From Monk to Hermit: The Rock Pillar Dweller
Georgian monk Maxime Qavtaradze lived atop a narrow, natural 130-foot pillar of rock in Georgia for over 20 years. The site, Katskhi, was an ancient hermitage. Before a small hut was built, Maxime slept in an old fridge. With supplies winched up by locals, he spent his time praying and reading, stating, "I need the silence." However, old age and an influx of tourists forced him to return to the local monastery in 2015.
Mud Hut Living in Wales
Emma Orbach, an Oxford University graduate who grew up in a castle, has lived in a round hut made of mud, straw, and manure in Pembrokeshire, Wales, since 1999. The 69-year-old mother of three lives without electricity or running water, sourcing water from a local stream. She grows her own food and keeps goats and chickens, saying, "This lifestyle makes me feel really happy."
The Human Leopard of Skye
Tom Leppard, born Tom Wooldridge, covered himself in tattoos resembling a leopard and lived in isolation on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, for 20 years. He built a hut with a plastic roof, no electricity or furniture, and canoed three miles to the mainland for supplies. He held the title of the most tattooed man in the world and said he wanted to "escape the city" but was "never lonely." Age forced him to move to a village home in 2008; he died in 2016 at age 80.
Into the Wild: Chris McCandless
Chris McCandless, an American graduate, ventured into the Alaskan wilderness in April 1992 with little more than rice, a rifle, and boots. He lived in an abandoned bus, eating plants and squirrels, and killed a moose that spoiled. Attempting to return, he found a flooded river blocked his path. He died of starvation at age 24. His story inspired the 2007 film Into the Wild.
Siberia's Loneliest Woman
Agafia Lykova, now 80, has lived alone in a wooden hut in Siberia's Western Sayan mountains since the 1980s. She is the last of her family, who fled religious persecution under Stalin. Self-sufficient, she grows crops and keeps livestock, only leaving for medical treatment, preferring to avoid the "hurly-burly."
The Real Robinson Crusoe
Mauro Morandi, an Italian PE teacher, set sail for the Pacific in 1989 to escape society. Shipwrecked off Budelli Island near Sardinia, he stayed as caretaker, living in a WWII shelter without TV or radio. He later added solar power for a fridge and got food deliveries. He remained for 32 years until the island became a national park, forcing his departure. He died in 2023 at age 85.
