Berlin’s hidden gem from history is a weird relic of a much colder time
Given its position in the glacier-flattened North European Plain, there aren’t a lot of high points in Berlin – but my visit this weekend to the manmade mountain of Teufelsburg was a high point in its own right.
Nestled in Berlin’s Grunewald Forest, Teufelsburg is effectively a mountain of rubble, after Hitler’s incomplete Faculty of Defense Technology was demolished at the end of the Second World War.
How big was the pile? Just a lazy 25 million cubic metres – which, if my (ChatGPT’s) calculations are correct, could be around 40 million tonnes of the stuff.
The Senate of West Berlin planted grass and trees on the hill to beautify it and ‘suddenly’ Berlin had a new mountain (okay, it’s a hill), named for the nearby Teufelssee – the latter meaning “Devil’s lake”, Teufelsberg therefore meaning “Devil’s hill”. (You might remember Teufelssee as the site of this hilarious photo!)
At 120 metres (395 feet) above sea level, Teufelsberg will never appear on any lists of the world’s Even Moderately Tall Mountains, but there was talk of turning it into a recreational area with a ski slope for winter and a toboggan run for year-round fun. Indeed, two ski slopes did open in the mid ’50s and early ’60s, but they were closed down in 1969 and, badly decayed, removed in 1999.
All other recreational plans were binned when the occupying American force decided its elevation represented a far more valuable opportunity in the growing Cold War, and so a listening station with five radar domes entered operation in the early 1960s as Field Station Berlin.
Decades later, the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall saw America decommission and abandon the station, handing it over to the German government – which promptly sold it to a private investor who, along with a ski resort, had plans for residential areas, a museum and a conference centre, but they all fell through.
Although the station is now badly decayed, it has been maintained for public access and guided tours, with an outdoor dining area and regular social events. The very top of the building is also accessible by newly installed stairs at both ends, offering views of Berlin that are otherwise not so easy to get!
It’s not a bad spot for sunbaking, too.
As you can see below, it’s also become something of a gallery for street artists.
The spread of talented (and often political) art on the walls of the emptied concrete structure is incredible.
👇 The amazing wall art continued down on the ground level walls, too.
The landscape of Teufelsberg – quirky and unnatural yet very much ‘reclaimed by nature’ – is open to exploration either on your own or through regular guided group tours.
After I’d finished exploring the main building, I took a stroll through the grounds, where people have painted and installed all sorts of works, caught somewhere between ‘community crafts’ and… well, weird. But hey, I’m not here to yuck anybody’s yum, and I really did find all of it a genuine delight.
👇 This old military truck was cool to see, too.
Oh, and I recommend a read of the Wiki page. Very interesting stuff.
Teufelsberg is well worth a visit, and I’m certain I’ll be back in the future!
Where and how much?
- Address: Teufelsseechaussee 10, 14193 Berlin
- Opening Hours: Daily from 11 AM till sunset
- Admission: Adults €10, free for children under 14
- Website: www.teufelsberg-berlin.de
Mike Stevens
Founder
Mike is a designer and journalist with nearly 20 years’ experience in automotive and consumer technology, editing and leading titles like The Motor Report, CarAdvice, Drive, and WhichCar. He is the co-founder of The Motor Report, and the founder of DadBase.
He’s also a photographer, gadgethead and erstwhile cyclist, and the proud ADHD dad to two ADHD kiddos.
Born and raised in Melbourne, Australia, Mike relocated to Berlin in 2024 with his wife and kids for travel and culture adventures.
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