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Inspired Life

Minnesota teen has slept in his backyard for nearly 3 years just for fun

‘I guess a lot of people might find it a little unusual, but to us, it’s now the normal routine,’ said Andrew Ortman, the teen’s father

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January 30, 2023 at 6:00 a.m. EST
Isaac Ortman sleeps outside in a “bivy sack'' — a personal-size waterproof shelter — in January 2022. (Melissa Ortman)
5 min

For more than 1,000 nights, Isaac Ortman, 14, has slept beneath the stars in his backyard in Duluth, Minn., including on a night when the temperature dipped to minus-38 degrees.

What started as a whimsical self-challenge at his family’s cabin about 30 miles from home when he was 11 is now a nightly routine that Isaac expects he’ll continue through high school — and maybe longer.