Rechlin
Almost 100 kilometres northwest of Berlin is a small town called Granzow, and in a forest about 3-4 kilometers north of Granzow, german air force (Luftwaffe), had a testing area during the war. Here Albert Speer had four high buildings and a wall about 60 – 70 centimeters thick built. The purpose of these was that they would be used as test objects to investigate the sustainability of shelling of all forms of weapons. The test results would then be used when the Germans built new ”bomb-proof” houses and buildings around Germany.
Current status: Preserved (2013).
Location: N 53° 19.30 E 12° 49.60
Get there: Car.
Follow up in books: Speer, Albert: Inside the Third Reich (1969).
The buildings are not far into the forest but can still be difficult to find, especially in the summer when the forest is dense. First you have to drive into small roads and park the car, then you have to go straight into the forest and just look for it. In fact, it can be easy to miss if you don’t know where to look. Even if it is not more than a few hundred meters, it can be good to memorize where you came from. You don’t have to walk far before you risk loose track where you are. The buildings themselves are cordoned of and there are signs warning of undiscovered ammunition that may lay near the buildings.