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The Great War (1914-1918) Forum

Remembered Today:

My climb up Hartmannsweilerkopf (HWK)


egbert

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Brackets (fixing brackets for the monorail).

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Constructor sign inside an underground shelter. Situated at Marthapfad (Martha path) and carved in the concrete 1917 from Minenwerfer-Kompanie 326

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Brackets (fixing brackets for the monorail).

thanks Gwyn. Monorail it is for the transport system (I think we even have the same word in German language!)

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Heavy Minenwerfer gallery system "Adler" (eagle) as before, different entrance/exit. Constructor sign from Minenwerfer-Kompanie 326.

Now the brackets for the monorail make perfect sense to transport the mortar projectiles from this "Zündmittelraum" (=Explosives shelter) to firing base

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We are still on Marthapfad (Martha trail) and within perimeters of firing position of Heavy Minenwerfer "Adler" (=Eagle), Minenwerfer Kompanie 326.

This is a telephone bundle- if they only could speak now....

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This is THEN, but not the same place, but rear area. It shows only a fraction of the many lines at HWK , up and down from operation centers to firing positions

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Same positon but I am not sure whether the image was taken before 1917 (just wooden protection against weather) or during the concrete construction period 1917.

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A couple of meters away, stunning views into the plain. You see the village of "Hartmannsweiler" which gave name to this mighty mountain.

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Right around the corner approaching fortress "Feste Wartburg". This is not a simple shed, it is a mighty fortress with galleries bored deep into the rock. It's location is justbelow "Aussichtsfelsen", a famous rock formation with lots of bunkers and fortresses.

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The entrance system is not visible for enemy artillery spotters, but nevertheless in full range of artillery and trench mortars. It is located below the summit on the East side of HWK

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Question: what does ex-RAF station Laarbruch has in common with this mighty fortress?

Answer: both wear the first line of Luther's hymn "Ein feste Burg...." as their motto.

The most popular English version is A mighty fortress is our God, a bulwark never failing......

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As all fortresses, Feste Wartburg has its own constructor sign as well; fortress built by Landwehr Pionier Kompanie 14 in 1915

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The third sign displays ten names from soldiers who obviously once manned it, ot part of it, or participated building it.

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Excellent thread, Egbert,

I know you have said that it is permissible for anyone to explore the mountain but are all the tunnels open or were they just open to you because you had a guide ?

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Steve you can explore 99% to include the galleries without restrictions. They are so many, the whole mountaind 360, is riddled with trenches, bunkers, galleries, caverns and God knows what else.

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More great photos egbert, with some excellent originals to make sense of it all. Keep em coming :thumbsup:

Regards

Sean

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I know you have said that it is permissible for anyone to explore the mountain but are all the tunnels open or were they just open to you because you had a guide ?

I'm not specifically commenting on your post or making any assumptions about your abilities, Steve. :)

Anyone thinking of wandering around Hartmannswillerkopf or indeed any of the mountains needs to exercise care. The mountains are forested and at times it's next to impossible to see what's underfoot or ahead. Some of the entrances to these tunnels and caves are partially blocked with recent rockfalls. There is obviously instability in some places. However well constructed and ventilated they were at the time, some now have poor ventilation and gases may have built up. It doesn't take much of a falling stone to cause a head injury. The paths are slippy and uneven, especially in rain. There's rusty barbed wire and bits of metal all over the place. I don't believe everything has been discovered and maybe the 10% of places Egbert's expert guide omitted were left out for a reason.

There are the usual variations in climate one would expect in a mountainous area. Temperatures can drop markedly. Sunshine can suddenly turn to rain, mist or fog. In some of these locations, losing your way in fog could take you over the edge of the mountain. I have had the experiences of sudden dense fog in these mountain battlefields even in mid-June and believe me, it's scary.

I would also avoid going at the time of day when dusk may fall. Again, I've had the experience of being lost in the trench system as it was getting dark. Sometimes you have to go underground for a short distance to continue the path and if you need to retrace your steps, one grassed-over trench in a forest looks very much like another. The walls are so high you can't get your bearings.

For someone who isn't familiar with the mountain battlefields, I would suggest starting off by sticking to the well trodden paths which, on HWK, are often signed. On Tête des Faux, for example, use the IGN walking maps with the Club Vosgien paths marked by symbols, then follow the symbols through the forest and round the mountain. You can see heaps of stuff within close reach of the paths. If you want a taster, try le Linge (but even that isn't completely risk-free) and Barrenkopf and Schratzmaennele.

Apart from maps, I would also take a torch and a phone or iPad with GPN.

The battlefields are very well worth exploring, as Egbert's fascinating threads have shown. (I think I may take some credit for urging him to go to the Vosges in the first place!) But I would defy even the most sane, level-headed individual to say that in some lights, in some conditions, these places do not have a certain something that you can't quite explain. I personally have an knee injury to prove it... and to this day neither I nor my perfectly well-balanced companion knows how it happened. All I know is that I just felt something... :ph34r:

Gwyn

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Fabulous illustrated narrative, Egbert and the archive images really help.

One day you and I might meet face to face in a cave. :w00t:

Gwyn

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