EXCITING NEW CACHE
SERIES!!
"INDIANA SPIRIT
QUEST"
There are 2,037 small, rural, historic
cemeteries in Indiana. Only 41 of them have caches placed in or
near them. This series will take us to the other 1,996. At the rate
of one hidden/found per day this will only take us five and a half
years (Unless of course, I can get somebody to help...) So the
journey of two thousand graveyards begins with a single
cache:
UPDATE, AUGUST 2004: Well there are now
over 50 ISQ caches with over 700 logged finds, so we're on our
way...
UPDATE FEB 2005: Now there are over 100
ISQ caches hidden by three Geocaching Teams with over 1,600 logged
finds.
UPDATE JUNE 2005: There are now over 200
ISQ caches hidden by nine Geocaching teams with over 4,000 logged
finds by over 400 different cachers--YIKES!!...
UPDATE SEPT. 2005: Now there are over 300
ISQ's hidden by 14 cacher groups with over 7,000 finds logged by
over 600 cachers!
UPDATE OCT. 2005: CACHE HAS BEEN
RELOCATED AND UPGRADED TO A SMALL CACHE (PLASTIC SPICE JAR,
CAMO'D). IT IS NOW LOCATED ABOUT TEN PACES FROM IT'S FORMER
POSITION...
UPDATE DEC. 2005: The series has now grown to over 400 caches
hidden by 20 cachers and found by over 850 cachers, with over
10,000 Found It logs...
UPDATE MAY 2006: ABOUT 470 CACHES ARE NOW ACTIVE, HIDDEN BY
25 TEAMS IN 3 STATES AND 1 PROVINCE. OVER 1,000 ACCCOUNTS HAVE
LOGGED OVER 15,000 SMILES.
UPDATE AUGUST 2006:WE ARE NOW OVER 500 CACHES AND 20,OOO
SMILIES!
UPDATE APRIL 2007: WE ARE NOW OVER 550 CACHES AND STOPPED
COUNTING AT 25,000 SMILIES!
UPDATE APRIL 2008: THERE ARE NOW OVER 600 INDIANA SPIRIT
QUESTS, AND ALSO NUMEROUS ALLIED OHIO SPIRIT QUESTS, AND MICHIGAN
SPIRIT QUESTS. THERE ARE SEVERAL NON-ALLIED COPY-CAT SERIES THAT
ACKNOWLEDGE US AS THEIR INSPIRATIONAL BASE AS WELL, e.g. KENTUCKY
SPIRIT QUEST, B.C. SPIRIT QUEST, P.C. SPIRIT QUEST, AND WISCONSIN
SPIRIT QUEST, BUT THEY DO NOT SUBSCRIBE TO ALL OUR STANDARDS AND
PRACTICES.
Today we
walked where others walked On a lonely, windswept hill; Today we
talked where other cried For Loved Ones whose lives are stilled.
Today our hearts were touched By graves of tiny babies; Snatched
from the arms of loving kin, In the heartbreak of the ages. Today
we saw where the grandparents lay In the last sleep of their time;
Lying under the trees and clouds - Their beds kissed by the sun and
wind. Today we wondered about an unmarked spot; Who lies beneath
this hollowed ground? Was it a babe, child, young or old? No
indication could be found. Today we saw where Mom and Dad lay. We
had been here once before On a day we'd all like to forget, But
will remember forever more. Today we recorded for kith and kin The
graves of ancestors past; To be preserved for generations hence, A
record we hope will last. Cherish it, my friend; preserve it, my
friend, For stones sometimes crumble to dust And generations of
folks yet to come Will be grateful for your
trust.
INDIANA SPIRIT QUEST #1:
No Greek Rubber Plants
This quest will take you to a small
historic Indiana town, but I'm not going to tell you any more than
that, except that it has a larger namesake in Ohio, and they were
both founded in 1836. This cemetery is much older than the gate
sign indicates....There are stones dating to the 1840's and 1850's.
The oldest I saw was for URIAH OSGOOD D. 1840. The town is down the
Road from Athens, before you get to Disko. Cache
On!!
This is the grave of Samuel Lane, one of
two Revolutionary War soldiers buried in Fulton County. Samuel Lane
was born 1769 in Beaver County, Pennsylvania. He died 21 Sep 1845.
He was married first to Jane Homes. Children were: Martha
1788-1878, married Jacob Sippy (War of 1812) and had ten children;
a daughter and a son died in childhood. The soldier married second
to Lucretia Johnson Sippy in 1832.
NOTICE (JULY 2005)--FIND LOGS
INDICATING NIGHT CACHING AT THIS SITE WILL BE DELETED WITHOUT
NOTICE!THIS IS NO DRILL!
Genius Loci, Hutt and Mattster found over 40 ISQ's last
September. Genius Loci writes thoughtful, interesting logs on all
his finds. Read on:
Genius Loci
Log Date: 9/5/2004
(It was ironic that we visited
here at cache #1 last, and I trust that SixDogTeam won't mind if I
reserve this cache log for my general thoughts about the entire
series...)
Hutt, Mattster and I had wandered
down from Illinois for a late summer's caching weekend when we
stumbled across the Indiana Spirit Quest series. We didn't come
specifically for these caches, but as we found more and more of the
ISQ hides, we soon began to seek them out. What a wonderful series
this is!
All too often, I've read posts in the
Geocaching.com forums written by folks who aren't comfortable with
caches located in cemeteries, and who would ban such placements.
Perhaps that's because they view the activity of geocaching as
being essentially frivolous, or even disrespectful. I would ask
such people to hunt a few of the ISQ caches for themselves before
making such a judgment. If anything, this series will prove that
geocaching, when approached as a vehicle for learning about and
appreciating our environment and history, is anything but a
flippant, sacrilegious pastime.
For it was geocaching which stirred
us to visit these hallowed locations, immersing us in intimate,
personal communication with the actual landscapes our forefathers
loved so dearly. The cache description's historical notes were also
key to our appreciation, as they opened the door to more than just
the brief glimpses into the hearts and minds of our predecessors
that are retained on their faded tombstones.
As we found ourselves visiting these
humble resting grounds one by one, our thankfulness and esteem for
our ancestors, our country, and our planet grew stronger and
stronger. For scattered across the beautiful Indiana countryside
are all the lessons anyone needs to develop a healthy respect for
our forefathers, the lands the have left us, and the wisdom they
held dear. Here the monuments (both old and new, grand and humble)
still speak to those who take the time and trouble to visit them,
and often, it is geocaching that brings their audiences
hence.
To ban geocaching in such places
would only serve to diminish that activity until it is indeed
nothing more than a frivolous game. If that ever happens, we shall
cease our participation, and continue to seek out the special
places on our planet without benefit of the guidance so
thoughtfully provided by local cache placers. We pray that day will
never come.
Our thanks to all the Indiana Spirit
Quest cache placers, may your invitations to visit the shrines of
our ancestors never go unheeded!
January 14 by IndyMagicMan (1438
found)
ISQ++ This was todays destination. I
consider it a bit of a pilgrimage if you will, to the place that
started it all. I actually got a bit excited as I closed in, even
know it was ‘just’ another cemetery. That’s
because to me ISQ is one of the most important contributions to
geocaching. ISQ has brought me to many important places, and given
me much time for my own reflection on life, and death. I look
forward to many years of finding many, many more ISQ. Hats off to
what you have started sir. My deepest thanks.
Hello...Again
My wife of 49 years and I would like to say a special thank you
for your Spirit Quest Series..
We have been in Elkhart since June 28th and have been doing
quite a bit of caching since we have been here,with the exception
of 2 weeks that we had to go back to Pa. to take care of my 91 year
old father who had a small stroke..but is doing fine now...He was
shot down during a bombing raid over Germany in WWII and was saved
by the french underground and sent back to England..I spent 8yr in
the military and came back from Nam in 63...I am now 70 yrs old and
retired...the reason for spending so much time here in IN. is we
have a motorhome being repaired up here in Elkhart...and we will be
leaving tomorrow. But I did not want to leave before we sent you a
special thank you for the series that HONORS ALL VETS...You have
carried my wife and I to so many special places and to be able to
give my fello Vets just one more final salute, warmed our hearts.So
again thank you my friend for what you and your group have done to
bring people to honor the old as well aS THE NEW..
My GOD BLESS YOU and your group.... Your Friends
Gary & Pat (ghost9mm)(Miss Pat)
NOTE, JUNE 2005: Find Logs indicating
night caching at this site will be deleted without
notice.
EIGHT SIMPLE RULES FOR HIDING
ISQ’s
1. CACHE PAGE—We want there to be
a continuity from cache page to cache page, so that an ISQ Cache
Page is instantly recognizable. We have a basic template that we
use for each page—modified according to the needs of the
hider, of course. The template can be copied from the source of any
ISQ cache page. Thematic backgrounds are encouraged.
2. PHOTOS – ISQ cache pages are known for their high quality
photos—usually a long shot of the Cemetery, the
cemetery’s sign, the cemetery’s Church, and interesting
tombstones. At least one photo is included on the cache page, the
rest can be in the Gallery.
3. RESEARCH – The name of the cemetery, when it was
established, and the Township and County in which it’s
located are basic. Data about individuals buried in the cemetery or
other related information is an additional bonus. Information about
local Hoosier Pioneers and Native American Lore is prominent in the
descriptions of many of our caches. Some sites have an abundance of
information available, others have very little.
4. SPELLING & GRAMMAR – We respect the English language.
We write in Word and use Spell Check if we have to, then copy and
paste to the cache report page. We never spell the word Cemetery
with an ”a” if at all possible.
5. NIGHT CACHING – Visiting ISQ cemeteries from Dusk to Dawn
is forbidden and we note that on the cache page. We delete find
logs that indicate night caching. We disturb nothing, trash out
non-decorative items and do not move or take rubbings of
tombstones. We strictly obey all posted cemetery regulations.
6. VETERANS – We try to honor veterans of the Armed Services
that are buried in our cemeteries, by displaying photos of their
tombstones or memorials and noting their service or giving
information about their units. We particularly concentrate on older
grave sites of veterans of the Revolution, Indian Wars, Mexican
War, War Between the States, or a conflict that the hider has a
particular interest in. We have a tradition of replacing worn
American Flags at gravesites that have flag holders.
7. LOCATION – We try to locate our cache containers as far
from grave sites as practicable. Fencerows and Perimeter Wooded
areas are ideal. If the terrain allows, regular or small cache
containers are preferred to micros, if at all possible.
8. CANINE CACHERS -- You need to have a DOG to help you in all your
geocaching hiding and finding activities. If you do not have one,
one will be provided to you at no charge, either as a loaner or
permanently. While in cemeteries, all pets must be on short leash,
under your direct control at all times.
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