Cemetery caches

[Lumpy223]

Im a newbie who just today broke 10 finds. One of the ones I looked for today was in a cemetary. I didn't find it but I have to admit that I felt very uneasy while looking. I just felt like I was being disrespectful by playing a game in a place like that.

 

I probably wont go back to that one but I wont rule out all cemetary hunts just yet.

 

Anybody else think maybe these places should be sacred, or is it just me?

[+XopherN71]

I think it's weird, but pretty common... I've stopped when I found myself pulling on what seemed to be a lever in the ground and not knowing what it was/did. Also, checking for a cache in the discarded plastic flower pots near the field was a sign I was looking too hard.

 

[+Renegade Knight]

Chess is a game. Soccor is a game and a sport.

Caching is an activity. Many activities are allowed and encouraged in cemetaries. Walking, Hiking, Rubbing (or whatever it is they call those who take impressesions of markers), Picnicking, Art, Rending out Chapels for events and so on.

 

Caching in a cemetary is a function of your own comfort level. If you aren't. Don't. My comfort level is ok if the cache is away from the grave sites. Unless it's a cachers tombstone and placed by the family or even that cacher in their will, then that's the method of respect they have chosen.

[+Kealia]

I don't normally tell people to use the Search feature, but in this case this question comes up almost monthly.

 

A quick search on "cemetery" returns a full page of hits.

 

You'll likely find more if you spell it "cemetary" as it's common to mis-spell it that way as well.

[Neos2]

I love visiting cemeteries to do genealogy or just to admire the artwork. I like a well hidden cemetery cache, too. The caches I have seen in cemeteries were respectfully placed -not on or too near the stones--usually off in a tree or along a fenceline, etc. I've also seen a lot of multi caches and offsets that have you go to a headstone or sign and read the information as a stage of a cache.

 

Most caches are in older cemeteries with fewer new burials, but not all. Naturally, you would want to move away if there were mourners present.

 

There was a really good thread about this topic about a month ago--lots of good discussion.

 

I suppose I don't think of them as solemn, lonely, mournful dreary places. I think it is worse to stay away from the cemeteries and to ignore the dearly departed by neglecting them. I prefer to think of cemeteries as a place to gather to celebrate the lives of the people buried there.

 

Many cemeteries have spent a lot of money, time, and effort to make sure the cemetery is a beautiful place to visit. I enjoy the birds and the flowers and the art work and the nice walking paths, etc. Some cemeteries give guided tours (of the landscaping, the wildlife, the famous artwork and architecture, the famous burials, the alledged hauntings, etc ). Some towns still hold annual picnics in the cemetery complete with band and gazebo, fried chicken, pie contests, and cake walks as well as face painting and story-telling.

 

But bottom line, if you aren't comfortable there, then by all means continue to avoid them. Not all caches are for everybody and you don't have to find them all. I realize that not everyone shares my enthusiam for cemeteries.

[+StarBrand]

Caches placed amongst the headstones is in poor taste to me. Not because of any sort of sacred anything - just disrespectful of visitors to the area and famlies. Using things within the cemetary as clues to a final cache or a cache placed along the edges - I have no problems with. Cemetaries are full of historical information and I view them as an educational experience.

 

In the not too distant past, familes had picnics in cemetaries. In modern times, walking and jogging through cemtaries is not an uncommon practice. Historians and researchers regularly visit such places. Geocaching can be a a legit activity too.

 

One thing I am certain of - the permenant "residents" do not mind.

[+briansnat]

Cemeteries are fascinating places full of history. If I discover a new, interesting cemetery because someone placed a cache there I'm happy.

[+joranda]

I have done many cemetery caches. As to date, I have not come across any that have been done in poor taste. I'm not tell everyone to go out and do them. It's how you look at it. Death is just another part of life so it don't weird me out. I feel comfortable there.

[J.A.R.S.]

If it's a fairly busy cemetery, I like it when looking for the cache does not draw a lot of attention and is a quick find.

[+usyoopers]

We have done quite a few cemetery caches. None have been disrespectful, they have either been the actual cache off to the side of the cemetery or part of a multi that required you to get a date off a headstone. They are indeed filled with history, stuff you would never know otherwise. There is a cache in Northern Michigan that takes you the cemetery where the "Bearded Lady" from P.T. Barnum circus days is buried...never would have known that!

 

We would rather do a (respectful) cemetery cache than a busy urban micro any day!

[+WRASTRO]

I have done quite a few and have really enjoyed most of them. One was even in the cemetery where several of my family members are buried. After I found the cache I spent a while visiting their graves and enjoying memories of them. It ended up being a very emotional time for me. Very cool as well.

[+Harry Dolphin]

The more vocal of the posters here love cemetery caches. I guess that that's their prerogative. They also seem to like to picnic and walk their dogs in cemeteries.

Myself, I hate them. But I'm in the vocal minority here. I put them on my ignore list. (And I still have not forgiven Brian for putting Whippanong on my Nearby List.) My personal opinion: I find them morbid and disrespectful. Hey! Check out how old this guy was when he died! No thanks.

I have done historical research in cemeteries. I've seen Samuel J. Tilden's monument. But I will not play games in cemeteries. Just my humble opinon.

Since there is such a division of opinion, I really do wish that cache hiders would warn geocachers. Have some respect for those with differing opinions. "A cute, two-hundred-year old cemetery" is better than "Look what I found back here!" I have hated the few that I've done, and that includes the 911 Memorial that required figureing a victim's age at death.

OP is free to ignore all such caches with my blessing.

[+root1657]

The more vocal of the posters here love cemetery caches. I guess that that's their prerogative. They also seem to like to picnic and walk their dogs in cemeteries.

Myself, I hate them. But I'm in the vocal minority here. I put them on my ignore list. (And I still have not forgiven Brian for putting Whippanong on my Nearby List.) My personal opinion: I find them morbid and disrespectful. Hey! Check out how old this guy was when he died! No thanks.

I have done historical research in cemeteries. I've seen Samuel J. Tilden's monument. But I will not play games in cemeteries. Just my humble opinon.

Since there is such a division of opinion, I really do wish that cache hiders would warn geocachers. Have some respect for those with differing opinions. "A cute, two-hundred-year old cemetery" is better than "Look what I found back here!" I have hated the few that I've done, and that includes the 911 Memorial that required figureing a victim's age at death.

OP is free to ignore all such caches with my blessing.

 

I agree that it should somehow be delclared in the cache name, or at least the discription. That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page. I believe there is one called napoleon's bugler, or something like that.... might depend on what area you are in, but near the tri-state area of Ohio Indiana and Michigan there are oodles of cemetaries with facinating history in them.

 

Be respectful and learn while you are there, and I think it's better than leaving the places forgotten. Should we only visit the dead on memorial day?

[+powercatjeffy]

I don't mind cemetery caches, as long as the cache has been placed respectfully. On or immediately around someone's grave is not a good location. In a shrub around the periphery of the cemetery or near a road is acceptable in my book.

 

BTW.... cemeteries make great caches to get at night.

[+Flatouts]

We did one here in Orlando at the Greenwood Cemetery in downtown. It involved doing some research on the internet, then some more in the cemetery before finding the actual cache container that was hidden the a shrub near the grave sites. We learned a lot that day. It is a place filled with a ton of history. There's even a direct descendant of one of the President of the United States buried there. We also learned that they do night time tours once a month there.

 

No cemetery caches don't bother me...I'm a firm believer that the soul moves on once it leaves the body...cemeteries are really for those of us who a left behind so that if we choose to have a special place to remember our loved ones we can go there if we feel the need to.

[+SixDogTeam]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page. I believe there is one called napoleon's bugler, or something like that.... might depend on what area you are in, but near the tri-state area of Ohio Indiana and Michigan there are oodles of cemetaries with facinating history in them.

 

You may be referring to Indiana Spirit Quest #99: Napoleon's Bugler!

 

ISQ #99

 

[INDIANA SPIRIT QUEST]

 

BTW.... cemeteries make great caches to get at night.

 

We disagree that night caching in cemeteries is a good idea. In our state, many cemeteries are closed dusk to dawn. Night time is when much cemetery vandalism occurs. We don't allow caching at night on our series, which now includes over 600 caches, mostly in rural pioneer graveyards. We believe we may have been instrumental in inspiring Indiana Reviewers to request that cemetery caches in our state preclude night caching and so state on the cache page...

[+nekom]

The bottom line is if you don't feel comfortable with any cache, pack up and move on. Cemetery caches can be done very tastefully, and really show a lot of history. It's one of the most important places to exercise proper etiquette though. If there is a service, or mourners in the area, leave them be and save it for another day. If not, have respect for where you are and enjoy the history. Many cemetery caches are about a historic person. Learn about them.

[Mr.Yuck]

 

BTW.... cemeteries make great caches to get at night.

 

We disagree that night caching in cemeteries is a good idea. In our state, many cemeteries are closed dusk to dawn. Night time is when much cemetery vandalism occurs. We don't allow caching at night on our series, which now includes over 600 caches, mostly in rural pioneer graveyards. We believe we may have been instrumental in inspiring Indiana Reviewers to request that cemetery caches in our state preclude night caching and so state on the cache page...

 

Good thing someone caught that quote. Yep, bad, bad, bad idea. I'm quite certain night caching in cemeteries was one of the main points of contention in the major South Carolina controversy from 2005. I wouldn't doubt reviewers in every U.S. State require wording precluding night caching on newer cemetery cache placements, since then.

 

I probably wont go back to that one but I wont rule out all cemetary hunts just yet.

 

Anybody else think maybe these places should be sacred, or is it just me?

 

Naw, it's not just you Lumpy. In addition to Harry Dolphin here in the forums, I'm familiar with a couple of people who think geocaching in cemeteries is wrong, and don't partake in it. You can ignore any type of cache you don't like. It's no problem at all, I do it all the time.

[+NeoAddict]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page. I believe there is one called napoleon's bugler, or something like that.... might depend on what area you are in, but near the tri-state area of Ohio Indiana and Michigan there are oodles of cemetaries with facinating history in them.

 

You may be referring to Indiana Spirit Quest #99: Napoleon's Bugler!

 

ISQ #99

 

 

Lol. This whole time I read that as "Napoleon's Burger"

[+wimseyguy]

Caches placed and/or cachers acting without respect for the surrounding property and its residents-bad.

Caches placed with respect in a cemetery-good

Caches placed with respect that show me something interesting and teach me some history of the location and/or its residents-pricelesss.

[+Totem Clan]

Some folks won't do physical caches in cemeteries at all. I respect their feeling but I think they are missing some very well done, very educational caches.

 

In this neck of the woods there are many old cemeteries. Most of them dating back to the the first settlers to come in to the area. This summer I would like to start a series of caches that highlight some of them and the history of this area too. One option I've considered is make some of them multis requiring the cacher to get information from different markers in order to complete the cache.

[+briansnat]

But I will not play games in cemeteries. Just my humble opinon.

 

I guess it depends on how you view geocaching. If you look at it as a game, I guess I can see a level of discomfort with cemetery caches.

 

I look at geocaching as a tool to explore this world. As such, I think caches in cemeteries are appropriate, as long as they are tastefully executed.

[+wimseyguy]

Brian, yoodaman-two excellent posts in the same thread. woohoo

[+joranda]

Some folks won't do physical caches in cemeteries at all. I respect their feeling but I think they are missing some very well done, very educational caches.

 

In this neck of the woods there are many old cemeteries. Most of them dating back to the the first settlers to come in to the area. This summer I would like to start a series of caches that highlight some of them and the history of this area too. One option I've considered is make some of them multis requiring the cacher to get information from different markers in order to complete the cache.

 

That would be a great series to do.

[+Harry Dolphin]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page.

 

Ah. Thanks for the warning. Spirit Quest cache deleted from my Maine DeLorme list.

[+joranda]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page.

 

Ah. Thanks for the warning. Spirit Quest cache deleted from my Maine DeLorme list.

 

You must not like Spirit Quest caches.

[+powercatjeffy]

I'll still hunt cemetery caches at night if that's how my caching schedule works. That is, assuming the cemetery does not have gates closing it off and it does not have visiting hours posted.

 

I've only been to two at night (and many more than that during the daytime - including one of my own). Both were small, rural cemeteries. The sound of the wind rustling through the leaves and the birds chirping at the shadows cast by the full moon were almost unnerving.

[+sataraid1]

I was visiting cemeteries out of historical curiosity and to take photographs LONG before geocaching was even invented. There was nothing disrespectful about those visits, and there's nothing disrespectful about visiting for geocaching. It's all a matter of how you conduct yourself.

[+Totem Clan]

This is a little off topic but I just wanted to say thank you to the folks that put together the Indiana Spirit Quest.

 

Thanks to their help this weekend North Dakota will join the SQ ranks. NDSQ #1-#4 should be in place and ready to find sometime this weekend.

 

Cemetery caches can be some of the best caches if they are done correctly. Thank you SixDogTeam and the rest of the ISQ hiders for showing us that.

[+PJPeters]

I'm also a big fan of the Spirit Quest series of caches. They're very well done, teach us great local history, and are never on or near a marker. There's a lot of interesting things to learn there. But, as said above, don't do them if you're not comfortable.

 

I'll still hunt cemetery caches at night if that's how my caching schedule works. That is, assuming the cemetery does not have gates closing it off and it does not have visiting hours posted.

 

I've only been to two at night (and many more than that during the daytime - including one of my own). Both were small, rural cemeteries. The sound of the wind rustling through the leaves and the birds chirping at the shadows cast by the full moon were almost unnerving.

Please, check your local laws. Just because it isn't posted, doesn't mean that you can't be in there after dark. We recently had an incident with a cemetery cache where someone was hunting at night. The priest at the neighboring church saw the lights, called the police, and has taken to speaking with cachers who show up looking for it during the daytime, because it's "disrespectful," "holy ground," etc. That's not the norm for cemetery caches, but it's enough to spook some people away from finding such caches.

[+Metaphor]

Thanatopsis

William Cullen Bryant

 

To him who in the love of nature holds

Communion with her visible forms, she speaks

A various language; for his gayer hours

She has a voice of gladness, and a smile

And eloquence of beauty; and she glides

Into his darker musings, with a mild

And healing sympathy that steals away

Their sharpness ere he is aware. When thoughts

Of the last bitter hour come like a blight

Over thy spirit, and sad images

Of the stern agony, and shroud, and pall,

And breathless darkness, and the narrow house,

Make thee to shudder, and grow sick at heart;--

Go forth, under the open sky, and list

To Nature's teachings, while from all around--

Earth and her waters, and the depths of air--

Comes a still voice. Yet a few days, and thee

The all-beholding sun shall see no more

In all his course; nor yet in the cold ground,

Where thy pale form was laid, with many tears,

Nor in the embrace of ocean, shall exist

Thy image. Earth, that nourished thee, shall claim

Thy growth, to be resolved to earth again,

And, lost each human trace, surrendering up

Thine individual being, shalt thou go

To mix forever with the elements,

To be a brother to the insensible rock

And to the sluggish clod, which the rude swain

Turns with his share, and treads upon. The oak

Shall send his roots abroad, and pierce thy mold.

 

Yet not to thine eternal resting-place

Shalt thou retire alone, nor couldst thou wish

Couch more magnificent. Thou shalt lie down

With patriarchs of the infant world -- with kings,

The powerful of the earth -- the wise, the good,

Fair forms, and hoary seers of ages past,

All in one mighty sepulchre. The hills

Rock-ribbed and ancient as the sun, -- the vales

Stretching in pensive quietness between;

The venerable woods -- rivers that move

In majesty, and the complaining brooks

That make the meadows green; and, poured round all,

Old Ocean's gray and melancholy waste,--

Are but the solemn decorations all

Of the great tomb of man. The golden sun,

The planets, all the infinite host of heaven,

Are shining on the sad abodes of death

Through the still lapse of ages. All that tread

The globe are but a handful to the tribes

That slumber in its bosom. -- Take the wings

Of morning, pierce the Barcan wilderness,

Or lose thyself in the continuous woods

Where rolls the Oregon, and hears no sound,

Save his own dashings -- yet the dead are there:

And millions in those solitudes, since first

The flight of years began, have laid them down

In their last sleep -- the dead reign there alone.

 

So shalt thou rest -- and what if thou withdraw

In silence from the living, and no friend

Take note of thy departure? All that breathe

Will share thy destiny. The gay will laugh

When thou art gone, the solemn brood of care

Plod on, and each one as before will chase

His favorite phantom; yet all these shall leave

Their mirth and their employments, and shall come

And make their bed with thee. As the long train

Of ages glides away, the sons of men--

The youth in life's fresh spring, and he who goes

In the full strength of years, matron and maid,

The speechless babe, and the gray-headed man--

Shall one by one be gathered to thy side,

By those, who in their turn, shall follow them.

 

So live, that when thy summons comes to join

The innumerable caravan, which moves

To that mysterious realm, where each shall take

His chamber in the silent halls of death,

Thou go not, like the quarry-slave at night,

Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed

By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave

Like one who wraps the drapery of his couch

About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams.

 

If you think about it, the whole earth is a cemetery of sorts...

[+Jolly Roger]

I love cemetary caching at night but my caching partner and I use the rule that if it is too near public and at night we pass. If its rural enough they are a ton of fun! We usually try to pick nights when the moon is brightly out too, thus limiting the flashlights and adding to the fun! I guess the whole point is to be respectful and use your head. If we even have an idea it might bother someone that we are out there we don't go.

[+L Frank]

Thanatopsis

William Cullen Bryant

 

<snip>

 

If you think about it, the whole earth is a cemetery of sorts...

 

That's beautiful! Thank you for sharing.

[+WeeWillie]

Inscriptions on headstones are meant to be read.

 

Lester Moore 1880’s Boothill, Tombstone AZ (gunfight over a package, both men died. Wells Fargo agent in Naco) Famous epitaph read: "Here lies Lester Moore, four slugs from a 44, no Les no more.

 

For more (no pun intended)

 

http://www.clantongang.com/oldwest/boothil...ard_graves.html

[+joranda]

Inscriptions on headstones are meant to be read.

 

Lester Moore 1880’s Boothill, Tombstone AZ (gunfight over a package, both men died. Wells Fargo agent in Naco) Famous epitaph read: "Here lies Lester Moore, four slugs from a 44, no Les no more.

 

For more (no pun intended)

 

http://www.clantongang.com/oldwest/boothil...ard_graves.html

 

That is so cool.

[+Harry Dolphin]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page.

 

Ah. Thanks for the warning. Spirit Quest cache deleted from my Maine DeLorme list.

 

You must not like Spirit Quest caches.

 

Dunno. I haven't done one. I do not do cemetery caches, which is my prerogative. It would be nice if the vocal majority respected that. am not suggesting that cemetery caches should be banned, just that I find them morbid, and will not do any more of them. As I said, that is my prerogative. OP asked for opinions. I have expressed mine. SixDog Team has lumped Spirit Quest caches in the same category. I thanked him for the warning. I will ignore them! I shall seek caches that, hopefully, I will enjoy hunting.

[+Totem Clan]

Dunno. I haven't done one. I do not do cemetery caches, which is my prerogative. It would be nice if the vocal majority respected that. am not suggesting that cemetery caches should be banned, just that I find them morbid, and will not do any more of them. As I said, that is my prerogative. OP asked for opinions. I have expressed mine. SixDog Team has lumped Spirit Quest caches in the same category. I thanked him for the warning. I will ignore them! I shall seek caches that, hopefully, I will enjoy hunting.

First let me say that it is your prerogative and I do respect that and respect you for that.

In many ways I agree with you. I've seen cemetery caches that I did not like at all. I have even walked away from a few when I realized that the cache was near the markers and not off to the side.

 

Now as far as the Spirit Quest caches go, yes they take you to cemeteries. In particular, they take you to pioneers and historical cemeteries and/or sites. The cache containers are never hidden in the cemetery near the markers. They are done with the utmost respect. In fact they are there to recognize and honor the pioneers and veterans.

[+team lagonda]

so whats a few tupperware containers and empty mc,donalds big,mac wrappers matter ?

[Neos2]

I thought about this thread yesterday on my way home from work. I was passing the cemetery near my home, and as I usually do I looked over toward where my friend, Mark, is buried and said "Hiya Mark, how's it going?" (OK, so I am just a bit odd for doing that, but hey, just in case he can hear me I don't want him to think I've forgotten about him!)...

 

and I noticed the groundskeeping crew...One guy was standing on a grave, spraying weedkiller around the headstone, and another was driving a riding lawnmower across the graves to cut the grass. A third worker was using a weed-whacker around a headstone ....

 

that headstone just happens to belong to my great-grandparents--and oh yeah, the guy who was standing on a grave was on their daughter's grave (my grandfather's sister, who died from heart failure after getting strep throat in the days before antibiotics--She and her fairly newly-wed husband had climbed the fire tower hill for a picnic just the month before, so she was an otherwise healthy young woman.

 

Did it bother me that these guys were doing those things over the graves of my loved ones? Nope. What lies beneath that soil is just whatever remains of the shell that used to hold those people. They have no more need of that body and the space is just a symbol to remind me they existed.

 

I didn't find it disrespectful and I wouldn't have felt any different if they had been making a rubbing of the headstones or geocaching there, either. Although I do try to stay off peoples actual graves when I go through a cemetery--but that's as much for my own safety as out of respect--the ground over those things can collapse over time!

 

But it made me wonder how many of us think even stop to consider all the things beyond our control that happen to burial plots other than just sitting there being "sacred space" --People working, worms and moles tunneling through, birds sitting on the headstones, tree limbs being blown onto the stones, weathering and erosion erasing the lettering etc. I mean, you have ignore the indignities of death at some level. Personally I'd rather see you 'play' there than to 'work' there, just because I'd rather see you enjoying yourself than working for a dime. I think my relatives would feel the same way and they'd rather someone visit there because they wanted to be there than because they had to be there.

 

I'm not saying anyone who dislikes cemeteries should learn to love them--but I am still saying I prefer my loved ones be visited, for some reason, rather than ignored.

[+Mother Wolf]

1st off, welcome to geocaching Lumpy.

 

I have a few caches in cemetery's. 1 is a C&D, its location disclosed in the cache page, because it is a Military Memorial, & my purpose was for the people to see that without disturbing the site. It is also a very historic cemetery so it is exceptable to roam the grounds.

Another holds a reg cache away from the memorial with a math to do to get to the cache. Again it doesnt disturb the grave site & its historical importance.

The 3rd is the site of the oldest grave (1700) on our island. The exact location is used to get the cords for the cache off grounds.

 

All of these caches have been visited 'ALOT' by our cachers here.

 

The bottom line is if YOU are uncomfortable with the locations then dont do them hon. There are plenty of other caches out there to find. Leave the cemetery ones to the cemetery cachers. It's ok. The important thing in this activity is to enjoy. MW

[+SassyGingerNinja]

We don't do them. First time we pulled into one, my 12 yo son said "No way Mom, that's just wrong!" He stayed in the car while I got out for about 30 seconds and then decided I didn't want to do it. I don't mind that others cache in cemetaries, it's just not our thing and we avoid them.

[+joranda]

That being said, if you search around the site for "spirit quest" or "walking with the dead" they have a growing number that give awesome history lessons right on the cache page.

 

Ah. Thanks for the warning. Spirit Quest cache deleted from my Maine DeLorme list.

 

You must not like Spirit Quest caches.

 

Dunno. I haven't done one. I do not do cemetery caches, which is my prerogative. It would be nice if the vocal majority respected that. am not suggesting that cemetery caches should be banned, just that I find them morbid, and will not do any more of them. As I said, that is my prerogative. OP asked for opinions. I have expressed mine. SixDog Team has lumped Spirit Quest caches in the same category. I thanked him for the warning. I will ignore them! I shall seek caches that, hopefully, I will enjoy hunting.

 

I respect that, but you should respect that we like them. Plus calling them morbid isn't very respectful either. We all end up in a cemetery one way or the other unless you choise the ashes way to go.

[Lumpy223]

Thanks for the thoughts here folks. As I said, I haven't completely ruled out these kinds of caches yet but I felt kinda weird doing my first one. I felt like the 800 pound gorilla in the room and was just waiting for one of the staff to come up and ask me what I was doing.

 

For what it's worth, my GPS was showing a headstone as ground zero. The hiding spots here were very few with the next logical location several yards away.

 

I appreciate all the input.

[CLV3]

Caches placed amongst the headstones is in poor taste to me. Not because of any sort of sacred anything - just disrespectful of visitors to the area and famlies. Using things within the cemetary as clues to a final cache or a cache placed along the edges - I have no problems with. Cemetaries are full of historical information and I view them as an educational experience.

 

In the not too distant past, familes had picnics in cemetaries. In modern times, walking and jogging through cemtaries is not an uncommon practice. Historians and researchers regularly visit such places. Geocaching can be a a legit activity too.

 

One thing I am certain of - the permenant "residents" do not mind.

 

I am sure many of them love having visitors. It must be very boring being dead.

[+joranda]

Yeah when I'n gone, maybe my kids will put a cache next to me so I can get vistors too.

[+briansnat]

But it made me wonder how many of us think even stop to consider all the things beyond our control that happen to burial plots other than just sitting there being "sacred space" --People working, worms and moles tunneling through, birds sitting on the headstones, tree limbs being blown onto the stones, weathering and erosion erasing the lettering etc.

 

Not to mention graves that are dug up for parking lots, road and building construction. Or sometimes just paved over.

 

After some research my father found out where my great grandfather was buried. My dad was speaking with the caretaker trying to find out exactly where the grave was so we could visit. After checking records, the caretaker informed us that the headstone had been taken down and buried on top of the grave. He said it's done to old graves to make mowing easier.

 

He informed us that the headstone could be dug up and replaced if we wanted them to do it - for $500.

[Neos2]

But it made me wonder how many of us think even stop to consider all the things beyond our control that happen to burial plots other than just sitting there being "sacred space" --People working, worms and moles tunneling through, birds sitting on the headstones, tree limbs being blown onto the stones, weathering and erosion erasing the lettering etc.

 

Not to mention graves that are dug up for parking lots, road and building construction. Or sometimes just paved over.

 

After some research my father found out where my great grandfather was buried. My dad was speaking with the caretaker trying to find out exactly where the grave was so we could visit. After checking records, the caretaker informed us that the headstone had been taken down and buried on top of the grave. He said it's done to old graves to make mowing easier.

 

He informed us that the headstone could be dug up and replaced if we wanted them to do it - for $500.

Ouch, sorry about your great-grandfather.

 

There is a convenience store in the next town that is built over an old graveyard. There are still five or six stones in the corner of the parking lot, but county records list at least 100 burials there. In Indiana, it's easier to pave over a graveyard than to get the permits to remove and relocate the burials.

[+Hellolost]

I am looking forward to my first search in a cemetery. Every day on my lunch hour I walk a mile and a half through the cemetery by my work. I find them to be peaceful beautiful and interesting places.

[+KerBear]

I've never gone to cemeteries before caching. it's been interesting reading the markers and other historic plaques/markers. right now have 2 cemetery hides. one where my brother is and one in a little country cemetery not many people know about. both are hidden with respect and not near markers. It's okay if you don't want to stop for them. there's caches I try to avoid. I've seen one cemetery cache placed in front of a marker with another marker leaned over to cover it. other then that all have been placed away from graves and markers in tree lines. a few people have posted about cemetery hides at night-most of the cemeteries we've gone to around pa/oh are dawn to dusk. found one in a local cemetery that had fire tacks from the edge of trees right to the cache but it's not a night cache. they maybe wanted to make it that way but the cemetery isn't open at night.