Jackson Free Press

I never knew that 305 acres of state park with trails and a lake are right in the middle of Jackson. I knew where LeFleur's Bluff was, but I just thought there was a playground and a small park near the Mississippi Museum of Natural Science. After a fellow Jackson Free Press intern told me there was an urban oasis behind the museum, I had to go see it for myself.

I started early, about 8:30 a.m. and headed over to LeFleur's Bluff State Park. After wandering around outside the museum for a few minutes trying to get to the trails, I finally went inside and asked for directions. A pleasant lady sold me a pass for $5 to the museum (you can't get on the trails from the museum without paying admission) and told me to go down the stairs and out one of the doors to get to the trails. I later found out that if you enter the park on the Mayes Lake side, off Lakeland Drive where you can camp or boat, you only have to pay $2 per car. (This doesn't give you access to the museum, though).

I headed out on my journey, and after getting turned around a few times on the short trails that loop back to the museum, I started off in earnest. My goal was to get to Mayes Lake, which is about a mile-and-a-half hike, while enjoying some exercise along the way. The trails are well maintained, and though some signs warn that the trail that leads to Mayes Lake is difficult, a person of average physical fitness shouldn't have any trouble.

Along the way, I spotted several birds and squirrels and managed to walk through about 20 spider webs. I quickly learned to flap my map in front of me as a shield while going under low branches to knock spider webs out of the way. After walking for about 30 minutes (I was taking my time and stopping to snap photos), I knew I was getting close to Mayes Lake because the ground got sandier, and I kept getting glimpses of the Pearl River through the trees.

I finally came up along the edge of Mayes Lake, and saw several picnic tables and a pavilion scattered at one end of the lake and campgrounds on the other side. I caught a glimpse of a boat launch hidden by some trees, and was struck by the thought: "It seems like I'm way out in the country, but Lakeland Drive is really only a couple of football fields away."

My whole trip ended up taking about an hour and a half. It was nice to be able to walk without worrying about oncoming traffic or which side of the street I needed to be on. The aroma of dense forest (rather than blasts of exhaust) greeted my nostrils, and the shade from the tree canopy kept me cool.

I'll go back. Sometimes we all need a break from the urban jungle.