To be real honest, I am not too sure how I feel about geocaching in cemeteries. I will do it and I know some others who do. We all do it with respect and do not disturb anybody or any thing. I have been told I can be a little strange at times. That does not bother me. So when I tell you that I just feel like I am politely visiting the homes of the deceased when I am in a graveyard, maybe you will cut me some slack. That being said, let me share some of the fun cemetery caches I have found.
First off, I am surprised how many cemetery caches exist in the Northeastern states. This sort of gives me the heebie-jeebies because of the amount of fog that exist in these areas. Fog, creepy animal noises, graves, limbs of trees catching your hair, twigs snapping under your feet, weeds tickling your leg - goose bumps so big they hurt - get the picture? But what better way to go caching when you are in a brave or daring mood.
This may not be an actual graveyard cache, but it does deserve an honorable mention here. It was one of my first finds and there is no way to know that this wasn't a
real grave site at one point. Right? This is
El Diablo's Treasure, GCKPPC, located on the outskirts of Tombstone, Arizona.
Who ever said that Tombstone is the
"Town Too Tough To Die" ?
The only actual cemetery cache I have done is in
Springerville, Arizona, in this tiny fenced in area that sits on a hill, almost in the middle of a neighborhood. I don't mind sharing the pic since it really is a simple find and I don't consider it a 'spoiler' or any sort. This cache,
GC2QXJB, is appropriately named R.I.P..
So that one is not scary, but we did it during the light of day. So lets see what we can find in the southwest.
Not too far from Tombstone is the town of
Sierra Vista, best known for the
Fort Huachuca Army Base and
Ramsey Canyon Preserve which is considered the Hummingbird Capitol of the United States. This is also the area that the
#1 Arizona Cemetery Challenge begins. This is how
GC33FXE goes -
The challenge:
1) You must find 20 caches in cemeteries.
2) They must all be within the state of Arizona.
3) The geocaches in question could have been found at any time (i.e.
they do not have to be found after the date this cache was activated).
4) Multi's, puzzles and virtuals count as long as at least one leg is a
visit to a cemetery- just list which cemetery on your bookmark.
5) Lone graves also count for this challenge, ie. GC28QC5 Arizona Pioneer.
In the San Francisco Bay area, the
Mt. Hope Cemetery has a multi-cache that sound fun and not so difficult that you couldn't enjoy a bit of wondering and reading of the stories on grave markers. Simply called
Mt. Hope Cemetery, GCPW5Y is a four part cache with, what looks to be, a lot of history involved. I believe you will could have access during the evening hours making this a perfect Halloween season experience. Especially with the 'odd' selection of decorations through out the cemetery.
This cemetery cache in New Mexico look very inviting to me and I am loving the name, Spirit of Garfield. First thought - I just love that silly cartoon cat. Reality - this graveyard is located on the road to Garfield, New Mexico. This unique village is a simple, no nonsense community with a matching graveyard. No pretty lawns, no comfortable benches and no fancy buildings, just a desert home for those who have passed.
There's an old section
and a new section -
not much different
and all open, day or night, to visit spirits and find this cache.
And just one more for now, from the Western United States. This one is not too far from me. The
Evergreen's Stories, GCGAG3, is a multi-cache with a total of 11 steps. Yep - it's gonna take a while. The terrain is not difficult but there will be some walking. The big old trees are beautiful and will provide protection from the hot summer sun. This large cemetery was built in 1907, in an area that was on the out skirts of town, at that time. There's a variety of patrons to visit, Anglo, Mexican, Chinese, poor laborers, well know politicians, gunfighters, gangsters, and even the old woman who lived next door and made those wonderful pies during the holidays. So your biggest problem may be staying on track and not wanting to visit every grave.
I will be researching caches in the graveyards in the Eastern U.S. for my next post about spirited geocaches. Check back soon to see what I find.
