Philip Ashton was minding his own business working on a fishing boat off the coast of Nova Scotia in 1723 when he and his fellow sailors were captured by pirates. The pirate captain, Ned Low, gave the men a choice—become pirates or die. Philip Ashton was 19. He chose “pirate.”Ashton wanted no part of the cruelty and barbarism which now surrounded him, nor did he want to be executed for piracy when Captain Low’s luck finally ran out. Eight months into his pirate career, Ashton found his chance to escape. Low anchored off the coast of an island near Honduras and sent men, including Ashton, ashore to attain freshwater. As the men finished filling the ship’s casks with water from a stream, Ashton innocently strolled away. When his fellow pirates asked him what he was doing, Ashton yelled “Coconuts!” and took off into the jungle. A week later, the search for Ashton was over and he was alone. The island was plentiful with fruit and tortoise eggs, which was good, since Ashton was barefoot and empty-handed when he escaped.That changed after nine months of isolation when a Spanish trader in a canoe stopped at the island. He promised to send help to Ashton’s island after he left. In the meantime, he left Ashton with a knife and flint, which allowed him to hunt and cook for the first time since being marooned. It was seven more months before another group of sailors would rescue Ashton.