The Atlantic Wall was built by the Germans in WWII to keep out the Allied Forces (that us). Remains of this can be found along the North Sea. Hunting down some of these bunkers was an adventure too amazing to pass up. So, we bundled up, hopped on our e-bikes, and headed off.
The first entrance to the dunes was blocked with barbed wire. It took two more tries before we found our way in. We had a map, but the strong winds have pushed sand up and over almost everything. Eventually, we were truly lost and alone in the dunes with only the deer for company. Fortunately, we had cell coverage. Ray had the brilliant idea to go online and see if we could find help. We paid $13 for a GPS Bunker tracker and we were able to find the most amazing bunkers and our way out of the dunes. It was worth it! There are hundreds of bunkers in the dunes. We found about eight and a spot on the top of the dunes that originally had a cannon. Most are filled with sand, but Ray was able to crawl through one of them. The most interesting one had three chimneys. Originally it was thought to be a kitchen, but now experts believe it was where soldiers hung out. Our whole adventure took us over three hours. We were lost about half the time. Glad to be safely back in Zandvoort. You are Always in my prayers. Love Mom.
21 Comments
NPW D
4/24/2024 08:59:47 am
How big was the bunker?
Reply
Ray
4/24/2024 10:12:06 am
The bunkers are usually not very wide but can run for 10-15 meters. In the picture you see me crawling out of a narrow hallway between two bunker rooms. If you imagine all the sand shoveled out I would be standing in the doorway.
Reply
NPW F
4/24/2024 09:00:46 am
What was the biggest bunker you guys saw?
Reply
Ray
4/24/2024 10:13:13 am
The one with the chimneys perhaps but it was so filled in with sand you couldn’t look in.
Reply
NPW E
4/24/2024 09:02:42 am
How big were the bunkers?
Reply
Ray
4/24/2024 10:24:13 am
The bunkers are usually not very wide but can run for 10-15 meters. We were in the sand dunes on a stretch of beach without a port. The defenses would have been larger near a port.
Reply
Tyler
4/24/2024 09:03:20 am
When I see most war related items/museums, I often am fillled with a sad feeling of what people have had to endure. I know war can be fascinating, but I find real items bring the reality as well. How did you feel visiting these bunkers?
Reply
Ray
4/24/2024 10:10:59 pm
These were German bunkers that never saw any action so it felt like an adventure to search for and explore them. There will be posts from Flanders where the war even 108 years later still seems very real.
Reply
NPW Group C
4/24/2024 09:06:12 am
How big was the space that Ray crawled through?
Reply
Ray
4/24/2024 10:30:46 am
In the picture you see me crawling out of a narrow hallway between two bunker rooms. If you imagine all the sand shoveled out I would be standing in the doorway.. I crawled in at the fare entrance and through a room that while narrow was probably 6 meters long the through a connecting Galway into the next room.
Reply
jle
4/25/2024 07:04:35 am
dident war end in 1946
Reply
Ray
4/25/2024 08:48:57 am
You are correct, the Second World War ended iin Europe on May 8, 1945. This is V-E day..
Reply
GVE
4/25/2024 07:06:12 am
Did you see the cannon in real life?
Reply
Ray
4/25/2024 08:46:02 am
No that is a picture from back during the war.
Reply
HLOE
4/25/2024 07:12:57 am
Is that deer a white tailed deer or no? Was it the ones from here? Were they from a different place and just brought their?
Reply
Ray
4/25/2024 08:44:46 am
It is a European fallow deer. The look similar and ate about the same size.
Reply
NPW group B
4/25/2024 09:22:09 am
Were there any items or supplies in the bunkers?
Reply
Ray
4/25/2024 10:08:15 am
No, they were empty except for a bit of garbage in one of the. It looked like someone might have camped in it for awhile.
Reply
Ray
4/25/2024 10:09:45 am
My birthday is June 29th and I am 65 years old.
Reply
Eke
4/29/2024 09:51:27 am
what is in the crate?
Reply
Diane
4/29/2024 04:23:48 pm
They are empty.
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
Details
AuthorRay & Diane Homewood |