Desert environment conditions vary considerably with the season and the elevation. For sake of argument let us take the current season in lower elevations - hot 80 - 100 degrees during the day and perhaps as low as 30 at night.

Desert terrain can vary considerably as well which also affects the pace that you might keep.

I would travel at night from twilight evening until just before dawn. I would shelter in shade during the day. If weather or dark and terrain forbid travel at night I would make what distance I could from the moment the evening started to cool until it were too dark to continue. Given this choice of travel times and the need for caution to avoid injury I would probably not better 10 miles per 24 hours. Also, following the ration sweat not water philosophy I would not want to work up a lather trying to cover distance. The scenario posed the Sonoran desert. There is water there, it is not the sahara. I would spend the daylight hours resting and watch for any signs of water in the movement of wild life. I would navigate by celestial sightings.

My main fear in the desert would be dehydration followed closely by hypothermia. The other potential threat would be from snakes and spiders. Snakes shelter from the cold in the evening since they are cold-blooded, spiders really don't pose that much threat so I wouldn't worry about them other than to sweep up my area before settling in for the day. I would deal with dehydration as I said in my earlier post. I believe that the scenario posed doesn't allow for the carrying of enough water to safely walk out on that soley so I would plan on and work toward finding water on the way. For hypothermia I would count on staying warm at night by staying moving. If there were really cold evenings I would use the trash bag to setup vapor / dew traps and if they produced I would stay put until I had gathered a refill. This is spring and that is when the desert blooms, it does that because there is moisture in this season. Pose a scenario in a drier clime or season and I am not sure I would leave the 7-11. I might simply stay there until the police picked me up for vagrancy <img src="images/graemlins/smile.gif" alt="" />

I need to say that this is completely a mental exercise for me. I have never hiked in the desert. I am northeasterner and my experience in the wilderness is mostly in the White Mountains of NH. Traveling more than 20 miles in a day there is pushing it. In a flat desert I might make much better time. I certainly would love to hear the experience of someone who has made a long journey in the desert.