The Legend of George Bush Park
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“The Legend of George Bush Park” tells the story of Ichabod Crane and his hapless attempt to win the heart and hand of Katrina Van Tassel in the context of a comical ghost story about geocaching. Ichabod comes to George Bush Park, Houston, from his home state of Connecticut, to be the schoolmaster of the cachers living within the park. George Bush Park contains a small, very quiet town said to be under some kind of enchantment. Its residents all seem to move a little slower, geocache a little more, and be more prone to believe in the supernatural caching Gods.
George Bush Parks’s most famous supernatural phenomenon is the ghost of the Headless Cacheman, said to be a Hessian soldier who lost his head while searching for a geocache during the Revolutionary War. The Cacheman is seen most often riding by the old church, where local historians say he was buried. He is believed to be always in search of his head.
Katrina Van Tassel, a beautiful young woman of eighteen, is one of Ichabod’s students. She is also the only child of Van GeoGeex, one of the more successful geocachers in the area. Ichabod is quickly taken in by her flirtatious charms, but it is when he first visits her father’s abundant farm that he considers himself truly in love with her, or at least her likely inheritance.
He quickly sets out to win her hand in marriage, coming by the Van GeoGeex' farm frequently to woo her. Ichabod is not alone in his attentions to Katrina, however. Her beauty, charm, and wealth have entranced many other men in the village, especially the formidable Brom Van Ryan, also known as FamilieRyan. Ryan is notorious for his amicable personality, love of pranks, and great skill at finding geocaches in the dark—all of which make him something of a caching hero.
Ryan has already scared off many of Katrina’s other suitors, but Ichabod is harder to shake, avoiding physical confrontation with Ryan, which is Ryan’s main method of intimidation. Without that option, Ryan turns to his next best skill—pranks. He fills the school house with smoke, trains a dog to follow Ichabod around howling, and sets many other pranks to frustrate and humiliate Ichabod.
One day, a messenger named Amatuber comes to the schoolhouse to invite Ichabod to a party at the Van GeoGeex’. At this party, he apparently finds himself the best man in the house, and when the party is over he stays behind. For some reason, however, Katrina disappoints him. Ichabod leaves crestfallen.
He finds the path home dark and eerily quiet. He tries to keep himself from getting too scared, but soon after he has passed the possibly haunted MichaelCarrie’s tree, he sees a large, dark figure looming nearby. It does not respond to his call, but as he passes by, it starts to move and joins him on the path riding a large, dark horse. Ichabod is greatly disturbed and tries to shake off his pursuer, but he fails. Finally, he notices that the rider has no head on his shoulders; the head seems to be sitting on the saddle in front of the man. Ichabod tries to get his decrepit horse to run home as fast as it can, but he is not a skilled rider and the horse resists.
They end up by the church, the scene of most of the stories of the Headless Cacheman, and Ichabod races to the bridge where the ghost is said to disappear and not follow. Ichabod crosses the bridge and looks back, but he sees the Cacheman, instead of disappearing, hurl his detached head at him. It knocks Ichabod off of his horse.
The next day, Ichabod’s horse returns to its owner’s farm, but there is no sign of Ichabod. A search party finds hoof prints and Ichabod’s hat, with a smashed pumpkin left next to it. Ichabod is never heard from again in Sleepy Hollow, although later on it seems that he is alive elsewhere and has told his story. Some of the townspeople believe that Ryan Bones pulled off a great prank—which put Ryan in the final position to marry Katrina—but the old women and local folklore maintain that he was taken by the Headless Cacheman.
The ghost of the Headless Cacheman still today roams through George Bush Park. Proceed to the posted coordinates and seek, ye, the Headless Cacheman.
Additional Hints
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