Living Secluded, Alone and Totally Isolated (Metlakatla: purchase, shop, license)

[blackzzz01]

Many thanks to all the contributors to this awesome thread. My hat is off to you rugged individualists who are absolutely real. Certainly a complete 360 to the 2 totally useless ongoing threads over on the 'Anchorage' side that for some unknown reason some people still seem to find so fascinating.

[pigeonhole]

I wouldn't like to do it the Into the Wild way, -and not in a cold country like Alaska, and not that far from Civilization, but however, living in a crowded, bustling big city, I find the idea alluring...

[Dusty Rhodes]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla

Yes, I did that once because of a hairdresser that had been under the influence of crack when she butchered my hair. It wasn't exactly nine months but I did stay secluded for quite some time until it grew out again. My friends would leave groceries and blueberry vodka for me on the porch and I bought a lot of stuff on e-bay to pass the time.

Poor Darlin', seems as if I remember you dis-cussin' this event.

[Dusty Rhodes]

Originally Posted by blackzzz01

Many thanks to all the contributors to this awesome thread. My hat is off to you rugged individualists who are absolutely real. Certainly a complete 360 to the 2 totally useless ongoing threads over on the 'Anchorage' side that for some unknown reason some people still seem to find so fascinating.

city folk

[SCGranny]

Wow. This is a great thread!

I know my limitations, so I would never even try to move to the Alaska wilderness. I admire very much those of you who do and have done it.

I am a very private person who got tired of all the Southern city BS and moved to the "wilds" of Nebraska, where the winters are not-Alaska but are occasionally tough, where we gather and chop our own firewood for the woodburning stove, and where the closest grocery store is 50 miles away, the closest interstate and/or WalMart is 150 miles away. Supply trips have to be planned several weeks in advance. We have a huge garden, pasture, and chickens, and will get cows for butter and cheese - going for a more self-sufficient lifestyle. But even in growing and canning and preserving and cooking, there are downfalls like late freezes, too much/no rain, here that can totally corrupt one's plans. Having fallbacks is nice - not having them can prove deadly in a wilderness. I have had several friends who slipped and fell on the ice here this past winter; imagine not having access to replacement hips or emergency transport to a facility to provide them; having to splint one's own broken bones and hope that they heal correctly - especially when one is dependent on one's own daily labor for survival.

A lot of people think that they could be hermits... but don't want to give up the occasional social outings and amenities completely. To them it is more of an "I vant to be alone!" than a lifestyle with a neverending challenge of fufilling basic needs with their own sweat and muscle. Even as little as we do now, our friends back east who thought they always wanted to be hermits, self-sufficient, and farmers, had to be told that if they came here it would be WORK, and no one would be available to wash their clothes and cook their meals and make sure that all of their comforts would be met. We told them that there was one restaurant in 50 miles, that served home-cooked meals and grass-fed Angus steaks - but no TGIFriday's, Applebee's, sushi bars, Chinese, Mexican, or Thai restaurants. Needless to say, they won't even visit. Self suffiency is not playtime or an extended vacation, and being alone for weeks at a time, trying to keep oneself 'entertained' is not an option - there's work to be done, from see to cain't see!

[MissingAll4Seasons]

If you want to live isolated, you can do it pretty much anywhere you are to greater or lesser degrees. I live in Seattle now, but rarely leave the house if I can help. If I must go outside to forage at the supermarket, I do it at 2am. When I lived in Anchorage off Tudor, the only people I saw for 6 months was the Carr's delivery guy and the Blockbuster deliver guy.

In a little over a month, my husband and I will be moving to our remote (end-of-road, not bush) Alaskan property. I'm looking forward to the real self-sufficient life even though it will be hard and kick my butt. I have absolutely no problem with not seeing anyone else for several months at a time... heck, I might even want to kick my husband out occasionally to go hunting or fishing just to have more quiet time to myself :P

If I want a restaurant meal for some reason, I can go into the village and eat at the Roadhouse. If I want something more exotic, I'll have to wait until one of our quarterly/seasonal trips into town when we stock up on other supplies. But, since my husband is with me, and a village with a clinic and airport is down the road, if there are any accidents and emergencies I'm not totally SOL.

[Alaskagrl]

I used to think I'd be fine with mainly myself for company; a couple friends of mine were encouraging me to buy property on an island off our island, but I recently realized that without at least a spouse, I'm not up for it. I need to be a little social on the weekends and also a priority for me is having some kind of gym facilities close. Of course, I could build a sauna and buy a weight bench I guess...but I think I'd get sick of myself after a bit! It's not the lifestyle I'd have a problem with; it's the lonlieness...as I age, I feel more connected to my friends and more in need of human interaction. Weird. But I'm OK living pretty remote...generally the more remote the better.

[Alaskapat528]

Originally Posted by Metlakatla
Yes, I did that once because of a hairdresser that had been under the influence of crack when she butchered my hair. It wasn't exactly nine months but I did stay secluded for quite some time until it grew out again. My friends would leave groceries and blueberry vodka for me on the porch and I bought a lot of stuff on e-bay to pass the time.


Met, that happened to me once by a woman who actually thought she was a hairdresser; she must have gotten her license at Wal Mart. So I went out and bought a nice wig; wore it for about 6-8 weeks until my hair got a length I could actually do something with. It was in the summer and hot and miserable. Why didn't you go out and get a wig rather then hole up which is also miserable.

[sbouch]

ever hear of a man called RICHARD PROENNEKE ? he lived in Alaska in the wilderness,alone,no neighbors,no pets,no electricity, no nothing except a supply plane about two or three times a year. he did this at the age of 51 and stayed for 30 some years. the first 6 months he built a cabin that was 11' x 15' and that was his home up until a year before he died. look it up. it is quite a story.he even made his own movie called ALONE IN THE WILDERNESS showing himself building his cabin from start to finish with only handtools that he packed in with him back in 1968.

[lyoness]

hmmm, maybe by the time I get there it won't be too late in life after all!