The first stop on the 2-stage quest takes you to the final resting place of one the Depression Era's most notorious outlaws - Bonnie Parker. Some consider her story an American tragedy, as she goes from honor student to hunted outlaw. An early marriage was a failure, though she refused to divorce. In January of 1930, she met the man with whom she would be forever linked, Clyde Barrow. The pair's spree of robbery and murder spread through Texas, Oklahoma, New Mexico, and Missouri. Bonnie and Clyde were killed in a barrage of 167 bullets at Black Lake, Louisiana, on May 23, 1934.
It seems Bonnie knew how their lives would end. In 1934, she wrote a poem called "The Story of Bonnie and Clyde". The final two verses are very telling:
|
They don't think they're too smart or desperate,
They know that the law always wins;
They've been shot at before,
But they do not ignore
That death is the wages of sin.
Some day they'll go down together;
They'll bury them side by side;
To few it'll be grief--
To the law a relief--
But it's death for Bonnie and Clyde.
|
 |
Bonnie's family always blamed Clyde for leading Bonnie into a life of crime, and they refused to let the two be buried together. Clyde is interred, along with his brother Buck, in the Western Heights Cemetery a few miles from downtown Dallas.
The coordinates listed are for Bonnie's grave. It's not unusual to find fresh flowers placed there. Remember that this is an active cemetery. Please be respectful of others while there. There is NO CACHE at this site, for obvious reasons.
Use the names on the large headstone to the north of Bonnie's to decode the coordinates to the second stage of this cache. The first name and initial (date 1913-1989) will give the North coordinate, and the family name will give the West coordinate.
Coordinates:
N 32° __ __ . __ __ __
W 096° __ __ . __ __ __
Code Key:
A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M|N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z
---------------------------------------------------
1|8|4|6|2|9|0|3|7|4|0|5|5|7|1|3|2|3|4|5|7|1|9|8|0|5
|
As for the second stage, it's a good bet that you had no idea it was there, even if you've driven by it many times. When walking around, be careful. There may be unseen things underfoot, if the area is overgrown. Be careful with small children, but bigger kids should be okay.
You'll probably want to drive to the second stage. Parking can be tricky. Be careful of traffic.