Lori,
Oregonmouse,
SKCedric,
Please re-read the thread.
Lori, I know this is a backpacking thread, Oregonmouse, I'm not talking Bushcraft, I'm talking about skills preparedness. I don't doubt that you'd get in real trouble if you had a compound fracture on a little known or traveled trail.
I'm also not saying that you need the skills of a Navy S.E.A.L, to survive a day trip in the woods with your kids, dog etc.
And fineally, there are no "pack rats" in Kentucky, you are correct, but wrong in your assumtion.
I've trained (especially in the military) in some of the most difficult deserts around the world. I spent many years in CA, more than 12, actually. We trained in the Mojave, Death Valley, South down in the Sonora, and further east, the massive desert property surrounding Nellis AFB in NV. Throw white sands New Mexico in there. Also the Sahara in Northern Africa, and other places too long to list here. I was a desert warfare specialist in the military. We trained for planning and avoidance, and guess what? We often encountered something we didn't expect. That's what it (training) is all about. I don't mean this as a jab, but if you are confident in your skills, and you feel "avoidance" and planning will help you if you're snake bit in the mojave, while on a solo trip, and 15 miles away to the nearest help, the I personally don't care if your planning requires only a bandaid and some alcohol wipes.

I will tell you this. We were the first ones the State Police, Sheriffs deputies, and other agencies called when they lost a (this is for you, Lori) a "backpacker" out in the desert or high desert mountains in Far Southern CA. Nine times out of 10 it was a result of someone getting lost, injured, or out of water, food, etc. Unfortunately we had to recover a few bodies. The final part of our contribution to the tax payers, was to back track the individuals path, and reconstruct everything that happened. Fairly easy to do. We found one body, less than 500 yards from a ranch home and highway. Had those people had at least a rudimentary understanding of basic survival skills, they might have, and at least one case I remember, ended their backpacking trip on a great note.
Lori, I know this is a backpacing forum, please read through the thread, and you'll see that I'm not advocating it be turned into a training class for Military Special Operations Units.
Aside from the afore mentioned tragedies I was involved in, I have pulled several people out of the desert that were just plain in over thier heads, and suffering from near shock, near heat exhaustion, and just plain to physically unprepared for the terrain that they didn't realize how difficult it could be.
They had said that they had planned for a long time, and still came up short.
So, I'd like to end this thread on an upbeat note.
1. I'm not trying to recruit Spec Op's troops here, that can survive anything.
2. I'm not trying to turn a "backpacking" forum into a survival forum.
3. I've been around the world, not just Northern Kentucky, and am familiar with what we do and do not have to eat here, vs. what you might find in the high desert of Arizona. Snakes and Rat's basically.
4. If you feel perfectly safe with your planning and avoidance philosophy, to the point you can do a 100 mile solo trek in unknown territory, well by all means carry on. I'm not trying to force feed my philosophy of having the survival skills for the type of terrain, weather, and other situations you may or may not encounter.

This thread was, if you read it from the start, was just a question, born of curiosity.

It seems to be going horribly wrong, with some folks I'm getting the vibe of "how dare you question my skills, I know how to take precautions". Never was intended to go there.

Thanks for your participation and input, though.

Jim.