TAKING A HIKE: SOUTHEAST MISSOURI AND SOUTHERN ILLINOIS OFFER WONDERLANDS FOR WALKING AT ALL TIMES

"He who sits still in a house all the time may be the greatest vagrant of all," wrote Henry David Thoreau in his 1862 essay "Walking."

Spending at least four hours a day sauntering over hills and through fields, "absolutely free from all worldly engagements," was, Thoreau believed, the only way for a person to preserve his health and spirits.

Few people today can find four hours a day for walking in the wilderness. Yet each month, hundreds of people trek to area hiking trails for the chance to exercise, explore or simply enjoy the natural beauty of the region.

Denise Dowling, naturalist at Trail of Tears State Park outside of Cape Girardeau, estimates that in July over 350 people hiked on one of the park's four trails. In May, the number was probably closer to 600.

Even in January, nearly 150 hikers braved the freezing temperatures to tramp through the ice and snow for a few hours or even a few moments.

The park's longest trail, the Peewah Trail, is 12 miles long and is separated into subtrails or loops. Each loop has special sights to offer.

The yellow loop, for example, runs along a ridge close to the river, providing an excellent view not only of the Mississippi but of the bald eagles that nest there, especially during January and February. The path is also less strenuous than some of the others in the park.

The Peewah Trail is also accessible to horses for those who wish to ride rather than walk the trail. But, Dowling says, it is BYOH -- Bring Your Own Horse.

Shepherd's Point, one of the park's more demanding trails, winds on its two-mile trek up hillsides and down into valleys, leading eventually to one of the highest points in the park.

The two newest trails -- the Nature Trail and yet unnamed trail that runs by the lake -- are shorter and less strenuous. The Nature Trail, which runs by the Visitor's Center, is only about half a mile in length. It is, Dowling said, an ideal trail for people who want to take a walk but don't have much time.

Other area hiking trails may be found in conservation areas, parks and state forests run by the Missouri Department of Conservation.

In Cape Girardeau County, the Apple Creek State Forest offers hiking on old farm and logging roads as well as the Maple Hollow Hiking Trail in North Cape County Park.

Scott County has the General Watkins Conservation Area. And Perry County offers both a trail around the edge of Perry County Community Lake and a self-guided nature trail at Seventysix Conservation Area.

Madison County's Millstream Gardens State Forest has a 2 1/2-mile trail that at times overlooks the St. Francis River whitewater hazards created by the boulders of the shut-ins.

Hikers can find a two-mile "Trail Through Time" at the Pickle Springs Natural Area, about seven miles east of Farmington in St. Francois County. The trail, which takes several hours to hike at a leisurely pace, winds through deep canyons and onto sandstone bluffs. There hikers may see areas that were formed 500 million years ago and where mammoths wandered and grazed.

In Southern Illinois, the River to River Trail extends for about 80 miles, from Devil's Backbone on the Mississippi near Grand Tower to Battery Rock on the Ohio. The trail makes connections with several other trails throughout Southern Illinois, including several trails in Giant City State Park near Makanda.

In the eastern section of the park lies the Indian Creek Shelter Nature Trail. Visible from the trail are the shelter bluffs and caves once occupied by the prehistoric Woodland Indians from 400 to 1100 A.D.

Most trails are passable all year except for the coldest days in January or February.

And late autumn or the winter months is a perfect time for hiking, according to many seasoned trailblazers. L.G. Locksman, director of recreational sports at Southeast Missouri State University, recalls that his first backpacking trip in Missouri was in Mark Twain National Park when the temperature did not go above 10 degrees.

"It snowed the second night. We could see animal tracks in the snow. It was my first experience and it got me hooked," he said.

But Locksman reminds those braving the trails during the colder autumn and winter months to remember some basics to protect themselves. Even a short hike can become perilous for the unprepared hiker. Extra clothing, durable walking shoes, a compass, water and a map are the bare minimum to have. Above all, he added, hikers should be prepared for the unknown.