When Raystown Lake was finalized by the US Army Corps of Engineers in 1973, it established the largest lake entirely within the confines of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The current surface area of Raystown Lake is 8,300 acres, or nearly 13 square miles. As a result of the human-made construction of the lake, several cemeteries had to be entirely relocated. One of these cemeteries was known as Hawn Cemetery, located at the posted coordinates. Geneology records show that at least eight people were buried here and subsequently reburied at Old Stone Church Cemetery near Marklesburg (which conveniently has its own geocache). Everything provided below in italics below is fictional for the purpose of this cache. Hope you enjoy!
Please read the attribute notes below in the description before embarking on this adventure!
Waaaaaaay before the flooding of the area into what is now known as Lake Raystown, legend has it that one of the members of the Hawn family amassed a great deal of wealth and hid it a relatively short distance from the family cemetery prior to his death.
It is also said that Mr. Hawn may have had connections to maritime activity as a captain. Was he a merchant? An explorer? An officer in the navy? A pirate, perhaps? All of that is speculation.
When the Hawn graves were exhumed in the early 1970s, no remains of Captain Hawn could be found. Could his remains still be near the now defunct cemetery...? It is alleged that Captain Hawn hid clues to his treasure in a gold tooth so future generations of family members could find his wealth.
Will you be the one to find Captain Hawn's treasure? You'll need some sort of water vessel to approach both stages--particularly the final. Take a crew with you if you can! The kids will love this cache!
This is a field puzzle, of sorts. Everything you need is provided at Stage 1. You will need to be able to project a waypoint given a bearing and distance, so a compass (at minimum) or GPS device/phone app (ideally) will be necessary.
Be safe and good luck! Watch out for snakes, as copperhead sightings have been reported at various spots along Raystown Lake. Be mindful of thorns and poison ivy as well.
The first to find Captain Hawn's Loot is balloop. Congratulations!!!