I have to give it to myself, I did most everything wrong. I’ve lived in Arizona so I know the dangers of the sun and the heat. That did that stop me from taking off on a hike with little water and no trail map during the high heat of day. At least I was wearing sunscreen and a hat.
After three hours of hiking South Mountain, west of Tempe, I realized I was off track and needed a shortcut. I decided to go down the face of South Mountain as it’s a more direct route. I forgot about cacti and that every plant that is not cactus has thorns. It took me two hours, a lot of it on my ass sliding down boulders. I thought to myself, “This is not how it’s going to end. It can’t because I can see my car.”
At one point I needed to pee, a good sign – not dehydrated yet. I considered peeing into an empty water bottle in case I need to drink it later. Then I made a rule. No drinking your own piss when you can see your car.

It’s been a few years but I quickly recalled the Arizona art of parking your car in the shade.