Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Closer: and closer: This is unusual. It's constructed mainly from concrete, with some stone and it resembles breezeblocks. The occupant has carved his name into the stone above the doorway. It's a rather humorous touch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Let's go in through Herr Schilling's doorway. As I've said previously, relics are often left in situ or close by so they can be seen by other visitors. Here, by his door, are some artefacts: a bucket, a spade, some shells, some shrapnel and a bullet. Inside, looking out: Perhaps you can sense the steepness of the hill beyond. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Close up. If anyone cares to tell me what the other artefacts are, I'd be glad to know. I recognise a shovel. What stories these artefacts could tell. Maybe this was Herr Schilling's bucket. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Last look before skidding down the hillside and onwards towards the French defences. By this stage I am seriously exhausted, eking out my water and I have some distance to go, some of it uphill! More to come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fritz Posted 5 October , 2009 Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Remarkable photographs. Fritz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bruce Posted 5 October , 2009 Share Posted 5 October , 2009 This is beginning to read like an adventure novel......will our hero get there before the water runs out? See next weeks thrillig installment! More, please! Bruce Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mandy hall Posted 5 October , 2009 Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Stunning photos, can't wait for the next instalment Mandy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Thank you! The next bunker is complex and unusual. It consists of two levels and served as a shelter and an observation point. Apparently it's rare to see a two storey German bunker constructed in concrete. The entrance is round at the back. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Here you can see three stairways, down, up and down again. I'm standing at lower level and you can see the upper storey here. The second photo in post #58 shows a path to the right of the bunker, and I am about to climb up it in quite a steep ascent... ... to several French shelters tunnelled into the slope. It isn't possible to enter these and it looks as if the roofs have collapsed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 After climb of about 500 metres, I see this, almost hidden among the pines: This is a German defence blockhaus. It has a clear view of both Petit Reichackerkopf and the col separating Petit and Grand Reichackerkopf, and probably a wider view too. (It's hard to tell in dense forest.) This structure enabled the Germans to see the French attack and thwart it with machine guns, fully protected by the concrete shelter. In taking this photo, I have my back to the slope. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 5 October , 2009 Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Gwyn, are your pictures from circuit 1,2 or 3? Also, what is the Petit and Grand Reichackerkopf in your defintion. Is it Sattelkopf, Kälble, Reichackerkopf and Mönchberg? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Same and - late afternoon sun - Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 A picture I took at Reichackerkopf in May, 2008. I didn't touch this or fake it; it is as it was. I was interested in the echo of the shapes. I must add that I took this with a long lens. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Before I add any more, I thought it would be helpful to include some maps, scanned from my worn-out IGN maps. I've marked the sites Egbert walked, too, in his threads on Tête des Faux, Schratzmännele and Barrenkopf. Unfortunately Reichackerkopf is mainly off the map, but I hope this helps. This is a wider view showing the area in Haut-Rhin we mean. The mountains are the Vosges and the Front covered a far longer line than the area shown in Egbert's and my photo threads. The Alsace wine growing region is in the slopes to the east of the Vosges and before the Rhine plain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Final map for location. The arrows show the extent of the area covered by our threads. I'm assuming people who are interested can find Strasbourg on a map of France. More pictures to come, but I need to do other things tonight. Gwyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 I also want to add that I don't have any material in English, so any mistakes are to do with my imperfect understanding of French, especially military terms. I hope the text helps, but I've no intention of setting up as a translator! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Gwyn, are your pictures from circuit 1,2 or 3? Also, what is the Petit and Grand Reichackerkopf in your defintion. Is it Sattelkopf, Kälble, Reichackerkopf and Mönchberg? Reichackerkopf is a saddle. One side is Petit Reichackerkopf, the other is Grand. Grand is the slightly higher part. For the purposes of your proposed walk, the whole thing is Reichackerkopf, but when you get there, you'll see the ups and downs I mean. Sattel is the col. Pics in posts 1- 34 are in the circuit # 1 and the rest are in # 3. HTH. Gwyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
egbert Posted 5 October , 2009 Share Posted 5 October , 2009 Sorry, I did not want to confuse and edited this post Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 5 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 5 October , 2009 If you email me your map, Egbert, I'll try and answer your question. Apologies if I sounded rather brusque in my previous reply. Gwyn Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterhogg Posted 6 October , 2009 Share Posted 6 October , 2009 Fascinating photographs and great commentaries and descriptions! Thank you for posting this material. I intend to include this area in my next trip to France. (hopefully next year) peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 6 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 6 October , 2009 Peter - Thanks. If you need any details, or suggestions for accommodation to consider, please don't hesitate to ask. I wouldn't wish to promote an hotel on a forum but I have a few ideas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evolution Posted 6 October , 2009 Share Posted 6 October , 2009 I only wish photo,s that I take would turn out like these here, you have a eye for taking photo's, is it a hobby, or do you also do it as a job? Peter - Thanks. If you need any details, or suggestions for accommodation to consider, please don't hesitate to ask. I wouldn't wish to promote an hotel on a forum but I have a few ideas. Are there any camp sites in the area, if so are they open all year round, I have done a search but none come up for this region. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
evolution Posted 6 October , 2009 Share Posted 6 October , 2009 I think it will be quite a while before I can scramble up any hill sides Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dragon Posted 6 October , 2009 Author Share Posted 6 October , 2009 I only wish photo,s that I take would turn out like these here, you have a eye for taking photo's, is it a hobby, or do you also do it as a job? Are there any camp sites in the area, if so are they open all year round, I have done a search but none come up for this region. It's a hobby. Thanks for your nice comment. For campsites see Tourisme Alsace (Choose Grand pays de Colmar in the drop-down menu.) Orbey, Freland, Labaroche, Munster, Soulteren, Wihr au Val, Luttenbach and Mittlach are in the area. Kaysersberg is about 20 minutes drive away and is on the border of the wine area and the Vosges. I have no knowledge of any of the campsites, as I've never camped. Fermes auberges are farm accommodation and would also be inexpensive for those who want to stay on the land. Sorry you're in a tough state. There are battlefield areas which are more accessible than others and a few you can drive up to and park with not very far to go from the car. My pictures are intended to show specific installations, but I have pictures of what the terrain is like, too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peterhogg Posted 6 October , 2009 Share Posted 6 October , 2009 Thank you Dragon. I certainly will follow up when I get closer to my trip. This is a great thread. Thanks also for taking the time to put together an indispensable guide to the area. Obviously you have inspired much interest. cheers, peter Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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