Sacred ground: Stepping off the map and onto the beaches, cliffs of Normandy

Sacred ground: Stepping off the map and onto the beaches, cliffs of Normandy - Unprecedented staff ride helps U-M ROTC candidates process the reality of D-Day. Story by Fernanda Pires, photos and video by Jeremy Marble, page layout by Nicole Smith NORMANDY, France-As the students approach the jagged edge of Pointe du Hoc on the northwestern coast of Normandy, they seem bewildered. They have studied World War II and learned how U.S. Army rangers stormed Omaha Beach on June 6, 1944, scaling the Normandy cliffs under heavy enemy fire. And they know about D-Day, the largest amphibious invasion in history and the bloody battle that marked a turning point for the Allied forces. But nearly eight decades after the invasion that led to the liberation of Western Europe, the students are learning something new about the wartime experience as they embark on an unprecedented staff ride with the University of Michigan Reserve Officers' Training Corps (ROTC). "You read about the Allies' invasion in the books and learn details about this specific operation, the high cliffs, but you don't think much of it,” said Army Cadet Alexis Gonzalez, one of 30 cadets and midshipmen who explored the Normandy site this spring as part of a unique military staff ride. "Once you step in here, you see-in person-the masses of the cliffs, their height and the difficult terrain the rangers had to climb; it's kind of a shock.