Cycling, holiday and Baltic…… three words you would not usually see in the same sentence but this has been on our wish list since 2019. We are cycling around Rugen, the largest German island located off the Pomeranian coast in the Baltic Sea. Despite threats made over the last couple of years we are not alone, Jacky and Ken are still gluttons for punishment and thought it sounded ‘fun’. That was before our route GPX files arrived and we discovered Rugen is both hilly and windy.
Yesterday, we sailed overnight from Harwich which is a civilised way to start a holiday, despite a 05:30 wake up call this morning. There is a deranged mind that thinks ‘Don’t worry, be happy’ is suitable music at that time of the morning. As an aside, last night, as we approached Colchester, a car came speeding past waving frantically. What a coincidence to see Katie and Elizabeth, albeit briefly.
Cycling starts from Stralsund on Saturday so our 8 hour journey has been broken on the outskirts of Bremen. It’s about halfway and is home to the Valentin Bunker, a huge reinforced concrete structure built between 1943 and 1945, using forced prisoner labour, with the intention of housing submarines.
Our hotel is a short cycle from the bunker, with the added adventure of a ferry across the river Weser, so that’s where we spent our afternoon. The day has been incredibly hot and humid but the temperature plummeted as we approached this monolithic building. Photos are simply not adequate do it justice.
The bunker was intended to house 4500 workers building U-boats in 13 assembly bays. The Allies had other ideas, having developed precision bombing techniques during the Dambusters raid, 617 Squadron sent 115 Lancasters and managed to blow two large holes in the roof. No U-boats were ever built there.
In 2010, the German Navy agreed to cease using the bunker for storage and it became a memorial project, opening to the public in 2016.
10000 prisoners worked on the bunker, often carrying sacks of cement powder that weighed more than they did for 12 hours a day, with only a slice of bread and bowl of soup for nourishment. This is an eye watering example of ‘Extermination through Labour’ which, although not an official Nazi policy, was an effective way for projects to be delivered quickly and cheaply.
Our visit ended with a brisk cycle ride back to the ferry, racing ahead of the rain towards a well earned beer. It’s currently pouring with rain, fingers crossed it stops by the morning.
braysabroad 