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Sluice bunker Antitankgracht

Sluice bunker Antitankgracht

Highlight • Historical Site

Sluice bunker Antitankgracht

Recommended by 94 cyclists out of 97

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Location: Schilde, Antwerp, Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium

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Top cycling routes to Sluice bunker Antitankgracht

4.5

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1. Anti-tank canal – Fort van Oelegem loop from Zegel

45.3km

02:42

70m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Moderate

4.6

(81)

448

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2. Anti-tank canal – Fort Oelegem loop from Brasschaat

35.8km

02:07

50m

Moderate bike ride. Good fitness required. Mostly paved surfaces. Suitable for all skill levels.

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Moderate

4.4

(12)

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3. Fort Oelegem – Antitank Ditch Antwerp loop from Maria-ter-Heide

48.2km

02:57

70m

Hard bike ride. Good fitness required. You may need to push your bike for some segments of this route.

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Hard

Tips

Dirk V 🚲 🚶📷

July 28, 2022

The bunkers at the Antitankgracht consist of lock bunkers with the associated subsidiary bunkers. The lock bunkers are elongated freestanding bunkers with a large blank wall, camouflaged by eggs, and served to keep the water level in the anti-tank ditch at the correct height.

Translated by Google •

Claudine en Robert🇧🇪🚴

April 21, 2023

These types of Belgian lock bunkers had to guard the locks that kept the water level in the 'Antwerp anti-tank ditch' up to standard. Eggs promote the growth of moss on the bunker and provide natural camouflage.

Translated by Google •

🇧🇪 Herwig Aertbeliën

May 18, 2022

You will find lock bunkers at various locations along the Antitankgracht route.
Here you are at a historic location that was part of the Defense Line of Antwerp WW2.
Historical interpretation: The anti-tank ditch is a 33 km long defensive ditch northeast of Antwerp, between the Scheldt and the Albert Canal. The canal was constructed between 1938-1940 as part of the Antwerp fortress.

In the 1930s the Belgian army reoriented the fortress to a defense for infantry (supports) and machine gun companies. The military added the anti-tank ditch and bunker lines (KW-line) to the existing defenses by forts and redoubts. The aim was to stop tanks. Therefore, the anti-tank ditch had to have a slope, depth and width that a tank of that time could not exceed:

- a bottom of at least six meters wide
- a width of 18m at the water surface
- a depth of at least three meters
- a minimum water level of two meters
- slopes of 45°

Originally, the Antitankgracht was to become a dry canal, but because it was full of water, it was forced to be converted into a wet canal. The route had to bridge a difference in height of roughly 3 to 18.5m (DTM). That is why it was divided into about 45 compartments with locks. A slide in the sluice regulated the water flow and thus maintained the level. The water came partly from seepage water or local streams and partly from the Meuse, supplied via the Dessel-Schoten canal. Because control over the water levels was so important, each lock was defended by a bunker.

The bunkers at the Antitankgracht consist of lock bunkers with flanking daughter bunkers and flanking bunkers. The lock bunkers are elongated freestanding bunkers with a large blank wall, camouflaged by 'eggs' and were usually equipped for two machine guns.

Bunkers are not accessible, but you can relax in the shade of the flanked trees.

Translated by Google •

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Elevation 50 m

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Max wind speed: 13.0 km/h

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Location: Schilde, Antwerp, Antwerp, Flanders, Belgium

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Sluice bunker Antitankgracht

1. Anti-tank canal – Fort van Oelegem loop from Zegel

2. Anti-tank canal – Fort Oelegem loop from Brasschaat

3. Fort Oelegem – Antitank Ditch Antwerp loop from Maria-ter-Heide

Other Popular Places to Check Out

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