Riese
A secret complex of tunnels and drifts only explored in 50 percent
what was his destiny?
Riese is the largest mining and construction project of Nazi Germany, built in 1943 - 45
Some say it was supposed to be the secret headquarters of Hitler, others say that it was supposed to be a V1 and V2 rocket factory
or some other marvelous weapon of the Third Reich
There is also a theory that they were to work on the first atomic bomb at Riese
there is no unambiguous confirmation of what this object was supposed to be used for
Today we will visit the "Gontowa" drifts in the "Sokolec" complex
it is the only one carved in sandstone, and interestingly, the corridors contain huge halls
what were they supposed to be used for? was this where the research on Hitler's wonder weapons was to take place?
see for yourself
mysterious Riese, unexplored complex to which we return
Hey! Welcome on the next exploration!
Today we will visit the "Gontowa" drift which is part of the Riese project
That is why Rafał from the "Wyprawy Leona" channel is with us, he is a specialist in Riese, canals, tunnels, so we are in good hands
this year we are aiming for a million subscriptions, we enter via tunnel no. 1 and exit via tunnel no. 2.
today we have 3 topics to check
first we're looking for radiation, secondly there are glowing mushrooms
thirdly, inside there are huge halls where it is possible that V1 and V2 rockets were made
let's go inside
Leon noticed that you have the drillings to the right
here are drill marks
-here are traces of drill bits - additionally mortar and boreholes were made in each of them
the tunnels were made on the basis of explosions
they put an explosive charge, debris was removed after the explosions
-They did it with dynamite? - I suspect so
it is possible that a different name for this explosive was used
we invite you to the water
we are equipped with a multi-gas sensor
it is true that we are not dealing here with coal from which carbon could be released
but there is a lot of decaying wood from which carbon dioxide and hydrogen sulfide can be released
going further, we can come across a zone with a reduced amount of air
if we passed out in a place like this, that would be a problem
it is the only tunnel in the Riese complex that is hollowed out in sandstone
here's a rock collapse
it is all rotten
Kuba, like rarely, went first
we all go upstairs, but check this out
all that was here had fallen and formed an isthmus
it is sandstone which, when combined with water, forms a gline
here is the normal way
the adit in which we are now is one of the largest
Leon, see here you can see rock layers here
so this object was carved not only in sandstone, but also in sedimentary rocks
thanks to this, we can observe the rocks of the pebbles here
this is evidence that these areas were once under water
We're talking about Riese all the time, but probably most of you know what's going on
Riese translated from German means "giant" - the greatest construction project of the Third Reich
construction ended around 1945
what was the purpose of these pavements?
this is not known, some say that it was supposed to be Hitler's quarters connected to the Książ castle
just like the Wolf's Lair, in which we were at the top not long ago, you have a card for this movie
some say that the huge halls we are about to visit were producing V1 and V2 rockets
there are loads of people spreading different conspiracy theories
as it was unknown, let's go towards the halls, because they are very interesting
it is necessary to say something about the drifts themselves, they were discovered in less than 50%
look how many secrets the mountains hide
mainly the Jewish population was drawn to the construction of these tunnels
They were transported in 1944 from the liquidated Łódź ghetto to the Gross Rosen camp
and then they were transported here to backbreaking work
Hitler's people used all means
the construction was not completed, in 45 the Germans had to withdraw and the tunnels fell into ruin
We came across a fork - we are probably reaching the first halls
after 60 meters we should reach the first
do the colors of these arrows matter? is this some route?
I suspect who what he had on hand meant it
here we come to the front wall
It's a pity you don't have a map, as it would turn out that the watchtower is a bit further
once you said watchtower, the real name fell out of my head, in any case we should go that way
what you are looking for was 4 corridors leading apart, here is only 1
there is nothing here, you have to turn back
- follow the arrow - see what's on the ceiling
-it's probably some mold - let's see if it shines in UV
there are ordinary mushrooms in the dark, but we can check
turn off the lamps
poorly
there are many of them over my head
lights up purple: D
plain mold, nothing special
let's go to the main pavement
The last adit we visited with Leon, that is the adit in Soboń, has recently collapsed
the same thing happened here
I hope we have a way out
at most we go out through the same entrance
I hope you can dig fast
I go in the back all the time and record your back
see how much wood lies here
the tracks should be nearby
if I associate well with your movie
they will be deeper where these huge halls are
compared to Soboń, it is much bigger
-lots of footprints - I think we are not the first to come here
I know at least one person
I know him too
Łukasz, tell me what your impressions are, because this is your first time in Riese
I was sick for 4 years to come here and I'm impressed
did you think it looked like this or otherwise?
like this.... or otherwise :)
it's huge
Soboń was smaller
looking at the corridors layout, there should be halls in a moment
we have not yet reached the hall
not yet...
look here's a ladder
no, it's a railroad - rails
- a piece of rail - yes, then the spoil was transported
there had to be a trip here, and you can go further there
- can you go in there? - yes, so we need to go
- we can shorten the way this way - then we will go to the hall, and then to the second tunnel
in a moment we will be in the second tunnel
the descent is steep
definitely
jump
had it not been for the helmet, I would have been in the emergency room three times
with a flashlight and go pro it will be hard to come down
I don't know if you know a movie where people had to go underground and set up wetsuits to protect the city from falling
I feel like them now
-what movie was that? xd - movie class z
-mega bear, mega snake something like that :D
it's good that they didn't have to put the jelly under this ground
if you break a bone it will be something nice for a movie
all for impressions
I remind you about subscriptions all the time
be carefull
write in the comments if Kuba should break. Of course, I `m joking
there are only those who tell us that a brick should fall on our heads
gentlemens, it seems to me that these are the halls
see how high the ceiling is
I don't know if this looks like a collapse
whether it was forged on purpose
but Leon ...
look, this is the biggest tunnel
it is one of the largest chambers
why they dug such huge chambers
we'll explain in a moment
Leon took the rangefinder, and we're going to measure the distance
show if there will be a dot
on that wall you can see it
what is the width?
maybe it's too far
or to much fog...
possible, but I just took a measurement and it showed 20 meters
-turn off the flashlights - good idea
21m 20 cm
such a huge hall
let's measure the distance to the ceiling
we walk on what was once a ceiling, so it will be hard to find a center
let's say here - ok
there is a spot...
little over 4 meters
the hall is 21 meters / 4
what could be here
why the Germans put so much effort to build such a complex in the mountains
the Germans treated these areas as home and safe
but we still have a question why they did it
There are many theories, the most popular one is about the production or testing of Hitler's miracle weapons
or rockets V1 and V2
you must have heard about these rockets and Verner von Braun who designed this weapon that mainly attacked London
there are also theories in which I personally believe that the German equivalent of the Manhattan project was going to take place here
How exactly this was supposed to look is unknown, personally I think it was supposed to take place here
if they were the first to produce such weapons, it is possible that they would win the war, so it's no wonder that so much work and effort was put into building such complexes
for comparison, you have a scale, at the bottom you have conrad, and the halls are about 4 meters high
it's a bit lacking in lighting, but imagine we're in one of the largest halls in the complex
21 meters by 4 meters, it was possible to hide underground factories here
they may or may not build wonder weapons here
Unfortunately, we will never know what the final destination of this complex was supposed to be
-another hall? - yes it is
note one thing, there are huge halls here
- here is the transition to the drift No. 2 - exactly
-it had to be an industrial destination -this is a typical communication walkway
but these halls had to serve something
I think so too, who would build such huge halls to hide people
walking here I am reminded of the catacombs of Odessa, the largest in the world
those walls were of a similar color
only those were not flooded
that's why I asked for arrows, because in Odessa they were pointing the routes of cavers
it was really easy to get lost there
it is worth mentioning that this is the only object that was carved in sandstone in the Owl Mountains
sandstone is a soft rock, so it was much easier to build such halls
-especially when compared to other drifts -you previously said that they advanced even 20 meters a day
up to 20 meters a day
another question why the Germans built something in such a soft material
apparently it was not the rocks that were supposed to protect against bombardment, but the overburden, that is what is above our heads
during the Second World War, the heaviest bomb was 10 tons and was dropped from a distance of 500 meters
so that she has the best possible puncture
it was very inaccurate
but despite its power, it penetrated a maximum of 20-30 meters of sandstone
despite the fact that it is a soft rock, thanks to the fact that we are deep underground, the halls would not be destroyed
look here the rails were probably passing
and where there is water there were boards
-this is going outside? - not to the next corridor
buried? - there is a crossing to the other side
you saw the map, these corridors are weirdly made
here corridors are everywhere, it is best to visit such places with a map
this is where we are now
Konrad and I were in this hall a moment ago
so we had to go through this corridor
so if we go through this collapse, we will go through the corridor to the second adit
and there should also be one of the bigger halls
so we go there, left and take two to the exit
and mushrooms
- there were supposed to be mushrooms on this housing? - yes, but I can't see them
super mario was here...
not good, you will have to steal this scene from you in the movie
Leon went looking for mushrooms while we check the radiation in the meantime
is well aware that this is not a uranium tunnel
0,19 microsievert
a few years ago we were in the Kowary mine where the Soviet Union was excavating Uranus
here are some mushrooms
it cannot be said that something is elevated
practically no difference from the radiation in my room
but if you have mushrooms, shine your ultraviolet on them
this is common mold, but Leon screamed just now that he had found the fungi but they were rotten
- unfortunately we will not show them to you - one point less
we left the tunnel, but we still have to book a hotel
I want to show you the website letyshop which works on a cashback basis
You create an account in a few steps, and for example with booking.com you have a 3% refund for the booked hotel
you can do it via the app or website
you also have an overlay that shows you the price changes
we also use it, and it is worth using it when buying something online
we give you a link to letyshops in the description of the video, and we will slowly say goodbye to you
this is where our journey through the huge "Gontowa" tunnel ends
undoubtedly a place full of secrets, if you want more videos from the riese complex, let us know
if you want more underground movies, check out the Leon channel
thank you very much, be sure to subscribe, because this year we go to the million
and see you on the next exploration!
