ANCHORAGE - Friday was Charles Baird's last day in civilization for one year.
The man who calls himself "the Alaska Pioneer" spent Friday night in Whittier, before heading out to his acre and a half plot on LaTouche Island in Prince William Sound.
Saturday he begins his adventure on the uninhabited island, where he will live for a year with a goat named Thor, a dog named Wilson and an assortment of cameras, laptops and guns.
"I’ve done all the tasks, the individual parts of the job, before. I've built a cabin. I've gone fishing and done survival school. The biggest challenge will be just being by myself.”
Baird delayed his departure for a month while talking to the Discovery Channel about producing a show about his one year in isolation.
There’s no deal yet, but his friends and fans can get updates on his Facebook page.
"I’m going to independently produce it and post vlogs along the way. It looks like I can get access to the network even on that remote island. And then people can check it for short one-minute, two-minute reports on what's going on."
Baird says he has a couple of ways to make an emergency call for help if he gets in trouble.
But no one will be able to call him.
"I kind of expect to see people drop in -- hunters and fishermen -- and just people, you know, friends who are in the neighborhood drop in for some coffee."
Baird, a Christian, says he feels good about his relationship with God and has few fears about the coming year.
“I don't think it'll be transformative or anything like that, really, but you know, it might be nice to kind of calm down and get away from the busyness of normal life."
No man is an island, but for quite a while, Charles Baird will be on one by himself.
