Tour Report: Ammunition Factory K.

After leaving the aqua park, we made our way to our friends at the "Huskyhof", where we wanted to spend the last few days of our November 2019 vacation. On the way, we took a small detour to scout out a place we'd been eyeing for a trip for a while.

It is a large ammunition factory that was built in the 1930s, initially to produce ammunition for large-caliber guns. It later began producing chemical weapons in the form of grenades and aerial bombs. After the end of the war, part of the site continued to be used for the production of armaments such as hand grenades, fuses and landmines, including the PPM-2 infantry mine and the SM-70 automatic firing system.

Another part of the site was later used by the Red Army as a garrison base.

It was already early afternoon when we arrived, so we only had time for a short exploration tour. We found a parking spot right next to the road that bordered the site.  There is an industrial area on the other side, so another car didn't really stand out. To our surprise, access to the site was not sealed off - the only sign we saw told us not to dump any garbage. But that wasn't our plan...

We had to climb over a few tree trunks that had fallen onto the paths, then we reached the first buildings relatively quickly.

We had no idea what to expect, so we were all the more surprised at what we found.

Most of the buildings we found were from the time of the war - recognizable by the large windows, which ensured that the detonation energy was dissipated to the outside in the event of an explosion - and only windows and personnel had to be replaced, but the building itself suffered as little damage as possible.

Ammunition factories built in this way remind me again and again of the cruelty and inhumanity of war, and not just on the battlefield.

The part of the site we were looking at belonged to the area that continued to be used for the production of ammunition during the Cold War. One building in particular caught the eye. A meter-high concrete wall had been built on each side at a relatively short distance, again to protect the surrounding area from the effects of an unplanned explosion.

These huge, smooth walls are obviously an invitation to graffiti artists, as they were full of paintings - and some of them were really beautiful! The huge whale in particular really inspired us - for me one of the most beautiful works of art we have ever discovered in an abandoned place.

As it was getting late, we still had a good hour's drive ahead of us and were expected for dinner, we decided to cut our visit short but come back the next day.

This visit should also be very exciting and bring some unexpected surprises..., so stay tuned!

To find out about the history of the place and to check out all the photos, click the button below.

Tour Report: Army Test Center for Motor Transport

On the third day of our November vacation in 2019, we slowly made our way south. On the way, we stopped at a former military facility whose history dates back to the 1870s, when the German Empire set up an artillery firing range there.

The Wehrmacht operated a development and testing center for new weapons systems and equipment on the site until 1945. From 1939, work was also carried out on the so-called “uranium project”.

We hadn't really looked into the size and layout of the site beforehand, so we approached the whole thing somewhat naively - but in the end it was reasonably successful and we were able to take away a few fascinating impressions.

The site is huge, divided by a country road and secured with fences all around. Signs assured us that the area is regularly patrolled by a security guard. So we looked for a parking space that was far enough away - even though our license plate clearly did not identify us as local residents, which is always suspicious in such areas.

From this parking lot, we set off on foot, first along normal forest paths and then along the fence until we found an opening that gave us access to the southern part of the site. Both my wife and I had an uncanny feeling the whole time - be it because of the foggy, gray weather or the long dark history of the place. We did not feel at ease. The path through the forest was rough, and we had to keep taking detours due to trenches and the ruins of buildings, but eventually we reached our destination - the test hall for the “Panzerkampfwagen VIII Maus”. It was an impressive sight, although it was by no means the largest building - the massive concrete skeleton with the vaulted roof is an imposing structure.

We didn't miss the opportunity to climb all the way to the top of the stairs. It wasn't a good feeling, because although the concrete is steel-reinforced, it is still quite crumbly after almost 80 years.

However, the view from the top made up for the discomfort on the way.

After the descent, we set about exploring other buildings in the vicinity.

After the war, the site was used by the Soviet army and we found some interesting relics - from murals in the sports hall to propaganda posters and Cyrillic graffiti. We even found a plaster bust of Lenin, which was no longer really recognizable as such.

When we looked out of the window on one of the upper floors, we saw that a security vehicle had driven up. For now, we stayed calm and continued to take our photos. But when the driver opened the gate and drove onto the grounds, we took to our heels and disappeared along the forest path that we had used as an entrance.

The humorous finale to our excursion came when we reached our car. Behind our car was a speed camera - safely hidden and unsuspicious by our foreign license plate. In the 5 minutes it took us to stow our things, he caught several cars - it was certainly a successful day for the officer. At least until we drove off, because we could see in the rear-view mirror that he left the scene shortly after us.

To find out about the history of the place and to check out all the photos, click the button below.