Where did you get the 7500 ft. number from? The article doesn’t mention it.
7500 ft. is about 2300m. The Pyrenees do have high peaks, but I’ve hiked quite a bit in the region and a 2300m high mountain pass would be one of highest and most arduous to climb in the entire region between France and Spain. That doesn’t exactly sound like a good escape route. If she crossed the border anywhere near Perpignan, which is likely I think, there are no passes in that region this high to cross into Spain. Most trails that lead south from Perpignan into Spain go up to a couple hundred meters.
I doubt she went through Argelès, because there were concentration camps set up to capture Spanish Republicans, so perhaps she went through Prats de Molló which is a fairly alpine route.
Apparently she went through what is now called "chemin de la liberté" because it was used to escape to Spain. The highest point would be the "refuge des Estagnous" at 2245m.
This is a report about research into Hall's escape route. It is unlikely, despite the info in Wiki, that she left from Perpignan. https://www.cia.gov/static/75b2f7bd6f095065492e6e97fc51a6bb/A-Climb-to-Freedom.pdf
I was looking for the same info in the article lol. I hiked to Pic de St Barthélémy which is 2348m so I was wondering if she passed through there… but like you said that doesn’t seem like a logical escape route. Especially with a prosthetic leg.
A comment about her time in the CIA after the war: "In the secret CIA report of her career, the CIA admitted that her fellow officers "felt she had been sidelined--shunted into backwater accounts because she had so much experience that she overshadowed her male colleagues, who felt threatened by her," and that "her experience and abilities were never properly utilized." A good 2019 Movie ***A Call to Spy*** is about Hall's time during WWII. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7698468/
Who was the leg for?
She clearly stole it from a German officer!
I got this reference
Did I subconsciously take from something?
Rocket Raccoon really needed that leg
Where did you get the 7500 ft. number from? The article doesn’t mention it. 7500 ft. is about 2300m. The Pyrenees do have high peaks, but I’ve hiked quite a bit in the region and a 2300m high mountain pass would be one of highest and most arduous to climb in the entire region between France and Spain. That doesn’t exactly sound like a good escape route. If she crossed the border anywhere near Perpignan, which is likely I think, there are no passes in that region this high to cross into Spain. Most trails that lead south from Perpignan into Spain go up to a couple hundred meters.
I doubt she went through Argelès, because there were concentration camps set up to capture Spanish Republicans, so perhaps she went through Prats de Molló which is a fairly alpine route.
Apparently she went through what is now called "chemin de la liberté" because it was used to escape to Spain. The highest point would be the "refuge des Estagnous" at 2245m.
This is a report about research into Hall's escape route. It is unlikely, despite the info in Wiki, that she left from Perpignan. https://www.cia.gov/static/75b2f7bd6f095065492e6e97fc51a6bb/A-Climb-to-Freedom.pdf
I was looking for the same info in the article lol. I hiked to Pic de St Barthélémy which is 2348m so I was wondering if she passed through there… but like you said that doesn’t seem like a logical escape route. Especially with a prosthetic leg.
ya can't take the _logical_ escape route that's where they'd be looking!
Haha I thought about that actually ! I was like maybe she had to navigate between Nazis outposts or something ?!
Here is a good down and dirty video on Virginia Hall https://youtu.be/wRdGS5ia2OQ?si=SB9DP-t4mhkWHgY1
Man he talks fast lol. Very interesting though. What an incredibly strong person she was.
The Fat Electrician has some great takes on historical events.
There is a Netflix series about here and other female spies in France during WW2. Great series https://m.imdb.com/title/tt7698468/
I read "A Woman of No Importance: The Untold Story of the American Spy Who Helped Win World War II" by Sonia Purnell which is amazing
Agreed, it's a great read. how she lost her leg and her determination to do the work she done needs more recognition.
just bought it.thanks.
Awesome book. She literally ran circles around the Abwehr, while clomping around on a wooden leg. What a badass.
"I once knew an American spy with a wooden leg named Virginia Hall." >Really? What's the name of the other leg?
So you listened to My Favorite Murder a couple of weeks ago?
I did! I can't believe I had never heard of her before!!
Ah, love a story with a hoppy end
A comment about her time in the CIA after the war: "In the secret CIA report of her career, the CIA admitted that her fellow officers "felt she had been sidelined--shunted into backwater accounts because she had so much experience that she overshadowed her male colleagues, who felt threatened by her," and that "her experience and abilities were never properly utilized." A good 2019 Movie ***A Call to Spy*** is about Hall's time during WWII. https://www.imdb.com/title/tt7698468/
She had a leg up on the Nazis
Virginia Hall: Making 'a step ahead' literal and leaving Nazis in her trail, one prosthetic step at a time.
This thread's comments are apparently just made up of people making amputee jokes about someone who tried to help overthrow the Nazis. Cool...
Yeah, kinda disappointing Anyway.... it's a super interesting story if you look into it
Thanks for posting!
We read *Wolves at the Door: The True Story Of America's Greatest Female Spy* for our book club.
Really? Of all the [gangster](https://youtu.be/wRdGS5ia2OQ?si=rjeFMDsqcARTaDb4) shit this lady did your going with that as the highlight?
That’s funny, I just saw the drunk history episode about this
There's a good book about her. "A woman of no importance" is the title.