February 2017 - The Cemetery Detective™

Stanton Cemetery is a small rural cemetery in a grove of trees.

Seven miles North East of Abingdon, Virginia, in a nondescript grove of trees, lies a hidden cemetery just off Route 11. There’s not a sign nor a cemetery marker. But, there are several gravestones in this cemetery.

I was travelling up 81 on my way to Washington, DC to view the spring arrival of the blooming cherry trees. Though I didn’t know it at the time, the cherry blossoms reached their peak 3 days earlier.

Turning off the paved road, I followed a double-track up a small hill to view the grave markers in this small rural cemetery.

Though I missed the peak of the cherry blossoms in DC, I was greeted by the beauty of the wild flowers in Stanton Cemetery.

The iron-worked gate welcoming you to Mt. Pisgah Cemetery includes symbology related to gold mining.

Near Pike’s Peak

I visited Colorado to climb Pikes Peak. From the town of Manitou Springs, Colorado, the Barr Trail winds 13 miles to the top of Pikes Peak with an elevation of 14,114′ msl. I LOVED this hike and I suggest anyone in good enough physical shape should make the hike at least once in their life. This was the second 14’er I’ve climbed. The first being Mt. Elbert on a different trip to Colorado. I did not feel any altitude sickness but I did feel a bit sick at the top of Pike’s Peak when I realized a bottle of Gatorade was selling for $7.

Not wishing to hike down, I took the COG Railway. Riding the railway was an adventure in itself.

Once back to the bottom, I hopped in my rented Jeep to begin exploring the countryside for a few days. Whenever I’m in unfamiliar territory with time to spare, I turn off the GPS and try my best to get lost. This strategy is made much more fun when I’m in a rented 4×4 Jeep.

Cripple Creek Colorado

A few miles outside Manitou Springs lies the town of Cripple Creek, Colorado. When I first saw the signs for Cripple Creek, I starting singing “Up On Cripple Creek” by The Band. I had always assumed the character in the song was from Cripple Creek, Colorado because he talks about getting “off this mountain.” If any song lyrics experts are reading this, please drop me a note (I’ll leave the comments open below) to tell me if I’m wrong or right.

Other than the iron gate and a static display of a Huey helicopter, the first feature I noticed was a number of graves within a small grove of Aspens.

Mt. Pisgah Cemetery

Beneath Colorado’s brilliant blue sky, symbols signifying the importance of this town’s connection to mining adorn the tree stump grave marker of Charles Huggins.

A bronze elk stands steadfast in the lush grass as if to guard the graves from the mountain lions that mush surely inhabit nearby Mt. Pisgah. As beautiful as this cemetery is, I question the use of chain link fencing to define the perimeter of family plots.

I thoroughly enjoyed strolling the grounds and looking at the views of Mt. Pisgah not too far in the distance. This view is honored by my favorite grave marker in the cemetery. It is a clear acrylic(?) grave marker which allows you to look completely through it to see the amazing landscape that surrounds Mt. Pisgah cemetery.