Hurtgen Forest?

[SuiCide]

Hello,

Me and a friend were planning to go hiking trough the hurtgen forest. But is it safe to go off the road and paths?

Because I found this on the internet:

Fortunately, the Hürtgenwald region is very active in commemorating history. Even today, people in Vossenack or Schmidt are still living with the after-effects of the battle: Some areas are still mined because there are almost no maps left showing the position of the minefields. In addition, there were also glass and wood mines used which cannot be detected by metal detectors. You are advised not to leave the signposted routes in the forest, and if you want to build a house, first thing you do is call an explosive disposal team to check the ground. Each year, the remains of about 7 soldiers are discovered in the forests and fields.

And also illegal diggers digging up live ammo ect.

Hope to get an answer!

Thx.

[TrondK]

Well as they say the place is full of glass mines. Evil little explosives that maybe not will kill you straight away, but leave you blind and crippled deep in the woods without any way to get help.


It is always exiting to go around with your detector, it is less exiting if your detector friend next to you get blown up by a mine over 70years after it was placed there. In short words: It is to late to scream for you mama when the mine has exploded.

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Just my personal advice. Sorry if it sounds a little harsh, i dont mean do offend you.

[SuiCide]

Well as they say the place is full of glass mines. Evil little explosives that maybe not will kill you straight away, but leave you blind and crippled deep in the woods without any way to get help.


It is always exiting to go around with your detector, it is less exiting if your detector friend next to you get blown up by a mine over 70years after it was placed there. In short words: It is to late to scream for you mama when the mine has exploded.

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Just my personal advice. Sorry if it sounds a little harsh, i dont mean do offend you.

You mean this ironic? because i never heard of any mines go off. But we are only hiking we do not have detectors.

Edit:

The reaction in this link says there are no land mines:

Do you think it's safe if I try to find WW2 relics in Hurtgen Forest in Germany with a metal detector? - Yahoo! Answers

[TrondK]

No i am not ironic. I dont want you or your friend to be hurt.

you ask for an advice, i gave my honest opinion. I would never use my metaldetector near a place where it says the place is full of glass and wood mines.

So if you now comes up with a link that says there are no landmines in the forest, well then i must ask you: Why do you ask for an opinion if you already have decided what to do?!

Have fun, please be careful.

[Steve T]

The Hurtgen is littered with live ordnance and will never be fully clear. People are still injured, maimed and killed by explosives in the forest. The advice you have been given on your link is entirely WRONG. Detecting in the Hurtgen is strictly prohibited and all the people showing what they have found whilst detecting there are the results of illegal digging.

If the advice from the people who 'run' the forest is to stick to paths because there is a strong risk you will be blown up, why on earth are you asking for further advice from us? The answer is simple. Stick to the paths if you like your legs where they are........go for a walk off the paths if you would like them hanging from a tree.

Oh, and do not make the same mistake that kills people every year. Just because something has been in the ground for 70+ years does not make it 'safe'. Ordnance is designed to kill people, and it will still quite happily do so.

[Spitace41]

There have been several threads about the situation in the Hurtgen forest. I would consider straying from the designated routes to be a gamble not worth taking.

[Steve T]

And one other thing. Asking a question on Yahoo answers is like asking a 3 year old child if they can replace a mesh screen in a Merlin engine carburretor. They will always say they can, then, when given the tools to do the job, spot an interesting leaf and run off to investigate that instead. The anonymity of the internet allows people to give awful and totally incorrect advice as they do not see the consequences of their actions, in this case the consequence being the removal of your feet/legs/life. The guy who answered that there are no mines in the Hurtgen lives 4000 miles away and cannot possibly know that.

You have had the good sense to come to an area full of specialists on WW2 relics and their dangers. Please make the right choice as to which advice you take.......the guy living 4000 miles away who has never dug old ordnance, or the guys who live in the same area and have in depth expertise on old ordnance.

[SuiCide]

OK thx for your replies.

We wanted to visit the bunkers in the forest by foot. Are the bunkers reachable by road or path? Or is there somewhere a map of how to reach them? I thought i came by a map here on this forum a year ago, cant find it now though.

[NickW]

We visited the Hurtgen forest several years ago on a couple of occasions - like any battlefield I visit, my advice would be look, don't touch and within reason stick to the paths - we found many well trodden trails leading off the main paths into the woods and many of these led to bunkers or fox-holes etc. (Many still lined with blankets!) Most of the concrete bunkers we saw were in a destroyed state, as the GIs would blow them in, to prevent them being re-occupied behind there backs by the Germans! Many of the bunkers etc were simply dug into slopes with log and earth covering - all long gone now, so look for larger regular shaped depressions. We also saw plenty of evidence of illegal digging as the lazy detectorists can't even be bothered to fill the holes in - often leaving poorer finds lying next the holes they dug them out of - again interesting to look at, but would suggest only taking photos - an empty cartridge case may be safe, but will still get you a big fine if you have to turn your pockets out to a German policeman when you get back to your car! Don't be put off - there is plenty to see and photograph whilst still staying safe and within the law - local book shops do detailed maps for walkers (Wanderkarte?) and IIRC some have some bunkers marked - also get hold of a copy of the old After the Battle magazine issue that features the area - Look forward to seeing you back on here with some photos - and in one piece ;-)

[Cameron Stockton]

Hi

No offence intended but your username basically answers your question....

Cameron