Quote Originally Posted by Running Mommy View Post
So very sad!!! The desert is a dangerous place, and I'm always amazed by the nonchalant attitutude people have towards it.
As someone who is not from here, but who has lived here for 15 years...

the severity of the heat and dryness and what it can do to you was beyond my comprehension. If someone could have somehow managed to convey to me what it's really like, I would not have believed them, because I would not have believed that a place with this climate would support a huge metro area like this. To put it bluntly, I can't believe so many people would choose to live here. I know some people love the desert and the heat and I'm not saying this to put those people down, I just literally could not fathom that it could be this bad in a place where a large population of people would choose to live.

The first time I went hiking out here was at Squaw Peak. I don't know how hot it was...I'm guessing 90s. I didn't realize how much I was sweating (because it evaporates so fast), and I didn't bring water with me because I wasn't accustomed to needing water after being out for only 1-2 hours.

So for people who aren't familiar with it, even if you tell them, it's probably out of their realm of comprehension. It makes me very sad that someone had to pay for it with their life.