Former photographer tells Ben Fogle why he gave up his successful career to live in a BURROW he built in the wilderness and missed seeing his young children grow up
- Dan Price, 63, has been living in a reclusive part of Oregon for the past 30 years
- Hermit rents a patch of land for $100 a year and could not be happier this way
- Explains part of why lives alone is doesn't want to be part of 'the mess out there'
- Says humans might 'need to become extinct' because have no right to kill planet
A hermit who decided to live secluded for the rest of society explains why he resents other humans for what they're doing to the planet.
Former photographer Dan Price, 63, is an introvert who welcomes Ben Fogle to the patch of Oregon wilderness he moved to following his divorce 30 years ago, on tonight's New Lives in the Wild on Channel 5.
The father-of-two, who refers to himself as a 'hobo,' receives a yearly pension of $10,000 and spends most of it on the upkeep of the horse meadow he rents for $100 a year, and buying foods he can't fetch in the wild.
He first started renting his patch of land after his divorce from his high school sweetheart and mother of his children, and was devastated by their separation.
After the split, his ex-wife moved to West Oregon with their two children, aged five and six, while he moved to East Orgeon and built himself a tiny underground 'rabbit hole' where he sleeps, cooks and eats.
Dan Price, 63, is an introverted and former photographer who welcomes Ben Fogle to the $100-a-year (£76.87) patch of Oregon wilderness he moved to thirty years ago, on tonight's New Lives in the Wild on Channel 5
Dan tells Ben he tries to lead by example by taking as little from Earth as possible, and forages and fish to feed himself
In tonight's 9pm show Dan, who was born in Washington, explains he used to live in a big house and earn a good living thanks to his photography work, but is now trying to 'take as little as possible' from Earth.
He adds that humans might 'need to go extinct' because of what they're doing to the planet.
The mild-mannered hermit who forages plants and fishes for food, chokes up about how connected he feels to nature, and the difficult choices he had to make in order to lead the life he wanted, including leaving his children behind.
Ben, fascinated by Dan's lifestyle, says he believes the hermit, while at peace with his 'magical' and 'mystical' meadow, seems to have conflicting feelings about what led him to hide away from the world.
Ben is fascinated by Dan's way of life. The 63-year-old man moved to the wild following his divorce, and says the hardest thing he ever has had to do was telling his children they would not be living together anymore
Dan explains that in spite of the sacrifices he's had to make in order to live his dream of living in the wild, he is happiest while alone in nature
The hermit opens up when the two men sit in his homemade sweat lodge. Such lodges were invited by Native Americans and are designed to purify the body and mind.
'Half of the reason I live like this is I don't want to be part of that mess out there,' he tells Ben.
He adds he is particularly irked by people's lack of respect for the environment, explaining how he hated to see people leave their cars running all evening long, while they had dinner at a restaurant.
'I got a little bit of a temper, I've always had the tendency to confront people,' he admits.
Pressed by Ben, Dan adds that the way humans treat the planet is very upsetting to him.
'Humans maybe need to become extinct, because the world is killing off species, and that's not right, man. We don't have the right to do that.
'I feel so bad about it, and it has so much to do with why I am living like I am,' he says.
The hermit, who calls himself a hobo, built himself an underground house that is accessible through a square door, much like a cat flap, Ben jokes
Ben says staying with Dan feels like living in Alice in Wonderland, due to his rabbit hole accommodation
'I'm trying to take as little as I can. I think the only way that I can make change is by setting an example: that idea that actions are louder than words,' he goes on.
Dan built himself his underground shed 15 years earlier, and Ben is clearly impressed by how tiny and functional it is.
The adventurer and presenter jokes that he feels like he's in Alice in Wonderland, and that Dan might be a rabbit undercover.
The small living space is accessible through a cat flap-like door, which Dan can only go through by getting on his hands and knees. The sleeping room is only accessible through a hole in the wall
He has no running water, but uses electricity and a small homemade 'flame thrower' to set fires and heat his food.
Dan, who has always been fascinated by nature, had to make big sacrifices in order to pursue his dream of going into the wild 30 years earlier.
Ben can see how at peace with nature Dan is during his time in Oregon. The hermit chokes up as he reveals that this place 'healed' him after his devastating divorce
He chokes up as he reveals to Ben that explaining to his children, who were six and five at the time, that they would not be living together anymore was one of the hardest things he has ever had to do.
'The most difficult thing I've ever done in my life is tell a five and six-year-old child that I love so much, they were such incredible wonderful children, that we were not going to live together anymore, it just broke all our hearts,' he says.
When he first came to this side of Oregon, armed with just a tipi and a strong will to free himself from the daily rat race, Dan was really depressed but only realised it years later.
His loneliness gave him time to reflect on his life, and the separation from his wife.
Dan reveals he might have to leave his beloved patch of land if his landlords decided to re purpose their horse pasture - which he lives on - but says he should be able to adapt
'She was my one and only, I've haven't dated since, I'm not interested in anybody but her. To lose that out of my life was pretty devastating, and also missing my children,' he tells Ben.
'And I think it forced me to, not so much hide, but start all over again,' he goes on.
Now Dan says he's found his own happiness by standing quietly in nature, a positive effect so strong, he cannot even put it into words.
'I would say that this place.. healed me,' he chokes up.
Dan is still in contact with his daughter Shiloh, who visits him with her three children and husband, in a 'whirlwind.'
The meadow starts to buzz with activity, and Ben notes that even though it is evident he loves his family, he can tell his host will be relieved when they leave.
'He always has and still loves her to pieces and it was a very hard choice for him,' Shiloh tells Ben, referring to his split from her mother, adding that she wouldn't swap her father for anything in the world.
Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild airs tonight at 9pm on Channel 5.
