If you had read the post, you would see that I did notify both the land owner, and the Amish folks, who owned the adjoining property, where I was going, and when to expect me back. That's why I knew, or hoped anyway, they'd come looking for me.
Also, I could type for an hour, and someone would have came back and said if that person that died had planned properly, nothing would have ever happened.

Lori, WTF?, really, Now we're at WTF? I never, ever mentioned that planning for a trip was not necessary, as a matter of fact that should be the first thing someone should be doing, depending on the trip, a day to weeks ahead of time. No one ever said that planning for a trip wasn't necessary. My point was, and I won't repeat it again, because some here seem quite offended by it, is, that you can plan until the end of times. But what happens when your plan fails? Can the person deal with it? In the example I gave with my own fall, Although there wasn't much to plan for, it was, as I said, a very simple trip, that didn't require much planning. Food, water, shelter, etc..and notifying folks where I was going and when I'd be back. Heck, all I was essentially doing was walking a sheep herding trail around a mountain to a valley at the top, which I was told was spectacular, with a stop over each night.

Planning, didn't include fortune telling however. All of the planning in the world wouldn't have told me that the earth had given out from under a 3 to 4 foot section wide path, and that I would step on what was now, a "natural" bridge of about 4 inches to a foot of dirt.

I really don't get what part of this either Irk's people, or makes people think that I don't think planning is important. The only point I was trying to make, actually not even that, I just was curious how many people knew what to do, when even the best plans went awry.

skcreidc, as to your comment about what said person did wrong, well that would take a few pages of discussion which I'm not going to go into. Having said that, that person was a United States Marine, from a nearby Marine post, and should have had the survival skills to have lived, especially due to the fact that, said Marine's camp was in the middle of the desert.

So, to sum up, without someone blowing their top:
A. plan for your trip (seems everyone here agrees upon that)
B. Know your limitations (part of planing)
C. If the absolutely unexpected rears it's ugly head, can you deal with it.?

Enough said, on my part. Didn't ever intend on offending anyone, or starting a heated discussion. My only intention was to see who had the survival skills, or even thought they were even important enough to bother with, to survive, when the best laid plans go horribly wrong.

Lori, I'm a little taken back by your "F?" (question?). So, being a SAR volunteer, maybe a little reflection on some of the rescues you've been on, where the worse happened, and it became a recovery, rather than a search, could it have been survivable, had the person had the skills to survive? Granted, some accidents are not survivable, say, falling off a 200 foot cliff, headlong.

And I'm not referring to day hikes with kids, on flat earth, where you'd meet 30 or 40 people on a well marked trail, stop for a PB&J, then meander on back to camp. This probably isn't even the forum for people who do this kind of thing once every three or four years.

My interest, and original question is primarily intended for those who are going on tough trek, for days, maybe even longer, where help, no matter how well you planned, might not even bother looking for you, until you're itinerary say's you're a day or two over due for your return.

I don't know of a single case, where someone plans to die. I'm a living example of what happens, when you do plan, and still have a catastrophic event occur. And, I'd like to add, that it wasn't my only close call, but enough about that.

Skedric, from my perspective, nobody has been forced into continuing "this" discussion. Not trying to stir a stinking pile of pooh, here, and never intended to.

You know what I do, when I read something that I don't want to discuss, or look at? I just go onto the next thread...and also, Skedrick maybe you should actually read the threads. At no point did I ever say that leaving an itenerary was not necessary, or foolish, or anything else. I can't even see where I've ever disagreed with Lori. I sense that you're a bit upset that I posted it at all, with your "perspective that you have no idea whay Lori bother's continuing this thread". Do you actually think I'm baiting her? Are you kidding? That's the inference I get.

So let's ALL, calm down, take a deep breath, and take this thread for what it started as, a simple question. Nothing more.
And just let the thread die a natural death. I really love this forum, especially for the short time I've been here, and would never intentionally post or state something just to, what's the term, "flame bait", or whatever you call it.
J.