Katie Rydge
ActingKatie is the co-founder of Nature Philosophy, lives on Gumbaynggirr Country on the East Coast of Australia and has two children, Ella and Hunter.Since Katie was a child, she has felt a deep kinship with the natural world and grew up both in the city and on ranches where she spent many years riding horses in remote locations and mustering cattle.In her early 20’s, she left Australia for the USA where she dove deeply into a broad range of primitive living skills, solo wilderness rites of passage, and survival. That was over 20 years ago and since that time she has dedicated herself to mastering and teaching these skills to her Australian community.Katie has also spent the last 15 years guiding groups into a remote Australian Aboriginal community in Arnhem Land. Her time spent with the Yolngu people has deeply inspired her outlook on life and understanding of survival.Katie’s participation on ALONE is an initiation into the next phase of her life. A true survival quest that will be the ultimate test of her survival philosophy, physical ability, and spiritual skills. Through sharing her journey, she hopes to inspire women all over the world to discover their strength by connecting with the natural world.
Jit Patel
ActingJit was born in the UK and grew up in South London. He was introduced to the outdoors mainly through school camps, but at 14 joined the Army Cadets. This gave him his first experience ofembracing the elements and learning to push himself through challenges.With all that travel, he knew the UK might not be where he would settle down, but was keen to find that place. He spent a year in Australia and then went to New Zealand on a Working Holiday Visa.It was in New Zealand where he began working for Outward Bound, an Outdoor Education Charity that believes in building resilience and learning more about yourself and others by living and adventuring together in the outdoors. His first full-time job saw him in that role for nearly 3 years before moving into the office as the operations manager.Being from the UK, hunting was not a part of growing up, however, colleagues at Outward Bound introduced him to bow hunting and the mindfulness that comes with stalking, shooting, and processing your own game.During this transition away from the field and into the office, he got his dog Ahi, and met his partner Madi. Whilst his parents still live in the UK and his brother’s family in Singapore, he’s hoping to make New Zealand his home.He’s grateful to his parents and brother, who have always supported and encouraged him to take on new challenges, explore the world, and follow his passions. And to his partner Madi, for encouraging him on this journey, and who he can’t wait to face the challenges ahead with.
Nathan Olsen
ActingNathan Olsen lives in southern Idaho with his wife Erica and a blended family of ten children and two grand-children. This big family lifestyle is nothing new for Nathan, who grew up in a large Mormon family, and whose brother, Luke Olsen, competed in Alone Season 10.As a young introvert, Nathan learned to cope with living in a high density home by frequently escaping to the surrounding wilderness of southern Idaho. At age ten, he took his desire to be alone a step further by convincing his parents to let him homeschool and become a sheep herder. A typical homeschool day involved packing some books and leading his flock of Suffolk to graze the canyon upstream from the family home. “My first home school assignment was to find an arrowhead, draw a picture of it in place, and write a story about how it got there. ” Nathan feels grateful to have parents who encouraged each child to develop their interests from a young age.At age fifteen, Nathan enrolled in college and earned a Bachelor of Science in Soil Science and eventually a Masters in Business Administration. He worked as a field guide for the Anasazi Foundation, an outdoor therapeutic program co-founded by his father, Larry Dean Olsen. Nathan farmed potatoes in Turkey and Romania and for the past 20 years, has been the CEO of BestNotes, a software company started with his brothers.Erica and Nathan decided to get married after sitting on the couch binge-watching all of the Alone series. By participating in the show, Nathan and Erica hope to model for their children and grandchildren the courage to pursue their interests and do hard things, even with uncertain outcomes.
Dug North
ActingDug North grew up on a small farm in the hills of Vermont. Being surrounded by forests, he was fascinated by the wilderness survival books of Ellsworth Jaeger, Bradford Angier, and Tom Brown Jr. He spent many hours hunting and fishing with his father in nearby New Hampshire.Dug went on to earn an undergraduate degree in Anthropology at the University of Vermont, and a graduate degree from Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. He was most interested in how humans have survived and thrived in diverse environments around the globe and through time. After college, he spent several years working as an archeologist.Over the years, Dug’s occupations and personal interests have focused on how to make things. He has made everything from swanky restaurant signs to tiny antique clock parts, to giant pumpkin-throwing trebuchets. His hand-cranked mechanical sculptures have found their way into private collections and public museums. Dug spent 5 years operating an antique clock restoration business in which he used antique tools to replicate historical fabrication techniques faithfully.Dug has written several magazine articles and dozens of blog posts describing how to make objects out of wood and metal. As a primary contributor, his name is featured on the cover of the book titled Big Book of Gizmos & Gadgets (Fox Chapel Publishing, 2016).In recent years, his love of making things has found expression in the field of ancestral skills. He has learned to make fire, containers, cordage, traps, shelters, hunting weapons, and tools. Dug’s very first anthropology class in college featured a film about the ǃKung people of Southern Africa. He is thrilled to have the chance to have an adventure in the same part of the world — one that is so rich in human history.
Douglas S. Meyer
ActingDoug’s journey began in New Albany, Indiana, where he spent his early years before moving to Concord, North Carolina, at the age of 15. Alongside his brothers, Robbie and Ronnie, he cherished weekends at their cabin on Rough River Lake in Kentucky, where they immersed themselves in outdoor adventures, sparking Doug’s lifelong passion for nature and primitive skills.Following his high school years, Doug enlisted in the army as a Combat Engineer before pursuing his academic interests at the University of North Carolina at Charlotte, where he delved into history and anthropology. It was during an anthropology field trip to the Schiele Museum that he encountered Steve Watts, a master of primitive skills, whose demonstrations ignited Doug’s fascination with ancient crafts.Under the mentorship of luminaries like Steve Watts, Errett Callahan, and Charles Worsham, Doug honed his skills in survival, tracking, and craftsmanship. He dedicated himself to mastering the intricacies of primitive living, drawing inspiration from cultures around the world. Doug’s passion for preserving ancient traditions led him to share his expertise with audiences worldwide, conducting demonstrations and workshops, and contributing to the preservation ofindigenous knowledge. He authored books on Native American Blowguns and Stone Age Survival, enriching the understanding of primitive technologies and their cultural significance. Today, Doug resides in Kannapolis, North Carolina, with his wife of over three decades, Jana, and their beloved Shih Tzus, Sassy, and Sadie. Together, they continue to embrace a life filled with gratitude, honoring the timeless wisdom of their ancestors and inspiring future generations to connect with nature and traditional skills.