WHERE WOULD YOU GO... to build a remote cabin and live off the land? (Anchorage: to buy, live in)
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If you want to disappear, the loneliest I have ever been is in the big city. Nobody knows you, wants to know you or could care less about you. Basically, you become invisible to the world.
Yeah, uh-huh, sure. When I want to escape the crowds, I always go to the urban core of the city. Are you high or something?
PS- Not sure where all of this "hiding" talk is coming from. People are talking about moving to Alaska to get away from the crowds. Somehow, regulars here turned that into running away from the law, and such. Pfffft.
PS- Not sure where all of this "hiding" talk is coming from. People are talking about moving to Alaska to get away from the crowds. Somehow, regulars here turned that into running away from the law, and such. Pfffft.
Well the OP noted that he had horrendous debt, was not working in the field he went to college for and was looking to get away from it all. While he didn't say he was running out on his debts that was the impression that many received. You don't usually start a question on moving to Alaska with "I've run up tons of debt, have no job and want to get away from it all". without leaving that impression.
Then other posters noted (mind you these are not Alaskans) that because Alaska is so big that you could just "borrow" a piece of a national park, federal lands, native lands or private lands for their needs. That the odds of not getting noticed were good and you could get away with this.
I don't know but in all the places that I've ever lived if someone wanted to "borrow" my property without my knowledge that would be called theft.
Which is illegal, hence the running from the law bit.
There is really no point in arguing it's very simple, if you want land in Alaska or anywhere you buy it.
Perhaps all of the Alaskans I've known and talked to (I can count them on one hand) are wrong, and I'm under a false impression that Alaska is vast, and largely uninhabited. For after reading this thread, it sounds like no matter where I go, I will not be able to have some personal time with my dog hiking without running into large crowds, and people wanting to know everything about my life. I did not know that Alaska was so crowded and intrusive.
... snip... but with such a vast portion of land in Alaska owned by the government, if one truly wants to live "in the bush," a crude cabin built on public land might be the way to go. Sure, you don't own it, but who cares? You could probably live there your whole life and not be kicked off. The state is enormous. Surely there are places one can just "get lost." If I really wanted to live off the land, and be around nobody, I'm not sure ownership of the land would be of utmost importance.
Nomad
I didn't address the above statement in my recent post but now that you have raised the issue I'll go against my usual policy in letting someone hang them selves using their own petard as the weapon of mass destruction. I've always thought when someone has the wrong set of beliefs such as "... Who cares?" they can't help themselves by defending such a poor choice of words. But public lands are something we all own in common and when it is apparent that someone doesn't respect what we all own then why should all of us show respect for the disrespecter? Of course the fault with some is their logic is flawed and although none of us are "high' (to use another of your poor choices of words) we are all believers in the universal rights of the populace. I await your next pronouncements because I doubt you will ever notice how deep the hole is getting because you think you have a golden shovel. A sand bar is no place to dig a foxhole. And it's hard to remember when you're up to your fanny in alligators that the original intention was to drain the swamp.
Yes the impression is correct, Alaska is vast and large tracts are uninhabited.
But that doesn't mean it's unaccounted for, this land belongs to someone.
Just because the owner hasn't fenced it off doesn't mean they don't own it.
You can move to AK, buy a place, hike to your hearts content.
Move to a small town and be off the beaten path.
Just don't move your house onto someone elses property.
In small towns everywhere people know what their neighbors are up to.
It's just part of life in a small town.
Which was why many say to be alone go to a city, there may be millions around you but they don't particularly care about you or what your are doing.
I didn't address the above statement in my recent post but now that you have raised the issue I'll go against my usual policy in letting someone hang them selves using their own petard as the weapon of mass destruction. I've always thought when someone has the wrong set of beliefs such as "... Who cares?" they can't help themselves by defending such a poor choice of words. But public lands are something we all own in common and when it is apparent that someone doesn't respect what we all own then why should all of us show respect for the disrespecter? Of course the fault with some is their logic is flawed and although none of us are "high' (to use another of your poor choices of words) we are all believers in the universal rights of the populace. I await your next pronouncements because I doubt you will ever notice how deep the hole is getting because you think you have a golden shovel. A sand bar is no place to dig a foxhole. And it's hard to remember when you're up to your fanny in alligators that the original intention was to drain the swamp.
You cast around a lot of baseless allegations. I am a steward of the land, and have never disrespected it. I pick up trash on my walks with my dog, and recently took my truck up into the mountains to haul out a load of garbage which was dumped by somebody too poor or cheap to take it to the WM facility. I don't know where you get off trying to cast me in a poor light, but you don't know a thing about me. Best to understand a person before you try to assassinate their character. You're no longer on my friends list.
PS- I'll cop to camping illegally on public lands all throughout WA, OR, and CA. I don't have campfires where not permitted, but I regularly camp where I please, and don't leave a trace. I guess I'm a hard core criminal. I've done it my whole life.
PPS- My friends and I, at 11 years old, built a "fort" on public lands in the Sierra Nevada range which still stands today. I'll be 41 soon. We built it with an axe and a shovel out of deadfall and rope and a lot of hard work. It was basically a post and beam structure roughly 10' wide by 15' long and 8' tall. We'd secure tarps over it and camp year round unless the snow was quite deep. Not only did we get great use of it, but others did as well.
Last edited by NomadicBear; 08-17-2010 at 10:39 PM..
Perhaps all of the Alaskans I've known and talked to (I can count them on one hand) are wrong, and I'm under a false impression that Alaska is vast, and largely uninhabited. For after reading this thread, it sounds like no matter where I go, I will not be able to have some personal time with my dog hiking without running into large crowds, and people wanting to know everything about my life. I did not know that Alaska was so crowded and intrusive.
Pay attention to what they are trying to convey, and stop hearing what you believe someone should say..
Alaska is huge. It is vast. It is not uninhabited. Nor would you lack "some personal time" and there need not be large crowds. Nobody here said that either.
But like Met says, if you go off by yourself the chances are high that it will be a total failure, resulting in either a rapid retreat or death. Why do you think bush Alaska is not covered by thousands of individual homesteads, and instead is populated by thousands of people living together in groups ranging in size from 20 to 5000?
This "living off the land" business is a deadly myth. Virtually nobody does that. Native cultures that traditionally have lived by "subsistence" do not expect any individual to learn the skills needed until they've worked at it for literally 30 years. Do you think a really smart fellow at 30 years of age who has been employed full time at subsistence since he was 10 years old ever worked alone? Not a chance! Until roughly age 40 a young man follows some rather specific orders (given by older men that are still young enough to show them how to do anything they don't know). And do you think "older men" are on their own??? Not a chance! The elders, usually guys too old to actually do much physical work are the ones who decide what projects will be worked on and when.
If a guy whose culture and entire way of life is based on subsistence requires 30 years to learn just the basics, guess what the chances some fellow who's been reading about Grizzly Adams is going to survive all alone???
You cast around a lot of baseless allegations. I am a steward of the land, and have never disrespected it.
Rich was specifically referring to your suggesting that someone could reasonably just build a home on public land in Alaska and live there for the rest of their lives, because "Who cares?". That is utter disrespect for the land, for Alaska, and for the people of Alaska.
We only know what you tell us about yourself, and that is what people are commenting on (there are folks here that get into gratuitous commentary, but except for Starlite they haven't engaged in this discussion, yet). Note for example that you characterize yourself as a "steward of the land", but the supporting details are trivially non-supporting and suggest a very shallow understanding of "land". It's nice that you do not leave "garbage" and even pick up what others leave; but a land custodian has to use land appropriately and work to allow the highest level of productivity. In Alaska that generally amounts to food production. It isn't respectful to waste renewable resources that could feed people. (One example that is considered extremely disrespectful by many in bush Alaska is the practice of "sport" hunting and fish. For example, catch and release fishing is a disgusting concept which amounts to someone "playing" with our food!)
The whole idea of living off the land by one's self in some vast unpopulated wilderness is just an extension of disrespect for land (and the people who live there and own the land).
I am in my early 30's just beginning a career in architecture. With unbeleavable school debt and a horrible economic outlook for the profession, the lifelong dream of moving to Alaska and building a remote cabin completely apart from developed areas has taken hold again. I realize I'm not the first office ****** who's had this thought, but I'm now in a position where it makes sense for me to at least push that way. I'm sure I'll get the generic "you don't know what you're getting into" arguments, but hopefully someone with some applicable knowledge will have some advice on which regions/areas/specific locations THEY would choose if embarking on a similar journey. What issues would you consider?
Appreciate the advice...
Just wondering... where do you live?? I live in the seattle area right now, and I'm doing just fine as an architectural drafter. (there's areas we cut corners, but because we are young and have a large family) Maybe you are just giving up too easily on that architecture career. And Most student loans have Forebearance and deferrment options so you don't drown. there are also lots of govermental scholarships that can be used to pay off student loans. It would be more work for your homework than to research those options. How many essays have you written while in college? A good number of government scholarships only require a single paragraph.
really sounds like me like you are trying to run from your responsibilities as well. And by the sounds of things, I'm quite a bit younger than you at 28. How many other things did you give up on before giving up on your career choice.
My fiance and I are planning to move to Alaska, however I plan to stay with the same Architecture firm, and work on a basis similar to a telecommute basis. My firm will allow that since I've been with them for quite a while, and they can trust me to get my work done even if they only see me once every few months or so.
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