I was almost a little amazed that I even found the courthouse in Glenwood Springs. There were so many options to choose from: a county administration building, the clerk’s office, another combined courts building, and so many other county offices. Yet somehow I made it. By that point, I had driven over 2200 miles so even I was getting tired and drained by distance alone. The fact that all the mountain driving was (at least for me) especially difficult just made my travel that much more energy sucking. However, it was time to step from behind the wheel for a bit. I took a slightly extended break in Glenwood Springs to cover two goals at one time. The most important, of course, was to find a cache. Luckily, there was a Virtual in town that also covered one of my other goals, adding a famous grave to my list. I hadn’t done that in a while, and it felt like it was past time that I did. Besides, what was the point of all this travel if I didn’t see interesting (at least for me) things?
I parked near a trailhead leading to a local cemetery on a hill overlooking the city. I figured that a good walk would do me some good, maybe clear some of the remaining cobwebs from my head. And it was a bit of a hike to get up there, let me tell you. Surprisingly, I found myself stopping to gasp for air on a few occasions but remembered that the high elevation probably had a little to do with that: Glenwood Springs is over 5700 feet up, Austin less than 500. I made it to the top of Mt. Evans though, so I wasn’t going to let this one stop me. And once I got to the top…
…Ladies and Gentlemen (or however you identify, I don’t mean to be gender assumptive), the (theoretical) last resting place of John Henry “Doc” Holliday. In reality, while it is recorded that he was buried in the cemetery, the exact location wasn’t exactly noted. At the time he was little more than a gambler, dentist, neer-do-well, and mountebank who on one or two occasions served as a deputy. He had hardly achieved the fame that would bring people to his grave year after year. As other visitors gawked and took pictures, I submitted the necessaries to complete the Virtual and then, after a moment to enjoy the view, went back down the hill back to the car. I was refreshed, if sweaty, so I changed my shirt, took a few long stretches, and a cool drink of water before mounting back up, bound for…
Geocaching While Black 