Longleaf Trace

Tonight we decided to explore the Longleaf Trace which is a biking/walking etc. trail that runs just to the north of our apartment complex. It starts in Hattiesburg and follows a northeastly direction for 41 miles until it ends in Prentiss. It's nice and flat, and I told Jeff I wanted to try to walk the 41 miles one day sometime during the three years we're here (though I'd prefer to make friends with someone that would be willing to be waiting in Prentiss with the car so that we didn't have to make the return trip). Apparently Hattiesburg does not have any sidewalks, so it's a good thing there's a nice walking trail close by (the only problem is getting to the trail without being hit by a car!)

I love the evenings here. It's still comfortably warmish, but there's usually a nice little breeze. Though tonight I realized how heavy the air really is and actually noticed it was a little harder to breathe here. And the air always looks misty and akin to a mirage. Hattiesburg has an elevation of 220 ft. and Salt Lake City is at about 4,300 ft., so that's a big difference for us.

We were scared to death that some tick would latch onto some part of our bodies while we walked the trail, but thankfully, I think we're okay (at least for tonight!)

There's always a deafening "bug symphony" coming from any tree or wooded area here. Jeff tells me this is because of the cries of the cicadas.

We live right on the boundary of two counties (Forrest and Lamar) but thanks to the signs along the trail learned that we actually live in Forrest County (darn! we were hoping to break away from the KKK connection).