this would get me wet or dry
I'm surprised no one has mentioned this, but this photo is most likely not genuine. The photo posted is a cropped version of a
vintage WARN advertisement circa mid 70's. It's never been 100% confirmed that I know of, but there's heavy speculation that this image was 'photoshopped' using common techniques of the time (double exposure, composite, etc). The prevailing theory is that the Jeep, the trail in front of it, and the cliff to the left are all genuine, but the drop off to the right and the trees are a different photo that was "photoshopped" in by some method.
As for the topic of the thread, the conditions I fear most are uncertainty, inexperience, and being alone in a sticky situation. In the Navy we had a strategy for performing a given task. Successful completion of the task depended on an ever-changing combination of three things... training/experience, procedure, and supervision. They are like three sides of a triangle whose lengths and angles can be manipulated, but never broken. Slack in one area is compensated for by the other two. In the offroading community, this holds true, but we call two of them by different names... training/experience is still applicable. 'Procedure' goes by many names... "the best line is.." or "the rule of thumb" or "what works for most people is...". 'Supervision' is more commonly called a spotter or a trail leader.
My biggest fear is being in a situation I have no training for or experience in, with no 'procedure', and nobody around to help. That's the trifecta that sends you to destination screwed.