Synopsis -
Seventy-four-year-old Ken Smith has spent the past four decades in the Scottish Highlands. His home is a log cabin nestled near Loch Treig, known as "the lonely loch," where he lives off the land. He fishes for his supper, chops his own wood and even brews his own tipple. He is, in the truest sense of the word, a hermit.
From his working-class origins in Derbyshire, Ken always sensed that there was more ot life than an empty nine to five. Then one day in 1974, an attack from a group of drunken men left him for dead. Determined to change his prospects, Ken quit his job and spent his formative years traveling in the Yukon. It was here, in the vast wilderness of northwestern Canada, that he honed his survival skills and grew closer to nature. Returning to Britain, he continued his nomadic lifestyle, wandering north and living in huts until he finally reached Loch Treig. Ken decided to lay his roots amongst the dense woodland and Highland air, and has lived there ever since.
In The Way of the Hermit, Ken shares the remarkable story of his life for the very first time. Told with humor and compassion, his unique insights allow us to glimpse the awe and wonder of a life lived in nature and offer wisdom on how each of us can escape the pressures and stresses of modern life.
From his working-class origins in Derbyshire, Ken always sensed that there was more ot life than an empty nine to five. Then one day in 1974, an attack from a group of drunken men left him for dead. Determined to change his prospects, Ken quit his job and spent his formative years traveling in the Yukon. It was here, in the vast wilderness of northwestern Canada, that he honed his survival skills and grew closer to nature. Returning to Britain, he continued his nomadic lifestyle, wandering north and living in huts until he finally reached Loch Treig. Ken decided to lay his roots amongst the dense woodland and Highland air, and has lived there ever since.
In The Way of the Hermit, Ken shares the remarkable story of his life for the very first time. Told with humor and compassion, his unique insights allow us to glimpse the awe and wonder of a life lived in nature and offer wisdom on how each of us can escape the pressures and stresses of modern life.
Review -
I love reading memoirs, especially from those who live extremely different lives that I do. The Way of the Hermit offered just that. Author Ken Smith shares simply and honestly about his life from a young age, covering the experiences that slowly led him to walk away from the expected rut with job, paycheck, mortgage and family, to one of exploring the Yukon and the wilds of Scotland - eventually homesteading in depths of Treig with the owners permission (an unexpected stroke of luck).
I can't imagine heading off into the Yukon with a backpack and scant supplies for a year, living off what I could catch and harvest, topped up by limited purchased supplies. But he did just that. Imagine being far away from civilization in all kinds of weather, doing everything with the simplest of supplies, and being entirely responsible for any medical issues that might arrive.
While it is not a life I would chose, I was entranced. When he finally settled in a home of his own, built by his own hands, in Treig, I definitely felt more kinship. It wasn't an easy life. Every piece of wood to keep him warm had to be cut and shaped by his hand. His struggle to get to town on foot for supplies he could not produce himself during all kinds of weather lead to some scary moments. And no matter how serious his health issue or how sick he felt, if he couldn't deal with it himself, he had to walk to the closest town for treatment.
A great read that covers everything from the authors life, to his thoughts on civilization, to descriptions of how he built his house, gardened and fished for food.
Meet the Author -
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