Tour Report: Soviet Tropospheric Broadcasting Station L.

After thoroughly exploring the dusty brickworks - and making sure to stay out of the shepherd’s way - it was time to move on to the next location.

This site was one of several Soviet bunker complexes constructed during the Cold War near a former Third Reich air munitions facility. In addition to a large training ground, the area once contained various command bunkers, combat control positions, and several communications bunkers.

The structure we had chosen to explore was the site’s former tropospheric radio relay station.

As is often the case, we only had a rough idea of where exactly the bunker was located, or whether it would even still be accessible. We parked nearby and continued on foot toward the patch of forest where we suspected the complex to be hidden.

Before long, we realized we were in the right place: through the trees we spotted the ruined building that housed the entrance to the relay station.

At that exact moment, a black pickup truck drove past us and onto the property. An older man stepped out and began loading cut tree trunks onto the back of the vehicle. That immediately ruled out the standard approach to entering the site.

So we were left with three options: abandon the visit entirely, wait for him to leave — or simply walk over and ask.

We chose the third option.

The man turned out to be the owner of the property. He explained that the smaller section of the bunker complex - the crew bunker - had been sealed off as a bat habitat and was no longer accessible. However, he told us we were welcome to explore the communications bunker itself.

Simple enough.

We entered the decaying ruin, while the owner called after us that he still had an interesting story to tell once we came back out.

Inside the building, a staircase led down into the basement. One section looked like an ordinary brick cellar, while the other connected directly to the fortified relay station.

The bunker itself is relatively small. It consists of two prefabricated structures of the Soviet USB type and offers around 100 square meters of usable space. Given the remote location, the protection level was probably fairly modest by military standards.

What stood out most was the near-total absence of vandalism - the rooms were almost spotless - as well as the remarkably intact light barriers throughout the facility. These small plastic or rubber curtains were commonly used in bunkers instead of doors whenever full hermetic sealing was unnecessary, but light discipline between sections still had to be maintained.

After finishing our exploration of the bunker, the owner showed us something particularly unusual — a feature rarely encountered today.

In the cellar beneath the staircase, a small room had been separated off with a brick wall. You can see it on the second photo below. Between the top of the wall and the ceiling remained an opening barely 30 centimeters high. Rusted hinges on either side indicated that this gap had once been sealed with a barred hatch.

When the owner first took over the property, the tiny windowless room behind it still contained a metal bunk and a bucket.

It was, quite literally, a makeshift Soviet detention cell.

None of us had ever seen anything like it before, and it was difficult not to reflect on the conditions under which some Soviet soldiers must have served at sites like this.

On the way back to the car, we spent some time walking through the surrounding forest to see whether any remains of the former Soviet fuel depot could still be found. We had little success, though - apart from a few traces of the old roads, very little remained visible. Then again, perhaps we simply weren’t looking carefully enough.

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Tour Report: Bath House "Percussion"

For our New Year’s Day trip in 2021, we had something special in mind. We wanted to visit a place that had been on our list for a long time, yet somehow we had never made it there. It was a former municipal bathhouse that had been converted into a percussion instrument factory in the 1920s.

The location is well known within the urbex community, and we were hoping to explore it in peace. That’s why we set out on the morning of January 1st.

And we weren’t wrong. The public parking lot right next to the site was almost completely empty, and only a few scattered walkers were strolling slowly along the river.

We could have taken a direct and easy route, but despite the low number of people around, we decided to play it safe and approach the building from the back. That worked out perfectly, and we quickly found a way inside.

Of course, after so many years of abandonment, the once luxurious and magnificent building was in a rather poor condition. Still, its former grandeur was unmistakable - whether in the ornately decorated ceilings, the arched windows, or the classical-style columns. It was truly an impressive sight.

Throughout our visit, we were completely undisturbed. The grey, windy winter weather provided a fitting contrast to the lighter tones inside, and we took our time capturing the large central hall from every possible angle.

In some areas, it was clear that renovation work had been started at some point, but never carried through.

At the end of our exploration, we took a different route back to the car to get a few exterior shots of the building—again, without encountering anyone.

All in all, our first trip of 2021 was a complete success—and the following day would lead us to two more fascinating locations...

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Tour Report: Baroque Graveyard O.

We don’t always seek out the most spectacular, abandoned places. We find it just as exciting and interesting to explore the area where we happen to be. Sometimes we just drive around and see what we end up stumbling upon, and sometimes we check Google Maps to see if we can find an interesting marker where something exciting might be hiding.

It was similar with this cemetery.

The day before, we’d been on a long tour and wanted to treat ourselves to a quiet, relaxing day. By late afternoon, though, we felt like taking advantage of the nice weather and going on a short tour of the area. I checked Google Maps and found a reference to a small churchyard. Upon closer inspection, we could make out several stone graves that caught our attention.

So we set off. The drive was short; the cemetery was only a little over 10 kilometers away. Directly across the street is the small village square, where we were able to park without any trouble.

The church and the cemetery are still in use, but the last burials had already taken place several years prior to our visit in November 2020.

As we entered the small graveyard, we could already see the four old stone graves. On the way there, I had of course looked up some information about the place and discovered that these were graves from the Baroque era.

What particularly fascinated me were the depictions of skulls on the graves. This was quite common during the Baroque period. The large, richly decorated tombs suggest that the people buried here were once quite wealthy.

A few old gravestones still lean against a wall of the cemetery - this, too, is not uncommon: When relatives are no longer willing or able to pay the grave rental fee, or when there are simply no relatives left to rent a grave site for their ancestors, the grave is reused after some time. The gravestones often remain in the cemetery and are leaned against either the walls of the church or the cemetery wall.

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Tour Report: Soviet Fighter Control Center M.

After finishing our visit to the old industrialist’s villa, we decided to explore one more location. Architecturally and historically, this second site couldn’t have been more different. Instead of decaying bourgeois elegance, we were heading toward a relic of the Cold War: a Soviet fighter-control bunker near Merseburg.

Starting in the mid-1950s, the Soviet armed forces constructed four fighter control stations across the territory of the former East Germany (GDR). These installations served as subordinate command posts responsible for directing interceptor aircraft. Their role was to coordinate the defense of the airspace - especially guiding fighter jets toward hostile bombers.

Radar and reconnaissance data were received, analyzed, and used to guide aircraft directly to their targets, a process known as fighter control. During the Cold War, facilities like this formed an important part of the Soviet air defense network.

One of these bunkers was built on a mining spoil heap near Merseburg. Today the area has been renaturalized and turned into a pleasant landscape, making it a surprisingly nice destination for short hikes. With the weather on our side, that suited us perfectly.

I didn’t know the bunker’s exact location on the hill, but we were optimistic that the hiking trails and smaller footpaths would eventually lead us there.

We parked right at the start of the trail, grabbed our gear, and began the search.

At first we followed the regular hiking path winding its way up the spoil heap. After a while, the first small relics appeared—subtle signs that we were heading in the right direction. The first was one of those typical hydrants often found on former Soviet military sites. Nearby remnants of electrical installations confirmed our suspicion. A little further along, we spotted reinforced, earth-covered vehicle garages beside the path.

Vehicle Garages

So we had definitely reached the former military area. Now all we needed to do was find the bunker.

Luckily, the vegetation wasn’t too dense at this time of year. That made it easier to spot things that might otherwise have been hidden beneath thick greenery. The first structure we discovered was the bunker’s assembly shaft rising from the ground.

That meant the main bunker had to be nearby.

Since I had looked up a rough floor plan beforehand, I had a good idea where the entrance structures might be. A few minutes later we stood in front of a locked door - and felt the first wave of disappointment.

Access Structure

Fortunately, there was a second entrance.

And this one was open.

Through the entrance structure we entered a long access tunnel that eventually led us through an airlock and into the main bunker.

The structure itself is monolithic: essentially a massive concrete block measuring roughly 40 by 13 meters.

From the main corridor we could reach the different sections of the bunker: the kitchen, the water supply room, the ventilation filter chamber, and the situation room.

Main Corridor

Filter for the Ventilation System

Water Supply

Situation Room

At the far end of the corridor we found the room housing the backup power generator. Surprisingly, the installation was still in relatively decent condition, although many movable parts had already been removed by metal thieves over the years. Adjacent to it were the generator control room and the transformer room.

Generator Room

Generator

Generator Control

Considering that the bunker was already more than 60 years old at the time of our visit, the overall condition of both the structure and the equipment wasn’t particularly good. Comparing what we saw with older photographs, it was clear that many relics had disappeared over time.

Even so, exploring this Cold War bunker was a fascinating experience. Sites like this help paint a clearer picture of the once-extensive Soviet military presence in the region.

And in the end, we even discovered something unexpected: the shoulder board of a Soviet soldier. It was already badly deteriorated - but for me, it was still an incredible find.

Shoulder Board of a Soviet Soldier

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Tour Report: The Chateau by the River

One week after exploring a former Naval Air Base to bridge the time until our vacation, the long-awaited day had finally arrived. Our vacation had begun! For our first tour, we had chosen two promising locations: an abandoned factory owner's villa and a Soviet bunker.

We started the day with a relaxed breakfast before packing the car. The first location was only about 30 minutes away, making for a short and easy drive.

Our first stop was the abandoned villa. Information about the building is scarce, but it was most likely constructed in the early 20th century as the residence of a factory owner. During the GDR era, it may have been repurposed as the administrative building of a local VEB (state-owned enterprise). Since German reunification, the villa appears to have been left to decay.

The property lies between a quiet river and several still-active industrial buildings – a striking contrast between past and present. Although it would have been possible to approach by car, there were no official parking spaces nearby, so we decided to park a little further away. Fortunately, we found a public parking lot within walking distance. From there, it was about a 15-minute walk along a combined pedestrian and cycle path that runs right beside the river. The peaceful scenery and the gentle sound of flowing water provided a calm and almost deceptive introduction to what awaited us.

As we approached the villa, we were surprised to find no real barriers keeping people out. The old cast-iron fence had largely disappeared, and numerous well-trodden paths across the grounds suggested that the place was no secret among explorers.

Following one of these paths, we quickly discovered several possible entry points. At some stage, the doors and ground-floor windows had been boarded up, but many of the wooden panels had been forcibly removed, leaving multiple openings.

The moment we stepped inside, we were speechless.

Intricate woodwork, richly patterned fabric wallpaper, and beautifully crafted Art Nouveau windows immediately caught our attention. Despite visible vandalism and the unmistakable signs of decay, the villa still radiated a quiet elegance and hinted at its former grandeur.

The large stained-glass window was mostly concealed behind wooden boards – likely the only reason it had survived at all. I was also relieved to see very little graffiti inside. Perhaps we were simply lucky – or perhaps time and crumbling plaster had already claimed what once covered the walls.

We spent well over an hour exploring the rooms, taking our time to capture the atmosphere in photographs. Eventually, we made our way back to the car, ready to continue our day at the next location.

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Tour Report: Chateau "Ornament"

Exploring this place was one of those moments that stay with you for a long time.

During our summer vacation in 2020, my wife and I visited the abandoned mansion of a former knight’s estate. Some time before, I had stumbled upon a few photos of its exterior and learned that it had most likely been vacant since the fall of the Berlin Wall. From the outside alone, it already radiated a strange kind of quiet dignity.

We hadn’t seen a single photo of the interior, so we had no idea what awaited us inside. Before heading there, we studied the area on Google Maps, trying to plan our approach as carefully as possible.

At the front, the property bordered a small neighborhood with still-inhabited houses. People lived there. Curtains moved behind windows. Approaching from that side was clearly not an option.

At the back, the grounds extended into a wooded area - but the way from there would have been long and inconvenient, and we weren’t even sure if we’d find a place to leave the car.

That left only one realistic option: a farm located on the neighboring land. It wasn’t ideal, and there was always the risk of being noticed. But since it was a Tuesday, we hoped that luck - and a quiet workday - might be on our side.

And it was.

We found a small parking spot on a side road near the farm. Everything was quiet. No one seemed to be around. With a slight mix of excitement and nervousness, we made our way onto the property.

Finding an entrance took a few minutes. The summer heat was intense, the air heavy and still. Every step through the dry leaves sounded painfully loud, as if the whole world could hear us. For a moment, we froze - but no one came. No dogs barked. No doors opened.

Finally, we slipped inside.

What we found there completely took our breath away.

Although the mansion was completely empty, it had somehow remained untouched by vandalism or graffiti. Sunlight filtered through dusty windows, revealing high arched ceilings, massive wooden doors, detailed stucco work, and incredibly ornate wood carvings.

The woodwork, in particular, fascinated us. From the finely carved wall panels to the decorated columns and stair railings, everything told a story of craftsmanship that simply doesn’t exist like that anymore.

My personal highlight was a huge wooden door, roughly 3 by 2 meters in size, covered in intricate carvings. Standing in front of it felt almost unreal - like facing a relic from another era.

We spent nearly two hours wandering through the building, quietly moving from room to room, trying to absorb every detail before leaving the same way we had entered.

Fortunately, from the photos I’ve seen in recent years, the place seems to have remained mostly unchanged. And who knows - maybe one day we’ll return, just to feel that atmosphere again.

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Tour Report: The Villa on the Edge of Town

The day after exploring the "Green School", we didn't want to drive too far. The weather was still really hot, and we had a barbecue planned for the evening, so we looked for something in the area. We decided to check out an old villa that was only about 30 minutes away from our vacation spot. So after a nice breakfast, we packed our gear and got on the way. The friends that explored the air-raid shelter together with us were also with us.

As I've said, the place wasn't too far. And conveniently enough, there was a supermarket and various other shops almost right next door to the villa, so there was a huge parking lot where we could park our cars and not arise any suspicion.

From the parking lot, we only had to walk a few meters; then we were standing in front of the property. The walls of the ground floor of the villa were almost fully covered with ivy, and the property itself was completely overgrown, just as we had expected after looking at the place in Google Maps. Only a few paths were passable, showing that visitors repeatedly found their way onto the property and into the villa.

We followed the path to the backside of the building and found an open door right away.

The building was mostly empty, and we could see that many "visitors" apparently hadn't been kind to the old villa. There was a lot of vandalism - broken tile stoves, graffiti on the walls, and trash and leftover furniture scattered on the floor.

But there was also some nice decay, and I was particularly impressed by the few remaining Art Nouveau elements.

We spent a little over an hour and a half in the building before heading back to the cars to explore another location before making our way home.

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