We will start the war from here

Free to Run -- That's Pointe du Hoc in the background. On D-Day, the tide was out as far as the objects on the right,
critical to mission success, since the obstacles would have torn out the bottoms of landing craft. But it did make
for a long dash for the infantry, exposed to fire.

Rangers climbed this cliff after mistaking the point
in the distance as their intended goal. This is shot
from the bunker at Pointe du Hoc, the object of the mission.

The tide was out when we arrived at Utah Beach this morning, just as it was when Engineers arrived the morning of June 6, 1944 to blow a hole in the Atlantic Wall allowing tanks and infantry to stream through, ultimately reaching Cherborg. Horses trained today where obstacles, traps and mines once littered the beach landscape. By the time we left this morning, after inspecting the substantial museums and installations at this location, the tide had returned and covered the beach.
Across the water, behind the horses, is Pointe du Hoc, guns there could reach Utah and beyond. They were taken out by Rangers in a storied operation made famous by Ronald Reagan when he gave a speech written by Peggy Noonan 50 years later. The Rangers missed their original land spot. Meanwhile, the 4th Division missed its intended landing spot on Utah Beach. Gen. Teddy Roosevelt famously said: "We will start the war from here."

These are the Boys of Pointe du Hoc.
These are the Men who Took the Cliffs.
These are the Champions who helped free a continent.
These are the Heroes who helped win a war.

Peggy Noonan, as read by Ronald Reagan and etched in stone at Point du Hoc.

Everywhere there's evidence of World War II. The Germans poured a lot of concrete
and it's not going anywhere. This is an bunker for a gun at Point du Hoc that took a direct hit. No guns
were in the bunkers. They were hidden in an apple orchard nearby that never took a hit until Rangers found
and disabled them. Captured at the Maginot Line, the French-made guns were never actually used by the Germans.
Many of the bombing craters at the site were created by Allied bombers returning with unused ordnance from other missions. Don't just waste them in the ocean before landing, Ike said. Dump them at Pointe du Hoc.