“But if you judge safety to be the paramount consideration in life you should never, under any circumstances, go on long hikes alone. Don’t take short hikes alone, either — or, for that matter, go anywhere alone.
And avoid at all costs such foolhardy activities as driving, falling in love, or inhaling air that is almost certainly riddled with deadly germs. Wear wool next to the skin. Insure every good and chattel you possess against every conceivable contingency the future might bring, even if the premiums half-cripple the present.
Never cross an intersection against a red light, even when you can see all roads are clear for miles. And never, of course, explore the guts of an idea that seems as if it might threaten one of your more cherished beliefs. In your wisdom you will probably live to be a ripe old age. But you may discover, just before you die, that you have been dead for a long, long time.”
Colin Fletcher hiked the length of California solo in 1958, when such things just weren’t done. Later, the entire length of Grand Canyon. A combat veteran of the second World Wars, with the Welsh Marines, something like that. Admittedly hiking alone at 78 years is a little bit of a stretch. I’m not sure what Colin would say here.
Me either, but any sane reasonable person would say it was a mistake.
You left out spending weeks trying to pick up the Mongol’s treasurer’s girlfriend where she bartends.