I love a mystery. Many people do. I like to discover things that no one else has Maybe it's the adventurous Pratt in me but things like that tend to get me exited especially when the mystery involves my on personal family history.

Overhead view of mountain bike trail
click picture to enlarge

I love to mountain bike also it's one of my true passions in life. It takes me out into the outdoors and helps me sate my thirst for adventure.  The many flattop mesa's around Zion National Park contain some of the best mountain biking in the world with natural slick rock features that are the envy of mountain bikers around the world.  One of my favorite trails is on an unnamed mesa to the north and east of Virgin Utah. It's a place that I have ridden many time over the past ten years. I love to explore the area and once discovered an old Anasazi grainery or shelter that as far as I know no one had found before.
This year a new section of trail was added which went further out on the east side of the mesa to a place where I can easily look down on the ridge above the old town site of  Duncan's Retreat.

Above Duncan's Retreat The town site would be directly below the wash on the left center of the picture
click picture in enlarge

 The old road from Duncan's Retreat would lead to this area where they would graze their livestock. It seems that this would also be an easy way for them to reach their mountain ranches. Old roads in the area seem to lead in that direction.  I decided that once my ride was finished I would go and investigate further.

Spring is a good time of year to see hibernating creatures reappear.  I heard a buzzing to the right just beneath me as I was riding up the trail, Rattlesnake!  It's  a common occurrence mountain biking and it's always exciting. Iv'e managed to get a few good pictures over the years but never a video, so I stopped to see if I could get close enough.  He retreated to a bush but I was still able to get this short clip and a couple of pictures.

Me on the trail

All in all a great day on the trail but the adventure was just beginning As I still had the hike at Duncan's Retreat to do so I headed down the hill
First I hiked up to the old cemetery on the hill above the road to the grave site of William Martindale

William Martindale grave site

  I turned on my GPS and started hiking up the old road bed

My route

Looking up the old road bed

The hike up the old road just isn't as easy as I thought it would be. I hadn't eaten since breakfast and it was now mid afternoon. It was the hottest day of the year so far 83 degrees. I still had my camalback from my ride but I soon ran out of water  I hadn't started the day with the intention of hiking so all I had on my feet were a pair of sandals and I was a little tired from my ride but I pressed on.

Looking down the old road bed

The hike up this old road gave me a new appreciation for our ancestors ability to accomplish amazing tasks with very few and primitive tools  The construction of this road could not have been easy. Even today with modern equipment it would not be easy.

View from the top of the road looking down on the old Duncan town site

My intention on the top was to look around for any signs of old structures, fences, roads etc. but time was getting short. My goal was to get to the other side of the wash and climb down the opposite ridge.

An old road heading to the North

At the top of the wash

The original section corner marker modern one in the background

I  started back for the ridge when something caught my eye.  I had hike up here just once before about 15 years ago and found this.  At that time I didn't quite know what to make of it. A myriad of possibilites went though my head but to me it can only be one thing!

Mystery grave site above the old Duncan's Retreat town site

 Another grave site left forgotten and unvisited high up on the hill away from all of the other known grave sites.  So many questions filled my mind, who, why. Answers that are lost to the passage of time. I can only speculate on the answers but I think the one that I like the best is someone wanted to buried overlooking the town surrounded by all of the beauty of the area.
Now that this grave has been rediscovered I think that maybe I will visit it again and perhaps leave some flowers. What do you think?