Bicycle tour along the border line: stories that move!

Bicycle tour along the border line: stories that move!

A unique opportunity will be offered shortly: On Saturday, July 19, 2025, the bike tour "Border Interctions between Schlagsdorf and Kneesese" takes place. This event, which begins at 1 p.m., leads the participants over a distance of 25 kilometers along the former border line between Eastern and West Germany. On the way, the participants can experience the impressive nature of the green band and the history of the former GDR border controls.

Under the expert accompaniment of Wolfgang May, a former official of the Federal Border Guard and Witnesses, as well as Werner Daubner, who lived in the GDR-Grenzdorf Dutzow until 1975, the participants receive deep insights into personal fates and historical events. Daubner will tell about his fleeing attempt from 1975 about the Golden Lake. Special stations of the tour are said memorials that commemorate the border death Harry Krause (1951) and Harry Weltzin (1983). A visit to the outside area of the Grenzhus with reconstructed barriers will also be part of the program, as will the exploration of places associated with the opening of the border.

a moving piece of history

The topic of this bike tour is not only an excursion to the countryside, but also an examination of the dark history of the GDR border regime. According to the biographical manual "The fatalities of the GDR border regime on the inner German border 1949-1989", which was published in 2017, it documents 327 deaths in connection with these border controls. The darkness of this past is illustrated by the predominant number of victims who were at the age of 18 to 25 and often came from the GDR. Over half of the documented deaths are based on the use of firearms by the border police and other armed organs.

The differences in the previous time are striking: Before building the wall, one experienced a "small border traffic" between East and West Germany, which was considered illegal by the GDR. As a result of the events after the wall construction on August 13, 1961, the security measures tightened drastically. The use of firearms and mini technology was regulated by strict instructions, which leads to a high number of fatalities, including for many border guards who suffered from immense psychological pressure.

Details for participation

for everyone interested: Participation in the bike tour costs 10 euros per person. Registration is required, which can be made in the borderhus. Interested parties can register by phone at 038875 20326 or by email at [Email Protected]. This bike tour is not only a sporting activity, but also an opportunity to experience your own history and that of the region up close.

Further information on the historical backgrounds are at [Nordkurier] (https://www.nordkurier.de/regional/nordwestmecklenburg/grenzhus-schlagsdorf-bägradrad bike tour- zu--and BPB and [wikipedia] (https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/todesopfer_des_DDDR- Grenzregimes) available.