Moving to King Salmon~ (Anchorage, Naknek: where to stay, for sale, apartments)

[aviationhero]

Morning People!

My Fiance got a call last night and was offered a good job in King Salmon, AK. It's a place that we've always wanted to go so we're very excited about it. I have an 8 yr old son that will be moving up there with us and his 8 yr old son will be coming just to visit. Anyway, I've been trying to do a search for apartments or anything that we can live in and am coming up empty!
Can anyone point me in the right direction to find us an affordable place to stay? And what is considered affordable for up there? We're in small town Alabama so I'm expecting it to be different -
TIA!
Christina

[jjbradleynyc]

Hmm, I was looking over topics on this site, and came across "King Salmon" and was surprised someone was talking about it! I was there a couple of times in 1995! My best friend and I went to Alaska to work on a salmon processing boat. It was just for about 8 weeks in the summer. Anyway, I just saw the tiny airstrip and several ramshackle "shacks" and cabins. I'm not sure of the population, but I'd bet it's under 5,000 people for sure. It's super remote! I remember the plane ride from Anchorage to King Salmon being around 2 hours or so (maybe slightly more or less--can't exactly recall). The terrain was somewhat flat but very green, since we went in the summer. It was drizzling and overcast. Tons of pine trees and small bushes. Definitely grizzly bear country. Sorry I couldn't help you with housing, but I'd recommend taking a look at craigslist, and if you come up short there, see if they have a chamber of commerce for King Salmon town. Best of luck.

[missyM]

Definitely call the employer and ask. I'm not aware of any apartment buildings up that way. Some employers have temp housing, i.e. fish processors, other housing is permanent residents. The new employer should be able to put you in touch w/ a rental owner or someone who has a place for sale. Good luck.

[jameswaggoner]

Hello, my name is James Waggoner. I have been in college for only one year now but to pay for it, I had to work full time... not good. ha I was doing poorly in school and poorly at my job (spreading myself thin.) Well, I have had a few friends that have gone fishing in bristol bay. If I did that, it could completely pay for my next year of college... so i am pretty determined to do so. I do not currently have a job lined up, but i bought my plane ticket already with hopes of landing a job. I arrive on the 11th (about a week before the boats go out) and for that time, i will have nowhere to stay. I am 19 years old, very clean and respectful, and in need of a place to stay. A garage or shed or something would be more than great. So if anyone knows of someone who might be interested, please get back to me. Thank you!
-James Waggoner

[Rance]

james you'll most likely find fishing work in Naknek. You'll land in King Salmon and have to get a ride to Naknek. The local canneries may pick you up if no boats do. Good luck with that. Getting yourself out there will say alot about yor determination and can work in your favor. Just don't think your gonna walk right into a fishing job tho. It's a very remote location and most captains will fly out there with crew in tow or have crew lined up before they go.

[jameswaggoner]

thanks for the tips Rance. So when I arrive in king salmon, do you think it will be tough to find someone to give me a ride to naknek?

[Rance]

Nope. Just start down the road and thumb it. Might be a good start at finding work. Or a cab if they have them. But I'm sure the first truck to go by you will at least stop and let you ride in the back. I can't remember the distance from KS to Naknek. 5 or 10 miles. I haven't been there since 1986 myself.

[jameswaggoner]

Great. thanks again!

[RayinAK]

Originally Posted by aviationhero

Morning People!

My Fiance got a call last night and was offered a good job in King Salmon, AK. It's a place that we've always wanted to go so we're very excited about it. I have an 8 yr old son that will be moving up there with us and his 8 yr old son will be coming just to visit. Anyway, I've been trying to do a search for apartments or anything that we can live in and am coming up empty!
Can anyone point me in the right direction to find us an affordable place to stay? And what is considered affordable for up there? We're in small town Alabama so I'm expecting it to be different -
TIA!
Christina

Well, all I can tell you about King Salmon is that you may want to ask yourself the reason why your fiance got such a good job and not one of the locals. In other words, make sure that that the new job will be good enough to cover the higher cost of living. Other than that, maybe you can get an idea about King Salmon by searching on the Internet, but hopefully somebody from King Salmon can chime in. It's also possible that your fiance really landed a good job.

I found this site you may want to look at:
Alaska.com | Other cities & towns
Moderator cut: link to a competitors site removed

[Rachel_EC]

Christina - I just happened upon this site as I was trying to find out more about Katmai. Yes, I am considering moving up there, too and wondered how you made out. Are you still in Ozark, AL or did you make it to King Salmon. I'm in Birmingham, AL right now - - - holler back either way - - - Rachel