Moving to Columbia, MO (Paris, Center: rentals, crime, houses)

[tjay]

Hey there,

My husband and I are moving to this area and I had a few questions....
Ok this may sound silly but what are the bugs like there? I am from Michigan and I wondered if the spiders/bugs/bees were different? I am terrified of bugs:} I just a thread where a buy posted pictures of tarantulas?? do they really have tarantulas down there? and are there alot of the brown recluse spiders?

What about swimming in lakes....are there any creatures that bite? I know they have 'gar'.....but I've heard they aren't in every lake......is that true? Is is safe to swim in lakes or hike around without getting bit by something?

Is Columbia generally safe? For running, walking or bike riding? Is there anywhere to go swim when it gets really hot? I don't like to be trapped inside...

Thanks for any feedback!

[STLCardsBlues1989]

Missouri does have tarantulas, but they're little ones, and I've never seen one in the wild. Bugs can be bad, but I wouldn't fret over it. Just be prepared. I've never been bitten by anything in a Missouri Lake or River, but there are water snakes and stuff. Really I wouldn't worry about it. Just keep your eyes open. I don't live in Columbia, but I've heard it's generally safe. There are brown recluses, but as long as you leave them alone they should leave you alone. Most animals in Missouri aren't poisonous, and even a brown recluse isn't deadly as long as the bite is treated. Black Widows are usually deadly, but they're very rare. I've never seen one in the wild.

[cyrano]

Originally Posted by tjay

Hey there,

My husband and I are moving to this area and I had a few questions....
Ok this may sound silly but what are the bugs like there? I am from Michigan and I wondered if the spiders/bugs/bees were different? I am terrified of bugs:} I just a thread where a buy posted pictures of tarantulas?? do they really have tarantulas down there? and are there alot of the brown recluse spiders?

I've lived in Columbia for nearly a decade and bugs are not a problem, at least for me. We'll have some mosquitoes in summer but they're smaller and seem to be less intense than either Texas or up north, like Minnesota.

I've never seen a tarantula here.

The bugs we see the most are ugly but harmless crickets my wife calls cave crickets, which seem to like our basement. She kills them on sight, while I live and let live.We have the occasional nonpoisonous spider in the basement too.

We live close to downtown (if you know the area already, think around the public library), but our yard is a riot of wild animals. I've counted over 20 species of birds at our feeder, squirrels are ubiquitous, and bunnies are almost as much-- what's fun is to notice their tracks after a fresh show this time of year.

Originally Posted by tjay

What about swimming in lakes....are there any creatures that bite? I know they have 'gar'.....but I've heard they aren't in every lake......is that true? Is is safe to swim in lakes or hike around without getting bit by something?

I only know about the lakes in town, Twin Lakes and Stephens Lake, and I've never heard of any biting creatures in either one, although I saw a big, but slow-moving, snapping turtle sunning him/herself on a rock at Stephens. I'm not sure swimming is allowed at Twin Lakes, but it might be. There's another group of lakes north of town off 63, Finger Lakes, I know nothing about them. As for hiking around without getting bit, just the aforementioned mosquitoes are likely to bite you, although I had one horsefly bite/sting/whatever the top of my balding head once while jogging on the Katy Trail. But once in 10 years, as often as I'e walked, jogged, and biked the trails around town, is pretty doggone rare. You're a lot more likely to encounter an animal (deer, mole, badger) who's more scared of you than you of him.

Originally Posted by tjay

Is Columbia generally safe? For running, walking or bike riding? Is there anywhere to go swim when it gets really hot? I don't like to be trapped inside...

Definitely. What we call the Katy Trail is officially the MKT Trail, an abandoned railroad right of way that goes between downtown Columbia and the real Katy Trail, a state-length trail that used to be the railbed for the Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad. Most days, at most hours, there will be a lot of people on it, biking, walking, or jogging. It's hard dirt with a little gravel on top so it's a good jogging surface, pretty easy on the knees, and ok for bikes except for racing bikes with super-skinny tires. There are other trails as well, and the city is expanding the use of bike lanes on city streets. I am a fairly avid 3-season biker (not this time of year, sorry) and will typically spend 1-3 hours per weekend on my bike when the weather lets up a bit. Lots of people are more hardcore about road or mountain biking than this old man, too-- go into either CycleXtreme on 6th st (?) or Walt's Bike Shop on the corner of College and Paris on the east side of town and they'll have tons of info.

As far as safety from bad guys is concerned, there are veryfew reports of any sort of attacks, maybe 2 in 10 years of people on the trails. Use common sense-- if you're a young woman, don't go out in an isolated area alone at extreme hours, like after dark. As for swimming, there are the aforementioned city-operated lakes, a couple of outdoor city swimming pools, but the big city-operated place is the ARC (Activity and Recreation Center), which has several indoor pools. Here's a link--

http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/ParksandRec/ARC/

[STLCardsBlues1989]

Speaking of cave crickets, Mom kills them as soon as she sees them. I don't mind them. They're just ugly.

They look kind of like big, fat spiders at first.

[gimme it]

I was asking about Columbia and someone posted this. I can't see us moving there based on what's going on. You should probably read this:

http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/...223Feat002.asp (broken link)

You might want to really research the neighborhoods very carefully, and you might even want to consider and nearby town. Good luck with everything.

[tjay]

thank you cyrano! awesome information....just what i was looking for
i don't know much about southern states and being outside is really important to me. i'm looking forward to the katy trail....i was looking at some pictures the other day, it looks beautiful. i like to mix it up, jogging, hiking, biking......so i'll probably be doing all 3 at some point:} thanks too for the link (those pools look awesome) and the recommendation on the bike shop, i like to give my bike a 'checkup' at the beginning of each spring...

Thanks!!!!

[tjay]

Originally Posted by gimme it

I was asking about Columbia and someone posted this. I can't see us moving there based on what's going on. You should probably read this:

http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/...223Feat002.asp (broken link)

You might want to really research the neighborhoods very carefully, and you might even want to consider and nearby town. Good luck with everything.

the link didn't work......?

[cyrano]

Originally Posted by gimme it

I was asking about Columbia and someone posted this. I can't see us moving there based on what's going on. You should probably read this:

http://www.columbiatribune.com/2007/...223Feat002.asp (broken link)

You might want to really research the neighborhoods very carefully, and you might even want to consider and nearby town. Good luck with everything.

Ya know, it's a blip in the crime stats, a reflection of what's happening in cities around the country. For the most part, crime occurs in certain areas of town and not in others-- although what's new is that there seems to be a fairly new suburban area where it's happening, up north of I-70, where (as I understand it), the houses are mostly rentals. Nothing against renting your house, but that's where the crime is occurring. But I agree with researching neighborhoods-- here's a great tool to do it, provided by the city.

http://www.gocolumbiamo.com/Police/P...crimestats.php

But I for one couldn't imagine living in any of the adjoining towns...but then, a lot of people living there don't like Columbia either, for reasons that have to do much more with political and social beliefs than crime.

[gimme it]

Originally Posted by tjay

the link didn't work......?

Just look under my original post: Columbia, MO questions!!! On the 3rd page someone named AarOon left the website. It's just something I would want to read before relocating. It may be irrelevant.