Considering moving to Alaska, looking for advice on where to move too. (Anchorage: apartment, rent)
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So I'm planning on moving to Alaska, and I'm debating between a few different locations. I work as a consultant and I'm employed by a firm that does not require a physical presence and contacts me over the internet, so I can live basically anywhere that has internet access. With nature and the great outdoors being the two big loves of my life, I've spent most of my life in coastal Maine, however the problem with coastal Maine is that it's just too flat for me - so I was thinking of moving somewhere that's both on the water and has the mountains within easy reach, not a two hour's drive away. And where better than Alaska?
Now, a few things that have narrowed down the choices for me. First of all, boating is one of my favorite pasttimes, so being near a body of water large enough to boat on is a must for me. Also, high-speed internet is required, due to my job. One thing that you probably don't get that often and might confuse you a bit, but it's one of the main reasons why I'm considering Alaska is that I'm a huge meteorology buff, so I have quite a thing for rain, snow, wind, clouds and all - around nasty weather, so for me, the worse the weather, the more snowfall and precipitation, the better. I absolutely love hiking and fishing, so miles upon miles of trails and great fishing are a must. I also enjoy wildlife viewing, so living in an area with a lot of wildlife is also an advantage.
I don't really need much in the way of amenities, but I'd still prefer a place where the local supermarket is bigger than a corner store, and where I don't need to take a boat ride to access basic services such as banking. My employer also ships a lot of stuff to me via UPS/Fedex, and I'd prefer that they arrive within a week or two, not every other month. Also, I really enjoy hiking and fishing alone, and well I know the brown bear threat is very overestimated, particularly by us down here in the lower 48, I'd prefer a place where I'm able to go hiking or fishing without having to take a gun or bear spray with me.
And one more thing - I don't mind cruise ship tourist traps (I grew up in one, so I'm used to them, and I enjoy meeting new people from afar) however I'd like to live in a place that isn't a seasonal town. Once the cruise ships leave for the winter and the snow starts falling, I still want to live in a place where shops are open, the downtown is relatively busy, and etc.
Now, if I've bored you so far, I'll get to the chase - where I'm looking at. Because I enjoy boating and need high-speed internet, all of the locations I'm considering are either in the Southeast or South-central. In the Southeast, I'm looking at Juneau, Petersburg, Wrangell, Sitka and Ketchikan (basically, from what I understand, all the places in SE that have cable internet). Homer, Kenai, Seward, Valdez and Kodiak are the places in Southcentral. Based on my post, which of these do you think would be best? And, of course, if I missed anywhere, please tell me.
Could you do a trip up here to see what things look like? If you flew into Anchorage you could rent a car and spend a week and check out Homer, Kenai Seward and Valdez. Kodiak would require another flight or a 12 hour ferry ride.
If you had two weeks, then you could fly from Anchorage to Juneau and spend a week using the ferry to visit the communities you listed in Southeast.
Pretty much any of the towns you listed could work. But each community has their own pulse. On the Peninsula, Sterling, Soldotna & Kenai are all within 20 miles of each other, but each has a very different feel to it.
If you couldn't do the ferry ride for southeast, you could try booking your flight home from Anchorage to Juneau to Ketchikan to home. It'll cost a little more, but the flight from Juneau to Ketchikan also lands in Petersburg. You would see much from the airport, but it would better than nothing...
So I've narrowed down the places a little bit. Ketchikan I've ruled out as from what I understand the snow situation there is a bit sketchy, and Kenai I've ruled out since it doesn't appear to be any more mountainous than Maine. Seward, Valdez, Petersburg and Wrangell have also been ruled out, as I have a medical condition that does require occasional specialized treatment and there don't appear to be any doctors capable of providing that treatment there.
So the primary places now are Sitka, Juneau, Homer and Kodiak.
A few questions:
1. What's winter like in Sitka? There are two weather stations there that I've found data for - the airport and the magnetic observatory. The airport appears to only get slightly more snow than Ketchikan, however the observatory gets nearly double that. Which one should I trust?
2. Just from a quick glance at Google Earth it appears that Kodiak isn't very heavily forested, is this correct? I quite enjoy forest hiking, so a substantial lack of forest could mean it loses a lot of points, however I think it'd be better to ask someone who's actually been there before jumping to conclusions.
3. Homer - what's the terrain like? From what I've read, Homer certainly isn't flat, however it's not exactly mountainous either. Could anyone elaborate on that?
4. How seasonal is Juneau? It doesn't appear as seasonal as Skagway or Ketchikan, however from what I've heard is it still a much more seasonal place than many others. Is it still alive in the winter?
And of course, out of those 4, where would you recommend?
As for taking a trip, quite obviously I'm planning on that, however I'd like to narrow the options down a bit before since my funds aren't unlimited. When would you recommend taking this trip? Winter seems like a better time to get a feel for how living somewhere truly is, as there won't be any tourists, however how practical is this? Living in Maine, I'm already all too familiar with just how quickly a bad winter storm can leave you stranded...
From your description of what you want, Juneau would likely fit the best. Juneau is on the water, so you have easy access to boating. Weather-wise, Juneau fits the bill as we get rain, snow and an occasional sunny day. Eaglecrest is a ski area that you can drive to in about 15-30 minutes from town and 45 minutes from the valley. You have hiking and fishing opportunities and while you'd be safer with some sort of protection from bears, many do so without any, including me. You just need to be aware of any signs of bears.
During the off season, many tourist shops close, but several stay open year-round. Things go on all year here, but I'm not sure what activities you'd be interested in. For instance, the local theater puts on plays over the winter and just recently there was the Folk Festival. High school sports has the the most interest, but there are adult leagues for basketball, softball, soccer, volleyball and hockey that occur through the year.
The FAA does a lot of equipment testing here due to the terrain and weather conditions. As a result, Juneau has the latest equipment and Alaska Airlines has the most advanced navigation equipment. As a result, there are less weather delays here. Being landlocked, means the ferry system is the only way to drive out. There are daily trips to Haines and Skagway during the summer, reduced down to maybe 3-4 times a week during winter. Trips to Bellingham are once a week and 2-3 times a week to Prince Rupert.
Shopping includes Costco, Fred Meyer (Kroger), Walmart, Officemax, Petco and Safeway as the national stores. You can also order from Sears and JC Penneys, picking up from the small outlets or have it delivered. Amazon is your best online source as the free delivery option works here. UPS and FedEx deliver here daily, but everything arrives 2nd day air, at a high cost.
For the bad, housing is tight and expensive. Expect rents anywhere from $500-2,000+, depending on whether it's an apartment or house and the number of bedrooms. If you have pets, you just cut your availability to 25% of the already reduced market. Purchasing property will run you from $150,000 on up to $400,000+, depending on whether it's a condo or house. Again, there is a limited market, with nicer places having multiple offers. While Alaska Air has the best equipment and some of the best pilots, they are the only airline servicing Southeast. That means you pay to fly out. It costs $500-700 round trip just to get to Seattle.
My guess is the Sitka, facing open ocean, is more similar to Ketchikan for weather. I remember Homer being flatter than anything in Southeast. I haven't been to Kodiak, so I don't know much about it, other than many Coast Guard families liked being stationed there (although many retire in Juneau).
And are you sure you can get the specialized medical care in Homer & Kodiak? I would double check that.
Kenai/Soldotna/Sterling are not directly next to the mountains like Juneau or Kodiak are, but the there's a mountain range that runs down the Kenai Peninsula.
Kodiak sits on the northern edge of a temperate rain forest and the southern part of the island is heavily forested with Sitka Spruce trees.
But for really close mountains, medical access, surrounded by trees and snow in the winter, Juneau fits that. As mentioned, the challenge with Juneau is the housing. But if you can figure that out, Juneau may be the spot.
From my research, visit to AK, and reading your requirements. You will probably need to stick near a major AK city. Get ready to pay for that high speed internet service too. Most providers don't do 'unlimited' internet in AK. Not sure of your job or how much bandwidth you consume, but just food for thought... Make sure your intended address has high speed available too, don't assume because it is offered in the city or the area, you can get it...
I've research Juneau a lot - and assuming they can handle your medical issue IN Juneau and any complications, I think that would be a good area to research. Housing is tight, but talking with realtors there are times when a lot of housing becomes available. (like end of the legislative session).
Obviously, take the folks that live there recommendations more than mine...
OP, so you're moving to AK but you've never been there?
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