In the silence I began to
adjust. To be clean, sober,
and clear minded.didn’t go out into the woods for a noble cause. I went out
of desperation. I always had an underlying hunger for a
good life, but drugs, prison, my associates, and other dis-
tractions always prevented me from reaching it. I was 50
years old and I was not good.
In 2003, I got rid of everything. I was so desperate I even
shaved my head. I packed up a backpack with gear, maps,
food, and books. I was by no means a survivalist, but I knew how
to begin. My dad was an outdoorsman, and when I was young, he’d
taught me how to take care of myself in the woods.
I first headed to Coconino forest in nor thern A rizona. The lon-
gest you can stay there, however, is 14 days, so I continued on to the
Sycamore Canyon Wilderness area. It’s very rugged. There are no
vehicles—no machinery of any kind—allowed. There aren’t many
trails, either, so consequently there aren’t many people. Those that
do come through stay on the trails. I found my camp in an area away
from the trails, with good cover and an opening to the south for sun-
light. It overlooked a canyon.
My water source was a quarter-mile away. This was the perfect dis-
tance—not right next to camp, in case another hiker came looking for
water, and not so far away that I’d wear myself out hauling water back.
Comfortably, you need about two gallons of water a day. I’d haul water
twice a week, usually five to six gallons at a time. At eight pounds per
gallon, that’s nearly 50 pounds to carry. I found a nice spring where
the water came out of the ground. The closer you can find water to its
source, the lower your chances of getting giardia. When it rained, I
collected rainwater off of my roof in five-gallon buckets.
Whenever I left camp for the main trail (or the main trail to get
back to camp), I made sure to leave no path—no trace or sign that
would cause my discovery. It’s good practice, spiritually, to walkwakefully, in tune and in harmony with everything around you.
You’re aware of how everything flows. The sounds, the smells. How
things look and feel. It becomes your disposition.
There are edible and medicinal plants in the woods, so it’s good
to know that stuff. Also, a .22 Winchester can kill anything. But like
I said, I’m no survivalist. I have Bic lighters and go to town once ortwice a month to get food. (I got on food stamps.) Occasionally I’d
walk to a forest service road and hitch a ride (it’s busiest on week-
ends), but I like to explore the woods, so most times I hiked the 30
miles in. It took two or three days. In snowier weather I have used
snowshoes, but that’s really slow. Cross-country skis are best. Most
of my food needed to be dehydrated, since I didn’t have a refriger-
ator. Bear Creek brand makes an excellent base, and you can addEXTREME
In 16 months I relieved myself of every possession.
But I still had to get away from everything else.
BY JAY BYRDWHAT TYPE OF
OFF-THE-GRIDDER
ARE YOU?
JOHN: We moved to this part of Ver-
mont from Boston in 1980. Our land was
on a gravel road with no utility lines. It
would have cost $18,000 for the power
company to connect our property to its
network, so we decided to generate our
own electricity with solar panels and a
generator.
JEAN: One of the first things people say
is, “You don’t have electricity!” We do
have electricity, we just come by it a dif-
ferent way.
JOHN: When we first built, I had 22
golf-cart batteries wired up to produce
a 12-volt system, and an inverter, whichA LITTLE LESS SO
How we ended up off the grid—and why we’ve stayed there.
BY JEAN AND JOHN KIEDAISCH