Wytheville to Pocomoke
D-Day Memorial, Roanoke, Richmond & the Chesapeake Bay
Day 51 took Ray through the heart of Virginia — and to one of the most moving memorials in the country.
Day 51 was a day of memorials and rivers.
The National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia was the emotional centerpiece of the day. Bedford suffered the highest per-capita D-Day losses of any community in the United States — 19 of the town's young men were killed on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944. The memorial, dedicated in 2001, honors all those who gave their lives in the Normandy invasion.
The '116th Infantry Memorial Highway' runs through Bedford — named for the regiment that suffered so heavily on D-Day.
From Bedford, Ray drove through Roanoke and Richmond — the former capital of the Confederacy — before heading east to the Chesapeake Bay and crossing into Maryland's Eastern Shore.
Photos from the Day
The Day's Route
D-Day Memorial — Bedford, VA
The National D-Day Memorial in Bedford, Virginia — dedicated on June 6, 2001, the 57th anniversary of D-Day. Bedford lost 19 men on Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944 — the highest per-capita D-Day losses of any community in the US. The memorial features a dramatic bronze sculpture of soldiers storming the beach.
116th Infantry Memorial Highway — Bedford, VA
The highway through Bedford is designated the '116th Infantry Memorial Highway' in honor of the regiment that suffered catastrophic losses on D-Day.
Roanoke, VA
Roanoke — the largest city in western Virginia, in the Blue Ridge Mountains. The Roanoke Star, a giant illuminated star on Mill Mountain, overlooks the city.
Richmond, VA
Richmond — the capital of Virginia and the former capital of the Confederacy. The Virginia State Capitol, designed by Thomas Jefferson, is here.
Chesapeake Bay
The Chesapeake Bay — the largest estuary in the United States, stretching 200 miles from the Susquehanna River in the north to the Atlantic Ocean in the south. The Chesapeake Bay Bridge-Tunnel is one of the engineering marvels of the 20th century.
Pocomoke, MD
Pocomoke City, Maryland — on the Eastern Shore, near the Virginia border.