You really have to stop and marvel at the sheer difference in the state of consciousness it would take to simply navigate a given stretch of land free of human influence; in other words, a wilderness before mass development.
The sights and sounds that one has to pay attention to for instance. One really has to know how to read the land, and have an intimate acquaintance with detailed sensory knowledge of the surrounding environment.
Beyond that, there must be a certainty behind one's own instincts, and one's lineage of traditions and knowledge in navigating the land. This is a certainty that in the face of human development sinks so far into the background that it has become moot.
For example, a street, sidewalk, and street signs presuppose so much: generations of development and regularity that make one's presence there - at least one's fleeting and intentional presence - a certainty before the question is raised.
Yes, we've had thousands of years of human development - oscillating in density and intensity of course - but depending on where you are, what you are doing, and when you are doing it, the consciousness involved can be a very different thing.
