There was a really neat show on PBS about a guy who went out to Alaska back in the 60s or 70s. He was about 40'ish years old. Built a log cabin (by hand) and all the necessities. Took a fair bit of home footage. Lived all alone in the middle of nowhere. Shows how much snow he had to dig out to keep his path from his cabin to the nearby lake/river clear. Footage of bears, etc. How he kept his meat safe from animals. Just a REALLY interesting show.
The kicker comes at the end. When they tell you he stayed there for 30 odd years until he was in his 70s or something. That's when your jaw drops because you see what hard work it was.
Found it -- Alone in the Wilderness. I imagine it'll be back on PBS someday.
http://www.dickproenneke.com/