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Dry Bones Series LbNA #12204

Owner:JBean
Plant date:Nov 17, 2004
Location:
City:Cobalt to Lyme
County:Middlesex
State:Connecticut
Boxes:7
Found by: Connecticut Croaker (5)
Last found:Feb 23, 2024
Status:FFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFFrF
Last edited:Nov 17, 2004
Dry Bones

EDITED 11/1/14: This series is *almost* 10 years old! There have been several finds recently, we love hearing from finders, it sounds like everything is still in good condition!

EDITED 9/6/2010: All boxes have been checked and clues have been updated to account for changes in landscape.

Welcome to the Dry Bones Series. One day while taking the scenic route home from the shore my husband noticed several old cemeteries along the way. The thought came to him…DRY BONES: A BUILD A SKELETON SERIES!

So here we are…the following are clues to build a skeleton. The first box, The Torso, is the only one with a journal, so we can see who is building, all the others are micro boxes with pads and stamps only. Note: arms are labeled Left and Right with the intent to have the arms down at the skeleton’s side, but you can be creative and make your skeleton wave one or both hands! Just remember to check the position of the thumbs. So, the LEFT arm box would be used for the RIGHT arm if you want it to wave. Get it? You will need to reserve a 4 x 6 space in your journal, stamping the Torso slightly above center to accommodate the legs. Be sure to go in order, starting with the torso, or you won’t know where to place the other stamps! You’ll want a compass for a few readings. Have Fun!

As I turned 40 on November 17th, we found it only fitting that we chose to celebrate the day hiding these skeleton boxes in cemeteries!

Directions: From Route 66 E or W, start at Route 151 in Cobalt. The entire route is about 26.5 miles and will drop you at Route 95 in Lyme. It is a beautiful scenic route through historic places in CT. It will probably take 2 hours with driving searching and stamping in, but you will be passing Hurd State Park, Gillette’s Castle State Park and Devil’s Hopyard State Park, all which have several letterboxes. All boxes are drive-by and mileage is given between each stop. Set your trip meter to 0 when you turn onto Route 151 in Cobalt.

Box 1 – The Torso Drive 2.7 miles to Selden Yard Cemetery which will be on your left. Parking is ominous here, there is some room to pull off the road on the right, but USE CAUTION, traffic is fast and the road is curvy. Enter the cemetery up the steps and head straight to the back looking for a square monument for Thomas Selden and his three wives. Walk to the rock wall right directly behind Thomas Selden, climb over the wall and look for your treasure in the crevices. Please re-hide carefully!

Box 2 – Right Arm: Back in your car, continue on Route 151 for 7 miles (9.7 miles from Cobalt center). First Church Cemetery will be on your right. Head towards the rear of the cemetery stopping at the highest point. Look for a square headstone with an urn on the top. From here, look west towards the angel. Your treasure awaits in the rock wall behind the angel. You’ll have to reach over the wall into a crevice to find it, keep the small cedar tree to your right as you face the wall. Stamp in and re-hide carefully please! This cemetery is still used so take head, we tried to hide it in an older section.

Box 3 - Right Leg: Get back in your car and continue in Route 151 for 1.1 miles to the junction of Route 82E (10.8 miles from Cobalt center). Take Route 82E for 3.1 miles (13.9 miles from Cobalt center). Hadlyme Congregational Church will be on your right. Turn right onto Bone Mill Road and turn immediately into the parking lot and park your car. Two Comstocks rise high guarding the cemetery and creating a gate for you to walk through. Walk due North straight to the rock wall. Look for a pile of rocks in front of a very large old tree. ES is nearby, look to ES's right, your treasure awaits in the pile of rocks, follow the slope of the two large slab rocks and look under them at their peak. Please be discreet and re-hide carefully.

Box 4 - Left Arm: Continue on Route 82E for 4.1 miles to the junction of Route 156. Go right onto Route 156E in .8 miles look for Pleasant View Cemetery on your left. You’ll have to turn left onto Salem Road and enter the cemetery on the left. This cemetery also looks like it gets some activity, so be discreet. Oliver Raymond is buried under a very tall brownstone monument which reaches up into a tall cedar tree. From here, visually locate the silo in the neighbor’s farm in spring/summer this might be hard, instead look towards route 156). Walk in that direction 14 paces (every right foot). Ellen Louisa, daughter of a colonel, has a small brownstone headstone. She keeps watch over a pile of rocks concealing your treasure. Please, re-hide carefully! ( Remember, this is the LEFT arm if placed at the side, RIGHT arm if you desire to have your skeleton wave at you every time you look in your journal!)

Box 5 – Right Leg: Back on Route 156E go 1.9 miles to an unknown cemetery on your right. Pay close attention as you get close, there is a small place to pull off the road right in front of the cemetery near an opening in the rock wall. Standing at the opening, take a reading of 240. Walk in that direction and have a visit with the Marvin Family. Find Mr. Prickett, son of a captain. To Kate’s dismay he died November 23, 1762 when he was 23 years old. From there walk straight back towards the rock wall. To find your treasure you’ll have to climb over the wall at the triple twisted sister pine, turn around and face the cemetery and look slightly to the right in the rock wall.

Box 6 – Head: Back on Route 156, continue for 2.4 miles to the Lord Cematery which will be on your left. You’ll have to park a little further down on Ely’s Ferry Road on the right and backtrack to the cemetery. Use caution here as the traffic is quick and the road is winding. Enter through the red gate. Walk east to the rear of the cemetery, looking for Mr. Peter Pearlon who died in 1750. He will point you due North towards the very large stump of an old 6 sister tree on the other side of the wall. At the wall, turn right (stay inside the wall) heading east along the rock wall 12 paces (every right foot). To check your location, be sure you stand in line with another who share’s Jbean’s birthday and look in the rock wall for the head to finish off your skeleton. You should have a complete skeleton by now. When this series was planted in 2004 we had a Bonus Box, Man's Best Friend, planted with it, but we were not able to find it in 2010 when we checked for it. If you find it, please let us know! (It was a dog skeleton.)

UPDATE 9/18/2010:
Bonus Box has been found...got a note from a letterboxer today that says, "We DID find it! It was less than 5 feet to the right of the head. We actually found the dog before we found the head." So keep your eyes open....and if you do find it, please re-hide it with the head. Thanks!

UPDATE 9/25/2010:
We heard today that the BONUS box has been located AND replaced back with the Head (Box 6). THANKS! Letterboxers are just so awesome!

Look carefully and you'll also find a piggyback box, 'Uh oh, I Lost My Head'.

Hope you enjoyed the fun! Continue on Route 156 for 3.4 miles to reach the intersection with Route 95. 95S to 9N will get you back a bit quicker, but not nearly as scenic!