It felt appropriate , if depressing , that I would be the one . With more sadness than hope , I was prepared for the journey , which would take many days . We had to live out of sight of them of course , or risk extinction . We had gradually moved farther from the caves . It would take 5 - 7 days and nights of walking to reach them .
Question: Why does the speaker view the upcoming journey with more sadness than hope ?
The answer to the above question:


They will have to leave their home for good and the situation as a whole is pretty grim and uncertain