Your statement stating your "peeve is not people who falsify their outdoor experience, but rather people who like to harp on the risks of hiking & backpacking" strikes me as someone who simply lacks experience in a truly rugged, raw backcountry desination and supports my earlier point. You are basing your arguments on the fact the going into the backcountry doesn't have risks because, perhaps, I assume you've never had an experience that would cause you to think it's dangerous. My own experience SCREAMS otherwise. It only takes once...
I'm with Jason on this... there most certainly are risks to backpacking and hiking, and risks to the people on the mountain rescue teams who come get you. To imply that there is no risk in this sport is flat out irresponsible. The risks diminish significantly with experience; a lack of experience and expensive gear won't necessarily save you, but a lack of experience and low-quality and inappropriate gear could be the trigger in a sequence of events that could lead to injury, disability or death due to exposure or dehydration. People who assume that there are no risks in hiking and backpacking will inevitably come up against something for which they were unprepared.
MNS
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