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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

My climb up Hartmannsweilerkopf (HWK)


egbert

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This last post war picture from the "slumbercliffs" , looking uphill to where I came from, shows the left infrastructure extensions .

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...because the spirit is still with this magic place. The men, long gone, are still peeling potatoes and for me are as vivid as then.

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THEN

Note the haul tracks.I mentioned the line at the beginning of Kreuzotterpfad. The steep downhill slope from 750m here continues immediately behind the track on the left side

Most if not all of these soldiers were killed in the fierce battles on HWK where L.I.R. 56 earned its merits

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Egbert, this thread just gets better and better. I am totally enthralled. All the photos are good, but the superimposed 'then and now' shots in posts #482 and #505 are extremely emotive. Thank you so much.

Keith

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Excellent photos, Egbert; I continue to be amazed at how much is still there in the wild after all these years (and not sanitised in a museum environment)

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The then and now in post 505 is amazing.

Mandy

Easy enough to do in Photoshop, but the real skill lies in 1) getting hold of such a superb 'Then' shot, and 2) having the energy to find the 'Now' shot. Well done Egbert on both counts.

Keith

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I agree Steve, quite incredible. I spent about 4 hours on the HWK, and thought I'd seen an awful lot of remains. But as I now discover, we didn't even scratch the surface. Definitely the cue for a return trip.

Keith

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Thank you for your motivating posts, I really do appreciate!

I am glad you see it like me -the #505 is my favorite in the whole thread.

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...because the spirit is still with this magic place. The men, long gone, are still peeling potatoes and for me are as vivid as then.

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Superb 'then and now' egbert and the great tour continues :thumbsup:

Sean.

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Is it a stable for mules and workhorses?

I have been looking at this picture over the last 2 day's, with every intention of having a wild stab in the dark as to its use, maybe I should have checked out the small print!! :unsure:

Thats 2 day's Im never going to get back egbert :w00t:

(note to self) must wear glasses in future when on forum.

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Nice One Sean.

I had to interrupt for a few days, as i am .........near, very near the HWK here organizing my next trip in February.

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Egbert,

I've followed this from the start and this is just incredible. Not only the amount of effort the defenders on both sides put into making their structures permanent, but your photo's and explanations have brought a little known battlefield back to life. This is a privilege to follow.

Cheers Andy.

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Thanks Andy!

I am still on Klippenweg, circling the HWK summit at 750 m height. So all in all some 200m behind the summit frontlines and always staying paralell to them.

Right above my position on the path I see a huge complex of sheltered barracks and Bn HQ L.I.R.124. Their name: "Klippenstollen"

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The structures run above and below my path. and they are built into the steep slope like a blister.

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You need considerable time to explore the complex

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The last picture, but photo taken to uphill structures, was taken from almost the same position like this wartime photo here. So to the right above this path lie the barracks. Note the haul track is visible in this photo. The structure left, below the path level is the end station of an aerial cable way coming up from the valley. And it was here that supplies were loaded on the lorries to be transported per mule, horse or men to the places you have seen before on this path ="Klippenweg".

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If you note the wooden structure in above picture, that is the railing, also shown in this detailed picture here. The facility below it, is the upper station of the aerial cable way D11. The large wooden structure right before the station where the soldiers sit is in fact the last mast and guides the lorries from the aerial cable way into the bunkered upper station. To the right of the "Klippenweg", just 10m away was another smaller aerial cable way D101 leading right to the summit.

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A few meters away on Klippenweg I approach the double feature complex called "Jägerfelsen" and "Elsässerstein".

This picture features the Battalion Operation Center of MG Kompanie "Garde-Jäger" in "Jägerfelsen"

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This is a picture where both features are viewable: the Bn HQ MG coy Gardejäger plus the huge complex of heavy Minenwerfer-Kompanie 312.

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Fish-eye view from both features. The Op center of Schwere (Heavy) Minenwerfer-Kompanie 312 is the large structure in background with the actual firing position of Schwerer Minenwerfer "Jaguar" on top of the HQ. The whole bunker structure is built into the rock and is absolute bomb proof.

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