As Freddy picked us up early in the morning, the sun was just coming up, and the weather looked perfect for a tour.
For the first spot, we only had to drive to the border where Germany had been separated until 1990. For fear that NATO might start an attack on the Eastern Bloc, the East German military had set up a chain of garrisons along the entire border. These were manned by the "Grenztruppen" (Border Troops), a military formation tasked with securing and controlling the state border.
Most of the garrisons that I have seen were standardized facilities with accommodation and office building, vehicle garages, dog kennels and a small bunker for storing ammunition. This one was no different.
As we drove past the place, we noticed that it was not secured in any way; the gate was wide open, and there were no signs of any use - except for dumping trash. Many abandoned former military installations in Eastern Germany are being used by the locals for dumping all types trash. It was the same here. Old electric appliances and tires were lying around as well as various plastic bags of unknown content.
Entering the place was as easy as we'd suspected. All the doors were open, and we could walk around as we pleased.
Of course, the copper thieves have made a mess of the place over the years - but surprisingly enough, there weren't too many signs of the local youth using this place for hanging out. There were hardly any graffiti and/or leftovers from parties.
The place wasn't too interesting, but we got a few nice photos out of it in the end - and another green pin on our map ;)
After about 90 minutes or so, we left and went back to the car to drive to the next spot we'd planned for the day.
To check out all the photos from this place and to find out about its history, click the button below.
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