egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Share Posted 18 February , 2015 During my last research in the Vosges mountains (-warfare) my French friend showed me an extraordinary example of contemporary history from the 1916s. In proximity of Hartmannsweilerkopf (HWK) mountain I was asked whether I would like to see something special. What was shown to me looked like a hunting lodge in the middle of the woods. Actually it was a formerly and heavily concreted front building of a deep bored gallery system into the mountain. A friend indeed has taken custody of the former German bunker -hidden and unaccessible for any tourist - and converted it into "his" Vosges mountain hunting lodge. Summer 2014, bunker with all the "amenities" like stove, window, water absorption system, natural fridge etc Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 Both, right and left entrances lead to the underground gallery system. Behind the right door though opens a lovely, cosy habitable room. Note the painted corrugated ceiling, stove , lights, wood paneling Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 The view in the last post was towards the exit door, when turning around by 180° and opening the next sesame door you will have access to the bored galleries. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 The temps are constantly between 7-12 degrees C and guarantee the perfect beer temperature Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 A 1916 German bunker with underground gallery system THEN Summer 2014 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 NOW, Today Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 .....and the view downhill from the bunker. The chamois have reclaimed the remote battlefields....... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 18 February , 2015 Share Posted 18 February , 2015 That's intriguing. And how amazing that the chamois are so close. Is the corrugated iron ceiling the original one cleaned up? I'm not sure I would want to live in somewhere which has seen that sort of history and with unknown bored galleries - it could have just too much atmosphere! What a privilege for you to have been shown it. (There's a small telegraphists' bunker on Reichackerkopf which a family from the destroyed villages in the vallée de Munster lived in for six years while waiting for their home to be rebuilt. I don't remember it being as spacious as your friend's mountain lodge.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 18 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 18 February , 2015 Is the corrugated iron ceiling the original one cleaned up? Yes Gwyn it is the original. It served as boarding for the concrete poured upon the corrugated iron Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 19 February , 2015 Share Posted 19 February , 2015 Thanks. The strength of the German structures in the Vosges is always impressive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 20 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 20 February , 2015 Totally overwhelmed by the many responses on this trivial thread, I pay deference to the crowd and post more bunker-living snapshots from HWK. This time a British group from Holx'x Tours - yes there are a few British visitors East of the Somme- enjoying a trench lunch in German fortress Dora on HWK. The menu served inside the Feste was original German Erbsensuppe , complemented by Alsatian wine..... For outside Feste Dora pictures please see my HWK-thread: 1. http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=185493&p=2170644 2. http://1914-1918.invisionzone.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=185493&p=1832180 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
healdav Posted 20 February , 2015 Share Posted 20 February , 2015 Obviously a faceless bunch of bureaucrats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 20 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 20 February , 2015 Obviously a faceless bunch of bureaucrats. Ahhh, I understand at second glance -your avatar. You are a EU bureaucrat then, based in Luxembourg? Since you seem to be very interested in bunker living -here is the panning shot, still inside underground Feste Dora: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 20 February , 2015 Share Posted 20 February , 2015 I bet the chances are that the Alsacien wine the visitors were drinking was better than that which might have been available in the Great War. Thread/post I spy a kougelhopf. (I make kougelhopf regularly.) I have letters from the French sector of the High Vosges front which state that in the bitter temperatures, the men's wine froze and turned to black ink. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
michaeldr Posted 20 February , 2015 Share Posted 20 February , 2015 After a storm last night, there was no internet here this morning and so I was able to catch-up on some reading: one piece was an essay by Jean-Noel Grandhomme on Alsace-Lorraine soldiers in the Palestine Campaign. I have thoroughly enjoyed your thread here Egbert and cannot help thinking how homesick these men must have been for such a beautiful place – one was with the artillery near Jericho and he found the summer heat unbearable; so much so that he took the first opportunity in 1918 to desert! best regards Michael Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 20 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 20 February , 2015 I spy a kougelhopf. (I make kougelhopf regularly.) Spot on, a Gugelhupf indeed, a perfect dessert with some 6 meter concrete protection above Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SteveMarsdin Posted 20 February , 2015 Share Posted 20 February , 2015 a perfect dessert with some 6 meter concrete protection above That's one heck of a crust ! Thanks for posting and good to see the old shelter put to good and sympathetic use (although if it also doubles as a hunting lodge it's not too sympathetic to the chamois !) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 21 February , 2015 Share Posted 21 February , 2015 Spot on, a Gugelhupf indeed, a perfect dessert with some 6 meter concrete protection above Seen here in Cheshire with Terroir des Châteaux Forts, 2011, Rolly Gassmann of Rorschwihr. Why "Kougelhopf"? On their way to Bethlehem, Gaspar, Melchior and Balthasar lost their way in a sandstorm and mists, and ended up way off course in Ribeauvillé, Alsace. A potter living in the nearby forests offered them overnight shelter and a meal. The next morning, a wonderful sunrise revealed the crests and shadows of Hohneck, a mountain in the Vosges. The three Magi decided to show their appreciation of their host's kindness and they created a sweet yeast-dough cake in the shape of the beautiful Hohneck, with peaks and valleys. This is how the kougelhopf originated and its crown shape reflects the nobility of its creators. Taken from Hohneck summit. You can definitely see the similarities with a kougelhopf. (Le Hohneck: le sommet et les fils de fer barbelés, 14-18) Gwyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 21 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 21 February , 2015 For your enjoyment, here is a better close-up of Gugelhupf (Bundt cake) with 6meter concrete "crust", served to a British group in a German fortress, complemented with Alsatian wine Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 21 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 21 February , 2015 ....and because it is a German fortress the German sausages hanging from the bunker ceiling - dedicated for usage with the Erbsensuppe - give it the ultimate athmosphere of genuity.... ...while my ami Vosgien gives it the French flavour with a nice red wine, just like what they did 98 years ago... Feste Dora was built in 1915 by Jäger-Bataillon 14 and consisted of an observer- and MG position Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rickpreston@nasuwt.net Posted 21 February , 2015 Share Posted 21 February , 2015 These pictures of the Vogue Mt with the bunker & snow are fantastic. Thank you for posting them. Richard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
martin_sole Posted 21 February , 2015 Share Posted 21 February , 2015 Wunderbar. Has your friend leased the bunker from the state or simply appropriated it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 21 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 21 February , 2015 Martin, I can not comment on that -just pick your choice. This thread so far showed 2 different bunker-livings. I will post pictures from a third bunker-living at HWK.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trenchtrotter Posted 21 February , 2015 Share Posted 21 February , 2015 Wonderful stuff especially the hunting lodge. It is amazing how well preserved te corrugated iron is. I have seen equally well preserved iron on trench dugouts when exposed by the tractor / road works etc. TT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 21 February , 2015 Author Share Posted 21 February , 2015 Bunker-living or smart hunting lodge? This image shows a German bunker at the slopes of HWK. The snow is melting now and in a few days all is gone. The snow at HWK can be 3 meters high with temps up to minus 20-30 degrees centigrade. A working stove is a must for the off-sentry times. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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