Halloween is just a day away. Most people associate ghosts, goblins, parties and trick or treating with the annual celebration. However, Halloween owes part of its origin to the Festival of the Dead held in cultures throughout the world in honor or recognition of deceased members of the community. In our travels to forgotten and forlorn places across the west, my wife and I encounter many cemeteries. Some of these cemeteries contain the graves of early pioneers that helped settled the western frontier. The names of most of these hardy souls have been lost to history, their names never being entered into the history books. Often, the only reminder that they ever roamed the wilds of the west is the fading inscription on a lonely headstone. So next time you find yourself crossing a forgotten corner of the west in your RV and stumble across a lonely grave site, treat everyday like Halloween and pay honor to those that came before you. Odds are you have them to thank for the road you are traveling or the historic ruins you are exploring. Adventuring across the west in a RV where every day is Halloween.
The pictures were taken at a small cemetery near the old Rock House Ranch in southern Idaho.
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