Or, our heroes delve into the underbelly of Northwest Germany. Underbellies, rather.
We spent an afternoon and evening bumping around various derelict terrains, forests, and even town squares on the quest for a series of bunkers and an old cistern, empty for many many moons. In the process, we realized that a little bit of pre-departure Google Earth verification can save a huge amount of sweaty, angry, mosquito-swatting, heavy-gear-lugging hiking on horse poo afflicted biking trails – in what turns out to be the completely wrong direction.
Among other things, we also decided that a decrepit-looking skater punk chowing down on a sandwich right across from the bunker we were about to crack was not conducive to the kind of discretion we usually practice. So, no. Nonetheless, the take included an old water collection cistern with some nice arches, an uncompleted bunker used as a hospital in the closing stages of World War II, and a former underground armor plate testing facility (as in, “put a big chunk of steel up against a wall and shoot cannon at it”).
In the end, we managed to squeeze through a ridiculous amount of narrow, dusty, muddy tunnels and crawlspaces to emerge into various refreshingly cool, dripping underground rooms. It was nice to be in the dark again, but don’t bump into stalactites – in addition to ruining pretty things that have been building up for decades, they are slimy and wet and go down the back of your shirt.
