The Truth Behind the North Pond Hermits Legend

Not every town can say that they have living legend in their midst! For years, locals and vacationers alike were unsettled as a mysterious burglar went through their homes in the night. The weirdest part? He never stole anything of large monetary value… Just necessary supplies for survival. This lasted for over 30 years!

Bump in the Night

When residents of North Pond began to hear things go bump in the night, they assumed it was an animal rummaging through their garbage or on their roof… No one expected it to be another person. Then, things started to go missing.

Out of Thin Air

Neighbors started noticing small, invaluable objects going missing. It would usually be books, magazines, old t-shirts, and some food. The locals were stumped. The vacation families would even notice things missing, but nothing was ever broken or even left astray. Objects would just up and disappear…

What’s Going On?

Naturally, in a small town, people talk. Myths and rumors began going around about the mysterious burglaries. Locals started creating names for the burglar, like “Mountain Main,” “Hungry Man,” and “North Pond Hermit.” Locals ended up fighting back and putting up extra security measures to stop the burglaries. 

The Cops Are On it

Naturally, the cops were well aware of the break-ins. Despite being on top of it, they made very little progress into who was committing the crimes. Decades ended up going by… The hermit was still committing the crimes. Some kids even grew up with the stories of him!

The Summer Camp

During the off-season in 2013, Pine Tree Summer Camp reported stolen goods. Sergeant Terry Hughes was assigned to the case as he had been looking out for the Hermit… Now, he had him.

Time To Search

Sergeant Hughes is a local to the town and knew of the myth for his entire life. He knew that he was close to solving this age-old case. He spent a lot of time on the campgrounds. He managed the camp during the day, but after hours, it was all about the hermit…

Getting Serious

Hughes searched the entire campgrounds for any sort of evidence. Eventually, he decided to arm up every corner of the camp with cameras and security devices.

The Culprit

It took a few weeks for the hermit to be spotted on the footage. Then, on April 4th, 2013, Hughes got a notification saying that his security tech was triggered. Then, he and state trooper Diane Perkins-Vance went to Pine Tree to apprehend the suspect. They were shocked to see who he was…

The perp was not anything like they imagined. He didn’t resist or even try to run… He greeted them. The officers said that he was very nice and polite. They ended up sitting him down and talking with him… His name was Christopher Thomas Knight, he had no address, job, or ID.

Smart Kid

Born in 1965, he had always been gifted with smarts. He graduated high school early and went to Sylvania Tech School in Waltham, Massachusetts. He got a job with a tech security company after he graduated, which ended up being a pretty useful skill.

Knight loved being alone. He was the middle brother of five siblings, and was always the loner sitting in the corner with a good book. He loved that about himself, even though his parents thought otherwise. As he grew older, he got interested in survival in the wilderness. He would read handbooks and fiction pieces about that sort of stuff…

Going off the Grid

He worked with the tech company just long enough to get a car and bought a Subaru. He was going to leave down, only following the sun to head south. Wherever he would run out of gas is where he would stay. He left his car with the keys and went into the woods…

New Home

Living life int he wilderness was such a huge adjustment. He became accustomed to living alone, but he was struggling without his daily necessities. Even though he had researched this type of living for years, it was easier said than done.

Hard to Survive

It took a few weeks for the hunger pains to break Knight. He went on to perfect his shelter as a way to avoid thinking about how hungry he was. He was struggling to find food every time he went out. Once, he said, he ate a dead bird…

Petty Crimes

In his desperation, he would sneak into people’s gardens to steal fruit and vegetables. Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough for nutrients. He foraged through the forest and found a new camp site. He ended up finding some cabins…

Empty Cabins

He realized that sleeping in the cabin was risky so he didn’t do it for more than a couple days. It was indeed empty, but he knew the owners could come back at any time. He then began to use his experience to get into peoples houses…

Knight then stumbled upon North Pond. He knew that it was perfect. It was a popular vacation town, so many of the homes would be empty during the week and off-season. Camping was also a huge thing there, so there was a good chance people would leave supplies behind that Knight could use. That’s where he spent the next 30 years…

Setting Up Shop

He found a perfect spot to set up camp. It was hidden away by heavy overgrowth and big boulders. He knew that he wouldn’t be detectable here…

Virtually Untraceable 

Knight constructed a new settlement and made sure it was hard to get in and out of. He didn’t want to be detected whatsoever. He was able to make it livable with water-absorbing magazine floors to keep things dry and to get drinking water. Still, he was struggling…

The Need to Survive

He loved being immersed in the wilderness. Knight skillfully snuck into people’s unoccupied homes to take food. He didn’t love going into people’s homes, but the hunger became too much.

Knight knew that he was committing crimes, but he wasn’t doing this out of malice. He waned to live on his own without any contact with the outside world, but that ended up with him living a life of petty crimes.

One Last Step

This final step was one that he was the least proud of. He had to physically alter people’s security systems so that he could bypass them when he needed to. It was dirty, but he figured it out pretty quickly. He never wanted to harm or scare anyone…

Mapping It Out

Knight was able to time out everything perfectly. He quickly learned who were the locals and who were the vacationers. During the week, he would sneak around in the middle of the night to get supplies. He wanted to do this as harmless as possible…

Warmer is Better

Spring and summer were the most popular times in Maine. Knight wasn’t stressed during those seasons, it was usually pretty easy. Plus, it was easier for him to stay hidden. It was the fall and winter seasons, that threatened his life…

Winter was Hard

Adapting to the cold was hard. He would go to sleep at 7:30 pm and wake up at 2 in order to avoid the coldest hours. He would gather many blankets so he could fight against the harsh and cold temperatures. He sometimes had to deal with frostbite… But, it was all worth it.

Living in Isolation

It took his body years to get accustomed to the changing seasons. It was years before things began to feel normal. He had to deal with the changing seasons, hunger pains, and illnesses completely on his own. At the same time, he knew that this was the price to pay for the life that he wanted to live…

He was always extremely careful to not break-in through windows or doors by harming them. He didn’t want to harm anything… He even found extra keys to some of the homes. He would unlock the door, float through the home, lock the door up, and hide the key again. The biggest thing he took was insane…

One night, Knight came across a canoe. He borrowed it to help him get around the area. He saved a lot of time and energy, and he was able to get more things. When he was done, he returned it to its original spot. No one had any idea…

27 Years Perfectly Under the Radar

Knight did this for 27 years before he was caught. In that time, he had everything perfect. Naturally, people noticed what he was using, which was to be expected.

His Home

His outdoor shelter, he would take tarps, blankets, and old outerwear from the homes so he can stay warm and dry. He even ended up grabbing some books to read while he was out there… He needed some way to battle boredom!

People were Catching On

He kept going and people eventually caught on. He had no idea that people were on his tail or that they noticed… So, he continued on. Since his crimes were virtually harmless, people weren’t extremely angry… Just curious. Who was this man entering their homes?

Some Clues

Knight was still human and he still made some mistakes. He ended up leaving behind some clues that let police know what he was doing…

Caught!

It took nearly 30 years of living off the grid to be caught by police. Officials came to the conclusion that he committed over 1,000 burglaries over the past 30 years.  This could be the biggest case of burglary in history…

Meeting his Fate

Knight ended up getting arrested since he did break the law. In October, 2013, he went to trial at Kennebec County Superior Court. He pled guilty to 13 counts of theft and burglary. He was given seven months in jail… With a catch. He was to get a job once his sentence was over and have weekly meetings with the judge.

Judge Mills

Judge Mills believed that Knight was not committing the crimes out of malice, but just to live. He desired isolation and did what he could to survive. She knew that he wouldn’t go back to his life of petty crime, mainly because he wasn’t going to be living in nature anymore.

Back to Society

Knight readily agreed to the terms and carried out his sentence. He stayed sober, attended his programs, and met with the judge. He even ended up reconnecting with his family. They were excited to see him, and his brother even helped him to get a job.

Gone For Years

Knight was an introvert and loved his alone0time. His family always assumed he’d go off just like he did. They never doubted that he was alive and well… They knew he’d come back eventually. No hard feelings there!

The Stranger In The Woods

Word spread through the news quickly and people were interested in Knight’s life. Michael Finkel, an American journalist, knew that he needed to write this story. He got some up close and personal interviews with Knight, which is where he was truly able to tell his story. He revealed that he only said one word to another person in the 27 years that he was out in the wilderness. He saw a hiker and said, “Hi.”

Life with Civilization

Knight also said that he hadn’t seen his own reflection in that time. He would only look when he was curious, but even then it was just in bodies of water. He said that he regretted committing the crimes and scaring people… Yet, he didn’t regret how he lived in the wilderness for 30 years. He loved it.

The North Pond Hermit Myth

The story of the North Pond Hermit still makes its rounds in the community. Now, they had the ending. He’s not a myth, legend, or rumor any more, but a man who was intent on living his life the way that he wanted to.