[dotancohen]

  > I think we are long past the era when kids would run off for miles into the countryside, unaccompanied by an adult.

That's horrible. In my country it is still possible. Maybe not "miles" into the field, but a few hundred meters, sure.

[hnlmorg]

The different between a few hundred meters and a few miles is pretty darn significant. A literal order of magnitude in fact

[hi-v-rocknroll]

At 13, I regularly solitarily ventured about 15 miles away (5 miles as the crow flies) by bicycle.

[hnlmorg]

And how many years ago was that?

I used to venture far when I was 13. Times are different now

[hi-v-rocknroll]

I'll take a wild guess that kids in rural Kenya venture quite far when there is no other form of transportation.