Harz, Werra and Point Alpha

Day 14 - June 19: Hornburg - Ilsenburg - Drei Annen - Elend - Sorge - Hohengeiß - Walkenried - Duderstadt 110 km

Tough tour over the never-ending heights of the Harz along the border to Thuringia, which separated the two German states for 700 km.

In the morning, we were able to use the first 30 km to Ilsenburg to warm up and visit the memorial 'Iron Curtain'. Then we faced the steep climbs on gravel forest paths or column roads with concrete pavement. Two years ago, I was already in the Harz with Harz 5 (our cycling group) and back then I realized that the Harz is not bike-friendly. This became even more apparent now with the trekking bikes and luggage. We struggled uphill to Plessenburg and then further to the Drei Annen train station, where the Harz narrow-gauge railway stops on its way to the Brocken. On bumpy forest paths, we reach Elend and continue on a side road to Sorge. We are very worried whether we will even reach our destination Duderstadt in these conditions (heat and steep climbs), because we have already booked a hotel there. Just after Sorge, we pass a border fence on the column road with the perforated plates and have to give it our all to conquer the climb by bike. When we arrive at the top, the sight brings tears to our eyes - it goes steeply downhill and even steeper uphill on the other side. Both of us have to shout our frustration out loud. But it doesn't help, in the struggle with our own strength and the mosquitoes, we push the heavy bikes towards Hohegeiß. Shortly before the village, we pass the memorial stone for Helmut Kleinert, who was shot dead in 1963 at the age of 24 during an escape attempt in a hail of 60 bullets. From now on, it's a long downhill ride to Zorge, which feels really good. It's not far to Walkenried, but then one tough climb follows another. We are relieved when we reach the beautiful old town of Duderstadt around 7:30 p.m. The medieval cityscape is characterized by 600 half-timbered houses from different periods of style. The historical town hall of the city is particularly worth seeing.

Day 15 - June 20: Duderstadt - Arenshausen - Bad Sooden-Allensdorf - Eschwege - Probsteizella 105 km

There were heavy thunderstorms during the night and it's raining in the morning. We take our time at breakfast and then ride to the Eichsfeld Borderland Museum, which is closed today. Not far from the museum, you ride on the column road directly between the original preserved border fences that were electrified here and triggered alarm sounds and signals when approached. Somehow oppressive. In the 1980s, the signals were only received in the border tower, which led to almost no more escape attempts. When a farmer came to work in the fields in the restricted area, he needed a pass and was then accompanied by two border guards. Shortly afterwards, we pass through Böseckendorf, which made headlines in the world press in 1961. The village, like so many others in the border area, was supposed to be evacuated. The inhabitants decided to flee together, which they succeeded in doing. With the support of the federal and state governments of Lower Saxony, it was made possible for them to stay together as a community. This is how the village of Neuböseneckdorf was created.

Through small villages in no man's land with many steep climbs, we reach Arenshausen around 2 p.m. After a short break, we tackle the last climb to get from the Leine Valley to the Werra Valley. Now it becomes more comfortable again, because until evening we only roll slightly uphill in the valley, a few kilometers more than planned, so that meeting our surprise guest is guaranteed. Point Alpha is the destination!

Day 16 - June 21: Probsteizella - Herleshausen - Gerstungen - Philippsthal - Point Alpha - Tann 105 km

In the morning, we follow the Werra River to Creuzberg. There we cross the Werra on the Liborius Bridge with a chapel, the oldest sandstone bridge north of the Danube. At Herleshausen, we encounter the former border again. We stop at the WerraGrenzpark, an open-air museum that is scheduled to open the next day. The co-initiator Klaus Gogler is on site, he knows the EuroVelo 13 well and is surprised that we actually started in Kirkenes. He wanted to do that too but had concerns about the distances and limited overnight accommodation options. He gives us a special guided tour. Wartha-Herleshausen was one of the few border crossings that could be passed by car. The exchange of prisoners took place here. There is an information board with a photo showing two buses with prisoners driving to the border. Behind them is the GDR lawyer Wolfgang Vogel, who organized the exchange and received a total of one million from the FRG. In 1981, Günter Guillaume was also exchanged here, who had spied on Willy Brandt in the Chancellery for years. What is interesting about this border park is the last sign, which shows that today, despite the fall of the Iron Curtain, there are again more closed borders and dictatorships. Tendency increasing! We should all be grateful that we live in a free country and work for the peace project Europe.

Through Gerstungen we reach Heringen and Philippsthal, where the 200 m high Kaliberge domineer the landscape. They are the result of potash mining here in the Rhön Mountains and consist of the unusable remains. A huge ecological problem.

We continue to Vacha, where we cross the Werra River on the Bridge of Unity. The bridge belonged to the territory of the GDR and was part of the border closure facilities. After the opening, it became a symbol of German division and reunification. At one end of the bridge is the Hoßfeld House, where the Rhön-Zeitung newspaper was printed on Hessian territory for many years. Due to an expansion, the printing presses were on Thuringian territory and there was a risk of expropriation. The owners brought the machines to the Hessian side and bricked up the connecting door. Access to the Thuringian part was prohibited. Due to the basic treaty and new surveying, the Hoßfeld family was able to use all rooms again from 1976.

Now we have to hurry a bit because we have arranged a meeting at Point Alpha around 5 p.m. From 1948 until the opening of the border, this was one of the most important observation stations of the US military in Europe at the westernmost point of the GDR. There you can see and feel the direct confrontation of the systems. To get there, we have to ride up steep gravel paths. When we arrive at the top, our friend Lothar has just ridden down into the valley. He drove with a 9-euro ticket via Frankfurt by train and bike to Point Alpha to accompany us for two days. A really strong action! So, he rides up again, and we are all very happy about the meeting and enjoy the view together. Then we ride to our accommodation at the Ulster Bridge and celebrate the unusual meeting.