Oficjalnie wstęp do 18:00
/ Restricted hours |
Opłata za wstęp / Fee area PLN 4,00 |
Zabierz latarkę /
Bring a Flashlight |
Podziemne korytarze / Cave |
Miejsce historyczne /
Historic Site |
Niepełnosprawni - niestety nie / No Wheelchair Access |
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After the defeat of Poland in vicinity of Tomaszów Mazowiecki, near Spała, Germans have located their Eastern theather HQ (Oberost). The idea, while getting ready for the operations in Russia, was to create a secure and properly equipped place for their HQs and command posts. Mobility was a key issue and special command trains were created which could follow the advancing troops. Their base, codenamed "Anlage Mitte", along with all the infrastructure, was created near Tomaszów Mazowiecki, in Konewka and Jeleń.
Both places are almost identical, the only difference being the shape of the main train bunker. Along the key structure - a long cone-shaped bunker housing the whole train - all the supporting buildings were constructed. Bunkers were erected to protect water supply and decontamination units, power plant and generators, etc. Underground tunnels connect them with the main bunker.
The work commenced in 1939 and both command posts were finished in 1941; some 3000 people worked at the construction site at the peak of the operations.
Once the German thrust to the east began both sites were in fact hardly used - Hitler spent most of his time in "Wolfschanze" in Gierłoż. They served as a backup HQ and a training ground for staff-related work. Some military production units were placed here as from 1943 when some of the German plants were relocated east to shelter them from Allied bombing. In 1944 the Russians captured the complex intact.
The coordinates shown rely to the site in general not the cache itself. After reaching the place you have to invest a modest 4 zloty entrance fee to access the area. Then, following a path through the forest you have to locate the power plant bunker ("maszynownia"). Once inside (a torchlight is a must!) look for the stairs leading down to the service tunnels. Follow the main tunnel untill the ceiling will force you to crouch. At the end of the tunnel look for a niche in the ceiling housing a ceramic pipe leading somewhere to the bowels of the concrete wall. A stone sitting inside covers the cache which is a 3 litre plastic box.
Watch for the rusty iron supports for the long-gone pipes and wires extending from the wall in the main corridor. They are tougher than your head. We do not recommend lurking through the lower corridors located at both sides of the main one. You will disturb the bats which made their home there. Please respect privacy of these small creatures, they hate noise and may not survive the autumn/winter hibernation if woken up several times. That's just the way they are built, you know :)
We do recomment taking the cache outside and, once the rummaging ritual is done, placing it back in its little hole. It's not Paris Hilton's comfort down there and it's not surprising to see some adventurous souls lurking in the corridors.
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