Seelow Heights on Google Earth

[albinocobra1]

I've been to Halbe/M.Buchholz a few times and despite the obvious evidence of battle, I didn't see a thing. there were plenty of signs though of others having been there : odd holes, beer cans and bottles all over , rusty garden tools, etc.
I spent two days makng my way on deer paths both west and south of town and it wasn't fruitful at all. Be aware though that Branderburg is full of ww2 tourists looking for cool stuff to show their reenactor clubs back home !! All this means is that some of these areas have been really well picked over especially in the last eight to ten years.

Personally, I'd recommend Seelow especially the area below Kienitz and or east of Letschin. That front was larger and kept local for a few months before the april battle ever erupted. Material had more time to collect . On that note, one of my hosts had thirty pieces of unexploded ordnance found in the fields and forest area just adjacent to his property alone ! What's even more easier and totally accesible is the Polish side of the Oder. I've seen no police, no neonazis or the war tourist throng on that side of the river. Poland having been so poor for so long never really had the funds to comb those forests and fields for war detritus. Polish collectors i know here in town claim those places are still chock full of stuff. Especially the area SE of Stettin (Stargard). Hey, remember though that all of Brandenburg is technically a cemetery of sorts. Dont ever get yourself into a situation with the cops .Fines for digging can be catastrophic and lord forbid they catch you digging around bones. Thats part of the reason why i think just casually looking around on the surface north of seelow is much easier .... If you stay at bed and breakfast you can generally meet some older guys at the local bar who grew up in the area. I've never needed to do much to get them to start yapping about spots and places.

[infin1ty92]

The place near Stettin, can u tell me in which of the forests it is? Is it a long way from Germany? Thank you!

[albinocobra1]

No, not really.
Find some 11 SS info. There's a book out now here in Germany and Scandinavia on the 11SS aufkl. There's gotta be some maps etc. in there !!! That old Degrelle book has some info as well .

[infin1ty92]

Thanks for the answer albinocobra1. You mentioned a place below Kienitz. That definitely sounds interesting! Have there been a lot of people? Are you able to find bigger stuff like helmets, machinepistols etc? What happened there, since there's so much? THANK YOU!

[albinocobra1]

Kienitz was the site of the first Soviet bridgehead over the Oder just after Xmas . They were pounded and contained there for a while . NCO school troops, a RAD group and some other rag tag units (don't forget the Luftwaffe) were thrown in to get the soviets back over the river as soon as possible. Both north and south of the main road out of Letchin heading towards Kienitz was the site of some heavy initial fighting My host told me that the dyke there in Kienitz is full of soviet artillery pieces, etc. that, after the fighting, were just buried ( for whatever reason...). Kienitz itself almost looked like Verdun afterwards !!

[Bigsieuk]

Be very, VERY careful around Seelow, the local police are very intolerant of people carrying what we have a passion for. It has been claimed that prior to the GDR pulling out a lot of modern equipment was buried in the area and the police can look to charge you for looking for such and this is a serious crime.

If caught they WILL charge you. The last thing you want on your holiday is a prolonged stay there guests of the local police.

There is a mountian of equipment to be found in the area no doubt, enough to fulfill all of our dreams but the whole area is treated by the police as a grave and diggers are not made welcome.

Until the recovery of material is legalised or legitimised, my advice, through experience, is be very very careful. The cost of the trip, hotel, etc. to find a relic is expensive. If relics are important to you use the money to buy something and treat the visit to the area as a holiday and just that.

[albinocobra1]

exactly.

Also, just be careful of what you touch and handle . My old lady's uncle lost his right eye and two fingers on his r. hand trying to pry some charge out of the sand .
And this was in the mid 90s ... !!!

[albinocobra1]

why not just spend a little more money and go to Latvia or Estonia ? By all accounts, it's impossible to NOT find something there regardless if you're looking or not. !