DEATH RAVINE (1915)
At the last house the road turns to the right in front of a French cemetery, and goes towards Trésauvaux, passing between Montgirmont Crest on the right and Hures Hill on the left (photo, p. [28]). All along the trenches, shelters and numerous graves.
At the top of the hill the houses of Trésauvaux come into view. Here leave the car and climb the slopes of Montgirmont (trenches, boyaux, etc.), from the top of which there is a fine panorama of Eparges on the French side (photo, p. [29]).
It is a desolate scene. The side of the hill is full of craters and shell-holes, forming so many grey patches on the reddish earth on which no vegetation survives. The glorious crest, entirely bare, stands out against the sky. Death Ravine, where so many brave men fell in the first assault on Eparges, lies between Montgirmont (where the tourist stands) and Eparges.
Eparges Spur
Eparges Spur, 1,500 yards in length and over a thousand feet high, forms the end of Woëvre Plain. Its sides are steep and slippery, while numerous springs and rivulets run down its slopes. It has been rightly called “a mountain of mud.” Eparges Heights form part of a series of hills, among which are Hures, Montgirmont, Combres and St. Remy. Of these, Eparges Crest is the most important. By nature an observation-post, its possession enabled those who held it to keep all the surrounding roads under gunfire.