A few years back when we lived next to South Mountain Park (desert, hills to modest mountains (by Western U.S. standards) and steep climbs) in Phoenix, I would go out daily into the park for an hours or so. I cannot begin to count the number of tourists I gave water bottles to over the years (or the number of times I had to remove cactus spines from folks). I always carried enough for me and some extra. In the hottest months, daily rescues are the norm. Thankfully, most of the park has good cell service. City folks and people from less heat soaked climates just don't seem to get it. "I'll just go out in the morning"...when it's already 90-95 degrees and warming up at 3-4 degrees/hour!

When I speak to groups about survival and specifically desert survival, they look at me with a fair amount of skepticism when I tell them that we have folks die every year in just an hour or two in the desert. Water and shade are the keys to staying alive in the desert.

<shrug> Drives me up the wall!