Graveyard Caches

[+thirtyfootscrew]

I've always liked graveyards, especially old ones - some of the epitaphs prove to be very interesting reads. I also think it's nice to walk around and think how life may have been for those people. Since I started geocaching I've visited a few as a matter of course: GCD657, GCGTZE and GCGTZK.

 

What does everyone else think about graveyard caches, any to recommend?

 

I get to many parts of the country for various reasons but my main caching areas are Herts/Beds/Bucks or North Lincolnshire.

 

Cheers, Thirtyfootscrew.

[+Seasider]

I recall the following in you rpart of the world!

 

Pharisee's creepy cache!

 

Egyptian Springs

 

Forgotten Souls 2

 

Cheers!

 

Seasider

[+House Of Boo]

Like Seasider said Dark Deeds at St Marys by Pharisee is an excellent cache to do at night... If you can go through with it!

 

House Of Boo

[NeilFord]

Though I haven't done it myself, The Little Cemetery Safari (GCHPYY) comes highly recommended.

 

Must make time to do this sometime.

 

- Neil.

[+Lizzzzeeeee]

I love graveyards and one of my favourite caches was Tomb Raider Mission I by Scotty. It was one of the first, if not THE first multis I did and to this day it remains one of my all time favourite caches. Brookwood Cemetry is vast and its really poignant seeing all the different sections for each religion and all the war graves for so many wars and so many countries.

 

I've not done TR Mission 2 yet but I'm told it's just a good.

[nobby.nobbs]

i thought buried caches weren't allowed!!!!

[+Fayrewood Foragers]

Here is a couple worth trying:

 

GCHAP3 - Its the grave of a very famous author who wrote classic detective stories, historical novels and science fiction stories.

 

Can'y tell you any more or that would spoil the cache.

 

 

Or the grave of Florence Nightingale (GCH8DC)

 

 

Both are Virtual Caches

[+Haggis Hunter]

Edinburgh has 5 Multi Caches that all take you into a graveyard at some point during the cache. They are - GCGT46, GCHGGC, GC6AA9, GCHF3X, GCHGGC

[+spioradsaor]

Graveyard caches ...and graveyards in particular are excellent places.

 

Lots of Spirits to speak to...althhough sometimes its better just to listen.

[MCL]

Oh dear, looks like I'm going to be a lone voice here.

 

I don't agree that a graveyard, or any other place of special religious practice, is a suitable place for playing a game in. By all means go in and read the intriguing stones and admire the tombs, but don't actually set the game in it.

 

Can you imagine what an uproar would be caused if we started placing caches in the grounds of mosques and temples? We would have all sorts of fundamentalist moslems, jews and hindus bringing down the wrath of heaven upon our heads for desecrating such a holy place with cheap tat.

 

No, I believe we should stay out of graveyards, temples, churches, mosques, synagogues, and the equivalent places of worship for other sects and religions, for both caches and also the clues to multi caches. Although I do complete multi caches that require me to go into a graveyards, I don't enjoy doing it, and I certainly would never place one myself in a church or grave yard.

 

I made that point implicitly in the placing of my "Really Keyne" cache. To do the cache you absolutely do not have to enter the graveyard.

 

On the other hand, I don't want to be seen shoving my own religious beliefs down other people's throats, which is why I have never said anything about this before on here. I stayed silent until asked for my opinion.

 

So if you are asking me for my recommendations, I say don't do them. People's places of worship and eternal rest are not playgrounds. Neither should we be encouraging the next generation to treat them as such.

 

OK. I'll come off my soapbox now.

[+Simply Paul]

I can understand MCL's viewpoint, and in many ways I agree. They are places of meaning, dignity and importance and should always be treated as such. On the other hand... how many of us would visit these public places if it wasn't for geocaching? Is geocaching disrespectful to the dead - people who, I like to imagine, might have enjoyed a good treasurehunt themselves, in their day. I have placed caches in churchyards - well away from 'tended' graves themselves - and have used older graves as points of info gathering too. I'd not use graves from this or the last century though - somehow that seems wrong.

 

Another experience I had was seeing the recent graves of young children and babies while setting a cache - away from that part of the graveyard, mind. One had a solar-powered light on it, so no one would need be afraid of the dark. That almost had me in tears, I'm not afraid to admit. It made me bloody thankful for the life I've been lucky enough to have. It can't be a coincidence that graves are kept in a graveyard all around the church - the focus of life in many villages and towns for centuries, rather than tucked away where no one has to walk past them to a christening or marriage. None of us has a choice, we will sadly, one day be joining their ranks. I actaully find that strangely life affirming. And I think that's the idea.

 

So the debate goes on.

 

SP

Edited April 13, 2004 by Simply Paul

[+spioradsaor]

Each to his/her own I suppose. The graves and tombstones are there to be visited.

Not just by relatives but by anyone. I am sure the relatives know who is interred there.

 

I like to think that anyone who reads the inscriptions adds to the memory of the person therein.

 

I wont go on but there might just be an ocean of thought ...and when you read/think of the inscription , that thought enters the ocean of thought and adds to it....?????????Ach I'm away for a lie down.

 

I'll finish with ..If it was me in there(and I will be someday...then I'd want people, dugs, weans etc coming to walk, play and even picnic beside me....see life, aye its great, and "Yer a lang time deid".

 

Play the game but be respectful.

[kiteflyer]

We placed a micro in a graveyard after a lot of consideration. It was hoped that people visting the cache would remember the horror of war. Looking at the logs it seems to have done just that. If the logs were negative, then we would disable the cache straight away.

 

Less we Forget

 

Thats how we feel

 

Kiteflyer(Gary and Jane)

[+spioradsaor]

Hear Hear to that !!

 

"At the going down of the Sun

And, in the Morning...."

Edited April 13, 2004 by spioradsaor

[+wildtrekker]

I think it depends on why the cache is there. One I'm going to place actually has a public foot path running through the church yard, so is used for recreation and the point of the cache is of historical importance dating back to roman times.

 

So although Caching is refered to as a GAME, I think most see it as recreation.

 

Personally I would have done my cache as a Virtual, so as not to place anything there, but allow visitors to see this "Roman History". Unfortunatly tighter rules on this means that becouse a physical cache can be placed, then it has to be that, so there will be a micro instead.

 

I wouldn't just place a cache there for the sake of it, I have too much respect for that.

 

my 2p

[+Peztone]

I have a virtual in a graveyard, I placed it because my friend who's grave it marks seemed lonely whenever I visited him.. I'm sure the trail of strangers wandering through makes him smile.

 

I deliberately made it a virtual to stop it just being a "game"

 

-S.

[+choccymandm]

Dark Deeds at St Mary's would by our no 1 ... that old church has quite a reputation of ... well ... dark deads!! definate night cache material, plus you could get in another 4 caches which are well within your walking range!!

 

on the "should they be placed in graveyards" debate ...

 

we both like old churchs and churchyards such as Dark Deeds which are no loner in use. At one of our own caches 'Faith No More?' the church is no longer used but an area of the graveyard is, becasue of this we put in a note on the cache page asking people to stay away from that area. To be honest who else goes to visit an old decaying church these days?

however, we're not over keen on caching in modern graveyards - we always get a slightly guilty feeling as if we shouldn't really be doing what it is that we're doing!

[MCL]

Having read the further posts above, I can see merit in encouraging people to spend time looking round graveyards, and would only add that maybe the right thing to do is to set the cache just outside the graveyard, and mention in the cache page that, while doing the cache, a visit to the graveyard itself is recommended. That way, the choice as to whether to enter is left up to the individual.

 

Much the same way we mention pubs in our cache pages. "The Upchuck & Leggitt is only just down the road and serves greasy food all day..." kinda thing.

Edited April 14, 2004 by MCL

[+rev n doc]

I've been reading this thread with not only interest from the game/sport view but also thinking from the "professional" end. I guess a lot depends on ones views of death and how dead people should be treated. All people need to be treated with respect, and we should always take care to not upset other users of anywhere we cache be it a graveyard, a bus depot, a beach or a country park.

 

Some of you feel it is wrong to enter a graveyard to "play" and that is understandable, don't do those caches, but I have noticed litter in some grave yards I've visited - especially older ones - so why not have it as a Cache in Trash Out site?

 

Aren't we (who set up caches) supposed to get permission from the landowner anyway, so that would remove some of the probs with upsetting the people of the church, temple, mosque etc. Plus in my experience, as a theology student, people of other faiths have always been keen to encourage Christians on to their property, not to proselytize but simply for an opportunity to show that they are fellow humans who wish to live in peace, unlike some of the media images.

 

Provided we cache responsibly, and follow GC.com guidelines, respecting others there shouldnt be a prob.

 

Rev

[+thirtyfootscrew]

Thanks for the recommendations people, I shall put them on my ‘to do’ list and do the research, cheers.

 

I also find the debate interesting and both sides certainly have merit and I might as well add my opinions to the thread as well. I’m an atheist as are most of my family so religion doesn’t come into it so the most important consideration for me is that of respect. I understand the viewpoint that that playing a game in someone’s final resting place may sound disrespectful if put that way I think there are other things which come along with our presence at these locations.

 

When I visit a graveyard I tend to read many of the epitaphs on the older graves and some of them are definitely very moving or indeed interesting, personally I would be honoured if in 200 years time people are visiting my grave for whatever reason. I understand that not everyone will feel this way but I think most of us will treat graves and graveyards with the utmost respect and I think that rev-n-doc’s suggestion about cache-in-trash out is an excellent one. If people don’t visit these old graves then they’ll be forgotten and demolished and I doubt any of us like that idea.

 

Cheers, Thirtyfootscrew.

[+Pharisee]

When I visit a graveyard I tend to read many of the epitaphs on the older graves and some of them are definitely very moving or indeed interesting.......

For an interesting and poignant read, these three will take a lot of beating

 

Epitaph for a Child

 

Tabloid Tombstone

 

Epitaph for an Unknown Woman

[+Mr & Mrs Hedgehog]

For an interesting and poignant read, these three will take a lot of beating

 

Epitaph for an Unknown Woman

Mrs H and I were looking for a suitable cache to do for our 300th cache when we are in Luton this weekend... Looks like this one will do just fine

[101325]

I tried to find a graveyard cache this weekend and it left me with very definate views on this topic. For those of you that remember the "Modern Antiquary Website" affair you will remember the intensity of emotion roused by the fear of our hobby encroaching on sites held to be sacred by groups of people. Perhaps because I regularly visit my own family members since departed, or perhaps the disapproving glances of other visitors to the graveyard, I felt that I was not there for a fit and proper activity such as historical study or genealogy.

 

I realise that some sites are so old as to only contain families long extinct, so visiting relatives will not be disturbed by the caching activity, but out of respect for the deceased and also to avoid caching picking up a negative image I would ask that cachers place caches outside the actual precincts of the churchyard or at the very least, in an area where no bodies are interred.

[+Seasider]

I don't have any problems with caches in graveyards.

 

Churches & graveyards are interesting places, both historically & architecturally, and the centrepoint of many towns & villages. Churches are places of joy as well as sadness. The real threat to them are gangs of kids damaging headstones, smashing windows, grafitti, drinking etc and not the occasional cacher who wanders in. Of course, if grieving relatives are nearby then waiting until they have left or coming back another day is the best thing to do.

 

My cemetery cache in Blackely was put there at the suggestion of Pyro Pete whose father & other relatives are buried there. The idea was to show cachers a wonderfully serene (thus the name of the cache) area in an urban jungle.

 

Infact one of my next local caches will be in the grounds of the crematorium where generations of the Nuttall family have met their firey end - I might make it a multi using some of my relatives' gravestones - my old man would like that!

 

And, if I get run over by a bus tomorrow I'll be grateful if someone could put one near mine - The Seasider Memorial Cache!!

 

Cheers!

 

Seasider

[+Postie]

I also have mixed views about graveyard caches. I have placed one my self but the cache is just out side the burial ground on a footpath, but I wanted people to walk through the grave stones to see the history and memorials to dead service men. I did a Graveyard cachea few weeks ago which I found the memorial very sobering and I was grateful for the placer bringing it to my attention, the cache was also hidden outside the area. However caches actually hidden inside the burial area could be classed as insensitive to the bereaved. I think virtual caches are probably the best solution for these situations.

[+mongoose39uk]

I have written this reply several times and changed my mind about submiting it.

 

at the end of the day make your own mind up!

 

I have done one and re visited it to collect a TB, it is not near the graves but near some memorials.

 

I think that as long as you respect the place and peoples emotions then there should not be an issue.

[Mittellegi]

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Edited April 15, 2004 by bexybear

[Mittellegi]

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Edited April 15, 2004 by bexybear