{"id":72622,"date":"2021-06-21T08:42:31","date_gmt":"2021-06-21T13:42:31","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/?p=72622"},"modified":"2026-10-07T12:23:07","modified_gmt":"2026-10-07T17:23:07","slug":"last-true-hermit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/character\/self-improvement\/last-true-hermit\/","title":{"rendered":"Podcast #358: The Stranger in the Woods \u2014 The Story of the Last True Hermit"},"content":{"rendered":"

Editor’s Note: This is a rebroadcast. The episode originally aired in November 2017. <\/em><\/p>\n

Have you ever just wanted to get in your car, drive off into the middle of nowhere, leave behind the hustle and bustle of civilization, and just be by yourself? <\/span><\/p>\n

Well, in 1986 a man named Christopher Knight did just that and lived alone in the Maine woods without any, any<\/i> human contact for 27 years until he was discovered in 2013.<\/span><\/p>\n

My guest today wrote a biography \u2014 The Stranger in the Woods<\/i><\/a> \u2014 about this man who locals called \u201cthe Hermit of the North Pond.\u201d His name is Michael Finkel<\/a> and today on the show we discuss how Chris survived alone in the Maine woods by himself, but more importantly, why<\/i> Chris wanted to be by himself for so long. By looking at the life of one of the modern world’s last true hermits, Michael and I explore the idea of hermitage, solitude, and why being an individual requires you to be alone. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Stranger in the Woods<\/a> <\/em>was a fun, insightful read. You’ll want to go off and find some place in the wilds to be by yourself after you finish reading this book.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Editor’s Note: This is a rebroadcast. The episode originally aired in November 2017.  Have you ever just wanted to get in your car, drive off into the middle of nowhere, leave behind the hustle and bustle of civilization, and just be by yourself?  Well, in 1986 a man named Christopher Knight did just that and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":28,"featured_media":195572,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[502,156,42388],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-72622","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-character","category-podcast","category-self-improvement"],"featured_image_urls":{"large":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/358-538x280.png","medium_large":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/358-768x432.png","aom":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/358-372x230.png","reactor-320":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/358-320x180.png","reactor-640":"https:\/\/www.artofmanliness.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/06\/358-640x360.png"},"yoast_head":"\nChristopher Knight \u2014 The Last True Hermit | The Art of 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