assemble and dis-assemble/deflate (approx 10mins)

Minimize the damage to your boat/jet ski by not beaching it on shore

Enable you to launch Water Sports safely from the pontoon

Enable you to moor multiple boats or jet skis to the pontoon

Eliminate getting wet when embarking or dis-embarking your boat

Eliminate getting mud or sand into your boat from wet & dirty feet

Enables children, ladies, elderly passengers to get on and off your boat or jet ski safely and with ease

Want to know more about the U Pontoon Dock Platform for Boats? Click here!

Inflatable Pontoons Pool Deck

Price: $3,500.00

Last but not least on this list is the Inflatable Pontoons Pool Deck. With 4 drink holders around the deck and a detachable net, the inflatable pool deck introduces a new and luxurious mix of hanging out and taking a dip in your pool, at the back of your boat!

The pool deck’s drink holders can also double to secure a 2.4m marquee shade for your deck. There are also 4 built-in anchor lugs where you can park tenders, jet skis, and water toys.

On top of that, you can also turn this pool deck into a deck extension by adding a Pool Insert in the middle. With its sturdy and heavy-duty materials, this simple pool deck can turn into the whole package all at once!

Want to know more about the Inflatable Pontoons Pool Deck? Click here!

Buy Inflatable Pontoons from The Boating Emporium

Just like Big Sky Innovations, The Boating Emporium strives to make innovative products like inflatable pontoons accessible to every water-loving Australian.

This is why we made sure to make their products easily available to everyone, by distributing them across the country. As official distributors of Big Sky Innovations’ Inflatable Pontoons, we ensure that our clients get only the best quality of products for their boats and other watersports accessories.

If you are looking for an online store with inflatable pontoons for sale, then you’re in luck! Just visit our website at www.theboatingemporium.com.au, or check out our collection of Inflatable Pontoons from Big Sky Innovations today!

[greatwar-1914]

October 9, 1917 - Ypres: Battle of Poelcappelle

Pictured - Australians cross a duckboard path over swampy ground. Torrential rain, artillery shells, and Flanders’ water table combined to flood the battlefield.

The capture of Broodseinde had brought the main objective of the Ypres Offensive within reach. Haig wanted the BEF to launch another push for the town of Passchendaele, which rested on the ridge overlooking Ypres, and the railway network that lay just beyond it. To do so his men would have to take the ridge of Poelcappelle just to the front.

On October 7 Generals Gough and Plumer, commanding the two British armies in the Salient, repeated their request that Haig give up the plan. Their troops were exhausted and rain had made the battlefield a swamp. Bringing up shells and guns was impossible; a number of men and mules had literally drowned in shellholes.

Haig demurred. At 5:00 AM on October 9 British and Anzac troops jumped the bags. Mud and machine-guns made it a slaughter: “It was a nightmare,” wrote Lieutenant P. King. “Often we would have to wait for up to have an hour, because all the duckboards were being blown up, and men being blown off the track or simply slipping off... going down into the muck.” Officers ordered their men not to stop and help those trapped in the mud, but to press the attack. Wounded soldiers who fell into shellholes drowned. Haig insisted the Germans were again on the verge of defeat, but the British army was reaching its limits as well.

[thisdayinwwi]

Oct 29 1917 In the shell torn Chateau Wood, Belgium, Frank Hurley takes this photo, AWM E01220, of five, members of a field artillery brigade, 4th Australian Division artillery units, Australian Imperial Force (AIF), passing along a duckboard track over mud and water among devasted bare tree trunks. Picture taken during the Battle of Passchendaele. Jul 31  – Nov 10 1917 (3 months, 1 week and 3 days)

Left to right: 34158 Gunner (Gnr) James Macrea Fulton, 110 Battery, 10th Field Artillery Brigade (Returned to Australia on May 12 1919) Lieutenant Anthony Devine (Returned to Australia on Aug 12 1919) Sergeant Clive Stewart Smith

The AWM writes that the final two are possibly the Nichols brothers that both served in the 110th Howitzer Battery: 34451 Gnr Hubert Lionel Nichols 26180 Gnr Douglas Roy Nichols

Colourized by Painting The Past (Colourisations by Joshua Barrett)

[grandeguerra100]

Una delle foto più celebri della Grande Guerra sul fronte occidentale è sicuramente questa, scattata esattamente cento anni fa dal fotografo australiano Frank Hurley e riprodotta innumerevoli volte in riviste e copertine di libri. Cinque soldati australiani dell'artiglieria da campo della 4a Divisione Australiana camminano sopra una passerella di legno stesa sopra il fango nei pressi di Chateau Wood, vicino Hooge nel saliente di Ypres. Il soldato in primo piano è l'artigliere James Fulton, dietro di lui il tenente Anthony Devine, entrambi parte della 10a Brigata Artiglieria da campo. Dietro di loro: Clive Smith, Hubert e Douglas Nichols (non in ordine). ENGLISH - This is surely one of the most known photos of the Great War on the Western Front, and it was taken exactly one hundred years ago by the Australian photographer Frank Hurley. We see five Australian Field Artillery soldiers walking along a duckboard track through the remains of Chateau Wood, near Hooge in Ypres's salient. The leading soldier is Gunner James Fulton and the second soldier is Lieutenant Anthony Devine. The men belong to a battery of the 10th Field Artillery Brigade. Behind them, not in this order, Clive Smith, Hubert Nichols and Douglas Nichols. © IWM (E(AUS) 1220) Info from Lives of the First World War website http://ift.tt/2zYWH39

[theworldofwars]

Australian gunners on a duckboard track in Château Wood near Hooge, 29 October 1917.

[aiiaiiiyo]

Gunners of the Australian 4th Division on a track of duckboard in Château Wood during the Third Battle of Ypres in Belgium. Photograph taken by Frank Hurley on October 29th, 1917 [1024x785] Check this blog!