For someone that likes to solve problems, 95% of software development is mind-boggingly boring. It's mostly looking at the same codebase day-in and day-out, while having to deal with shifting requirements. All of this to end up with some application that you mostly wouldn't use yourself. This, if you're lucky that your project doesn't get cancelled before it sees the light of day, or it doesn't get delayed so much that you get so bored that you move on before seeing it to completion.
And the consultancy... Parachuting into projects at clients and being extracted by helicopter when "it's done" (which is usually when it meets minimum requirements to receive payment, not when it is at all in a state to be proud of).
Really, 95% of software development isn't glamorous stuff at NASA or the next big social network(1).
Systems administration, provided you are self-motivated, can actually code your way out of a hole, and are willing to deal with the occasional user, provides plenty of space to solve problems with programming. With programming, not IDE and framework juggling.
Sure, it can be boring at times and can be stressful at others, and you have 95% chance of being in the exact same environment where you wouldn't like to be coding in. But at least you have more autonomy and can actually solve problems.
I'm a programmer by training and a systems administrator by profession. I would most likely rather be programming than taking care of systems and databases, but only if I found something in those remaining 5% that I would actually enjoy doing.
Otherwise, it would just burn me out from programming altogether, and I like programming...
(1) Actually, developing the next big social network is probably as boring as everything else I said. Who in hell wants another social network?