Now this is cool — I’ve heard for years about an “off the grid” pet cemetery in the El Dorado Valley and thanks to Fan Carole Neat, we now have information and photos of it!
Last week, Carole posted to the Facebook page that she hadn’t been able to find it, so fellow Fans Krista Gilmore and Melissa Montana gave her really good instructions on how to get there.
Carole went back the next day, found it and took some photos for us, provided a map AND wrote up a little description….all of which are below – just keep scrolling down.
Awesome teamwork from BC Social Fans…LOVE IT! And a HUGE thanks to Carole for trekking out there twice in search of this place that’s not been seen by a lot of us!
Update: be sure to read the update at the bottom of the post on the legalities of burying your beloved here.
PHOTO GALLERY
DESCRIPTION
One of your readers was very close with her directions. Here is how I would direct someone to the area: go south on US-95S and when US95S actually forks (median becomes wider) into separate roadways, the pet cemetery is on the left. One would need to continue going south and turn around at the turnaround and head north again. As you approach the fork, look to your right and you will see a dirt road and an animal stile (white). This is where you turn right. If you look closely ahead (west towards the mountains) you will begin to see the picket fences, etc and you will be there. At first it doesn’t register, but then it all seems to fall in place.
The earliest dated grave site I saw was 1948. The most recent marker was dated 2012. There were many dogs, cats, bunny rabbits and even a turtle. I would guess the area is comprised of about 2-3 acres. Time has taken its toll on the area and many of the painted white picket fences are now pieces of rotten wood with rusty nails. There are a lot of rusty nails and broken glass in the area so be careful if you take little ones or your favorite “breathing” pet with you.
Many of the grave sites were very creative and some were just bare bones from start. One thing is for certain and the message was very clear to me, these animals were family loved ones that were missed by their owners for a long, long time. Just imagine the history behind the lives of all of these loved ones! God Bless every single one of these critters, even the turtle! Hope you enjoy the pictures!
MAP
UPDATE: I ran across some information on the Facebook page that I thought I’d re-post here for everyone:
“The pet cemetery was an unsanctioned use of federal land from the very beginning (1931). At one time, friends of the cemetery tried to work out a deal with the federal government to legitimize the site, went as far as getting congressional assistance, but for one reason or another, the project stalled and died. If you have three hours of free time, the history of the effort can be found at the BLM field office on the far northwest side of the LV Valley.
When the City purchased the Eldorado Valley in 1995, roughly 85,000 acres were designated as Desert Tortoise Habitat through a formal easement designation that was adopted by ordinance. The ordinance prohibits all sorts of activities, one of which is the internment of remains.”
