Looking to move to Wasilla, AK from Florida (Anchorage, Fairbanks: real estate, lease)

[GnomadAK]

Originally Posted by Haolejohn

Ammo is allowed. Even pistols can come through but there is some restrictions on it. "Assault" rifles aren't allowed.

I think the ammo limit is 500 or 5000 rounds. It's quite a bit.

Since when can you get pistols through, unless you are particpating in an event?

Also, if you do take guns through, make sure you stop and get a receipt for them on the US side of the border. We had no trouble getting through Canada but got into a bit of a mess on the US side as we couldn'y prove we didn't acquire them while in Canada. Kind of a mess for a bit.

[Aspire1959]

Coming for a visit 8/29_9/3....formal in-person interview. Checking a number of rentals via Trulia website. Hoping to move in September. Can someone give me an idea of how many days travel by car? Not towing anything, want to be pretty aggressive driving 10-12 hours a day. Probably shipping one container via Mayflower or competitor. Does anyone have experience with such? Can I pack a gun and ammo in the container? Haven't asked them, yet. Don't want to do anything illegal.

[riceme]

That's a long drive... like, >75 hours, not counting sleeps, etc.

No professional moving company I have ever dealt with has ever been willing to transport firearms, nor would I have trusted them to. I'm sure they exist, but not going through Canada. My opinion is that it would be best to ship them up via FFL or Alaska Airlines, depending on how many you have.

Other things that have posed a problem for me with professional movers in the past is ammo, drums of oil and/or other fluids, any and all chemicals, solvents, lubricants, Loctite, aerosols... basically anything that in a can, a drum, a bottle that you store in your garage or shop.

Some movers are more persnickety than others, and some are better than others. Allied managed to break and / or seriously damage every single piece of antique family heirloom furniture I owned, which was quite a bit. Since it had "no market value," they sent an antique repair guy to my house to try to repair all the damage. He was a really nice guy. He looked at me sadly and said, "You know there is no way to actually fix any of this, right? I can try to cover up the damage, but it can never be repaired." Yeah, I knew. There was also about $10k of tools "missing." Another moving company (Global? I forget) delivered one of my pickups to me with the back and driver's side windows broken out (like, gone. Not cracked) and all the doors unlocked, although I'm sure that didn't matter anymore since the windows were gone!

If I am ever offered another relo package, I'll cash it out.

[AKStafford]

Originally Posted by Aspire1959

Checking a number of rentals via Trulia website.

Other rental resources: Property Management for the Manatuska Valley | Rent In The Valley Wasilla Alaska or Search Rentals - Page 1

[45XD]

Good morning all...

For transporting firearms through Canada- contact the RCMP and their Border Patrol; they will help you out- were very friendly every step of the way. You can move rifles and shotguns through Canada- have your paperwork filled out in advance- you can get the forms online- and they will issue you an Authorization to Transport (ATT) form to go through Canada. Show that to the US Border Patrol when crossing back into AK and you should be fine. Guns must be locked, bolts removed, etc... (anything that makes it difficult to quickly bring them into action) and must be kept out of sight. Keep that ATT on you and if you are stopped for anything you need to show it to the RCMP. The ATT is good as you cross provinces in CA.

I cannot speak to AR's or AK's. Pistols are almost all prohibited, but there are some exceptions (based on barrel length and a few other things). You can transport ammo and the limit is 5000 rounds per person who will use it (i.e. 10000 is ok for husband/wife). Again, there are some restrictions so look those two agencies up online and read the regs. Bows and arrows are ok, but I think they have restrictions on crossbows. Do your homework in advance and you will be fine. They will question you- so if you aren't bringing handguns, be prepared to speak to what you did with them- but may not require a search of your vehicle or trailer. I think they are pretty used to Americans crossing through to go up to AK, so it isn't as big an issue as it seems on the face of it. Oh, there is a $25 charge for the ATT (CA dollars).

At the border they will also ask you about alcohol and tobacco, fyi.

It IS pricey to move up here. We looked at a variety of ways to do it (ship all of our stuff and fly, take a ferry out of WA, U-Haul, etc...). We ultimately decided to purchase a trailer and move everything we could ourselves. U-Haul was almost as expensive as buying a trailer- our quotes from U-Haul were in the $6-8K range. Of course there are 6 of us and we would have been using their biggest truck and towing a vehicle- and the first U-Haul quotes were based on a 5-day drive from CO. Which would have meant 5 days each driving 11 or 12 hours- that's just drive time, not including stops. Of course that is do-able, but we were not about to try it. 5 consecutive 12 hour days with the kids? That would have required sedating them. So we wanted more time, which drove the cost of the U-Haul up; of course your cost will be different as you have much farther to go (FL versus CO). Nice thing about the trailer though- you spend the $ and then you have it to keep or can turn around and resell. If you can resell for close to what you paid for it, you have come out ahead of renting a vehicle. Of course, a trailer depends on you having a vehicle that can pull it...

I agree with what many have said here- sell the furniture and big items and move only the personal items, clothing, electronics, kitchen/dishes... you know, smaller stuff that is more easily packed and transported. We filled a 20 foot trailer with our belongings- almost none of it furniture. Things are generally more expensive up here, but you can find good deals on craigslist, etc... to replace them. We've already purchased 2 couches, tables/chairs, a desk, etc... and didn't break $1K until we got a treadmill. But then we weren't forced to buy a coffee maker, dishes, computers, etc... and all that adds up really fast.

One other thing- the Al-Can has some really deserted stretches. I would recommend getting a Delorme InReach or a FindMeSpot or something like that in the event you have a breakdown on the road somewhere. You could even rent a Satellite Phone (Iridium) for the trip. It's a lot of peace of mind knowing that- as long as you have a GPS signal- you can call for help where there is no cell service. And there is no cell service for a lot of that drive. Again, do your homework on this

[riceme]

45XD, I agree with most, if not, all of your points. I was addressing professional movers, since the OP mentioned Mayflower, which is a moving company.

Good point regarding comms on the AlCan. I very highly recommend a AAA Plus or Premier membership, which (I believe) first requires 90-days of a standard AAA membership.

With regular AAA, you can only get towed 4 miles. So, you can get towed from BFE, Middle of the Yukon to four deeper into BFE, Middle of the Yukon. AAA Plus offers four 100-mile tows, AAA Premier offers one 200-mile tow and three 100-mile tows (one tow per mechanical breakdown).

AAA Plus Membership

Also, I recommend hauling fuel. I forget what kind of vehicle OP has, but I drove up in a 4-cyl Tacoma and was very careful about keeping my tank full. I hauled 20-gal and used 5... Almost had to use ten. Who knew there was such a thing as "Canadian Thanksgiving"?? Not me. Speaking of which, look up Canadian holidays before you leave, because their fuel stations, etc. will close early or just be closed on those days. I pulled into Iskut to fuel up at 4:01 PM (1 minute after close) on their Thanksgiving and they would not let me get fuel. There was about 30 people in the back, so it was a little frustrating.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thanksgiving_(Canada)

What else?

- Maps. Paper maps.
- Money. Paper money.
- Call your bank/s and credit card company/ies and tell them where you will be (what states + Canada) on what days so you have a snowball's chance in hell that they won't shut off your card/s.
- Tools, all fluids, flashlight/s, cold weather gear for everyone in the vehicle.
- Keep water in the cab of the vehicle so it doesn't freeze. I know you're hoping to move in September, but those dates usually get pushed, and October will be chilly.

I'm out of ideas for the moment.

[AlaskaErik]

Originally Posted by Aspire1959

Coming for a visit 8/29_9/3....formal in-person interview. Checking a number of rentals via Trulia website. Hoping to move in September. Can someone give me an idea of how many days travel by car? Not towing anything, want to be pretty aggressive driving 10-12 hours a day. Probably shipping one container via Mayflower or competitor. Does anyone have experience with such? Can I pack a gun and ammo in the container? Haven't asked them, yet. Don't want to do anything illegal.

What are you looking for in a house? You may also want to consider buying. The house down the street is renting for $200+ more a month than my house payment. And it's the same size, only older.

[Music_Man]

Get yourself a Milepost!

[Arktikos]

Originally Posted by Aspire1959

..Can someone give me an idea of how many days travel by car?.

I would allow at least 5 days from Seattle, though you could conceivably do it in less.

Two weeks, maybe? It'd be a shame to rush through what may be a once in a lifetime opportunity.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by GnomadAK

Since when can you get pistols through, unless you are particpating in an event?

Also, if you do take guns through, make sure you stop and get a receipt for them on the US side of the border. We had no trouble getting through Canada but got into a bit of a mess on the US side as we couldn'y prove we didn't acquire them while in Canada. Kind of a mess for a bit.

Sorry for the delay. Handguns with at least 4" barrels can be considered restricted and with the proper paperwork and permission can be transported through Canada. It is a separate form from the regular firearm form and costs $50. I'd personally not take a chance with my Glock 20, since it could be considered an "assault" type weapon.