“North Pond Hermit” Captured

I’m not from this part of Maine, so I hadn’t heard the legends, but WOW what an interesting story:

Christopher Knight went into the central Maine wilderness 27 years ago.

Maine Warden Service Sgt. Terry Hughes and Maine State Police Trooper Diane Perkins-Vance discuss Christopher Knight’s habits and life in the woods of Rome.
He built a hut on a slope in the woods, where he spent his days reading books and meditating.

There he lived, re-entering civilization only to steal supplies from camps under the cover of darkness. During those nearly three decades, he spoke just once to another person – until he was arrested during a burglary last week.

In between, Knight told police, he committed more than 1,000 burglaries, always taking only what he needed to survive. He became so familiar for his thievery and elusiveness that he spawned the local legend of the North Pond Hermit, who for years confounded both locals and police investigating the break-ins.

Sounds interesting, but what’s really neat is HOW he did it. I’d say “Hut” wasn’t the proper term for his shelter:

Knight went to great lengths to make the camp invisible from the ground and the air, even covering a yellow shovel with a black bag. Knight never had a fire, even on the coldest days, for fear of being detected. He covered shiny surfaces, like his metal trash cans, with moss and dirt and painted green a clear plastic sheet over his tent.

Knight even situated his campsite facing east and west to make the best use of the sun throughout the day….Knight often made the trip at night, carrying stolen supplies, using only a pen light.

He draped dark tarps over rope strung between trees, and tarps underneath, to give added protection from rain. One of those ropes has been in place so long that it has grown deep into the tree.

Inside the tent on Tuesday, there was a bed, somehow raised off the ground, surrounded by Rubbermaid totes that he used as nightstands to hold his radio and other supplies.

Outside he had fashioned an antenna to the top of the tree, about 30 feet in the air, with a cable running into his tent. Knight told police he listened to talk radio, such as Rush Limbaugh, and WBLM. For a short time Knight even had a TV but he found it drained his batteries too quickly.

Knight cooked with a pair of propane stoves. A large stockpile of empty tanks was stashed in the makeshift dump he created near his tent.

The campsite is neat and orderly — remarkably civilized for someone who tried so desperately to avoid civilization. Knight even set up mouse traps inside his tents to keep the critters from eating his food.

Knight stole all the food he ate, including meat and other perishables. Wardens were unsure what he did to preserve those items.

“He doesn’t hunt,” Hughes said. “He tried fishing a few times but it was too much work.”

Beer caps and batteries of all sizes dot the ground outside the tent. There also were a number of larger boat batteries and some the Pine Tree Camp had used to power their electric four-wheelers.

Nearby Knight had stashed under a rock a pair of leather boots, weathered badly from exposure.

Clothes hung for drying on rope stretched between trees immediately outside the tent. Nearby, Knight had erected a makeshift shower well hidden behind a small growth of fir trees.

There were no permanent structures — nothing was nailed down. The dirt was worn in the area, but otherwise there were no permanent reminders of a life lived in the space.

Knight said he spent his days at camp reading and meditating.

“I asked him, ‘What kind of books do you read?'” Hughes said. “He said, ‘Whatever I can steal.'”

And by far the most strange and interesting bit was this part:

Hughes showed Knight a copy of that photo, which showed Knight’s face clearly. She asked him if he could identify the man pictured in the photo. Knight studied the photo for some time, but was unable to identify himself, Perkins-Vance said.

Knight, who shaves without a mirror, said he has caught only glimpses of his reflection in pools of water.

“He hasn’t seen himself in the mirror for well over 20 years,” Hughes said. “It’s a very unusual situation.”

He hasn’t seen a clear image of himself since he was in high school, so he didn’t even recognize the old balding man he’s become.

So 27 years in the Maine wilderness without human contact and without a permanent structure or even a campfire. Makes Henry David Thoreau look like a piker!

Also it appears he’s making no resistance to law enforcement about the crimes he’s committed, he freely admits everything he has (except the eyeglasses he wore in high school) is stolen. Strange and amazing case.