The Adventures of Indiana Bones, Cemetery Geek

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It is the time to get away from the computer...
 and get out of the house to begin your genealogical research with your relatives and other knowledgeable people.  They will take you to the cemeteries where family are buried.  Like many that have remained in the same location for several generations, they can show you where the old homestead was.  For sure you will be out on a field trip.  Many of these locations are full of pests: insects, ticks, spiders, snakes, poison ivy and many others.  A big concern right now is ticks... I know because about 10 days ago I went into a small cemetery with some high grass and got some ticks (5-6) on me.  For some reason I did not get a single chigger!  When I got home I pulled off four ticks that were having a good time drawing my blood.  Those spots itched quite a bit (not as bad as chiggers, though).  One of the ticks got me right in the bend of my leg behind the knee.  It got inflamed and began growing in size.  I decided to see a doctor, who said it is a reaction to the bite that has worsened because of the location... not to worry.  He gave me some ointment to put on it and gave me some antibiotics to take to fight any infections.  So, I will live to experience many more field trips.

This made me think that it might be a good idea to address some of these field trips into the "wild" with some things that us genealogical cemetery hoppers should do to prepare ourselves.  So, what should we do?  Here is a list to begin with and as time goes on I will expand each in more detail:

• Carry a good First Aid Kit with you on your trips.
• Be able to identify poisonous plants to avoid.
• Bring drinking water and cleaning water in the car.
• Not a bad idea to have a cell phone and a GPS to get help or find your way.
• Wear proper clothing for protection of briars, sunburn, pests.
• Make sure you carry any medications you take.
• Have proper identification and someone to contact in emergencies.

We often just hop into our cars and off we go to places we have never been before without thinking about any of the above items.  And this is only a partial list.  Each of us have special needs to add and weather conditions will change some things needed.  This should help to give you some ideas to be better prepared.  Watch for more Indiana Bones blogs to give you more detailed information... soon, I will include what you might need in a first aid kit.

- Written by Indiana Bones