Moving from Missouri to Akiak, Ak (Anchorage, Bethel: sales, how much, new home)

[momofmany926]

My husband just recently got a job in Akiak, Alaska, so we are making the move from Missouri this summer, leaving July 20th and checking into Anchorage on the 2nd of August. We are really excited about the move, but nervous as well. Besides myself and my husband, we have 5 children that are moving with us (my two oldest boys are staying in Missouri where they have friends and jobs), plus a yorkshire terrier, a spoiled cat, and an African Grey Parrot. Does anyone know approximately what the cost of flying from Bethel (the hub city) to Akiak would be and how that would work with our animals? Also any tips on what we must have and what we can leave behind would be helpful. The teacher housing is fully furnished so they already told us to leave behind our furniture. Would also love any additional information on Akiak we can get if anyone is from around the area.

[warptman]

Akiak is one of the smallest villages on the Kuskokwim. They do have a fairly new school that opened a few years ago. There is a small store there, most of the people shop here in Bethel. They come down by boat in the summer or fly down. In winter they drive their trucks or snowmachines down here.

You have a few choices to fly there, ERA Alaska, Grant Air, Yute Air, or a few charter companies here. Depending on what type of load going there, you'll either fly in a Cessna Grand Caravan or what they call a "sled" here, a Cessna 207.

I have a lot of good friends up there and you should have no worries on living there. Yupiit School District takes good care of the teachers. Lately there has been a lot of turnover in all the small schools. Don't go trying to change people to how you live there. Bring an open mind and have fun!

[bortstc37]

i know a teacher who tried teaching in the yupiit district last year. didn't make it halfway, even.

wartpman's advice is the best: go in open-minded and don't try changing things. it can be a great time if you let it, you'll just have to start by doing lots of listening. every village is different and you'll be made aware of the way things are. having family with you is a huge plus as long as everyone is on the same page and you're all happy to be there. however, i wouldn't hold out much hope for your cat. you'll have to keep it mostly indoors if you want it to survive. there are no cats in my village, and there are many reasons for that.

if you need advice, i'm also a teacher in a village, and can (to a limited extent) answer some questions you might have about making a good transition (but remember: every village is different, and a lot of people who speak of "the bush" as a horrible place don't understand this). i hope your husband and kids like to fish...

[Marty Van Diest]

Whoa. That's a switch. I remember when I was in 7th grade on the Yukon, we had a teacher from North Carolina named Zeb... He actually did alright but he was completely out of his element.

Just keep a real open mind. I don't know Akiak at all. If it's a real small school they might have looked favorably at your 5 kids. More kids helps keep the school open.

I remember a school up by Glenallen a few years back. All the students were kids of the teachers, so they were a self-perpetuating school. They closed that school when the state found out. There was no community there and no reason to have a school.

[momofmany926]

Our cat is strictly indoors, she is never allowed outside (she has no claws). Why do you say don't hold out much hope for her? If it is extremely dangerous for her, then we may have to find her a new home, as I don't want anything bad happening, but we manage to not let her out here, so I can't imagine we would have any special problems. We are definitely going into this with an open mind, ready for the adventure, and it was a family decision, we are anxious of course, it is a whole new way of living, but we are a very adaptable family. We are interested in knowing as much as we can about the Yupiik People (hope that is correct). We are not going to change anyone or anything, but are ready to adapt our way of living to theirs and are very much looking forward to the cultural experience. We love fishing.. but have never fished for anything more then bass and crappie.. so Salmon and Pike fishing is completely foreign to us, don't even know what kind of tackle we need for it LOL! I would love having someone to bounce questions off of as they come up.. right now we are trying to gauge how much to bring and how much to leave behind, as well as different costs, such as a place in Anchorage to store our vehicles and the few items of furniture I just can't part with yet (namely my brand new king size memory foam bed).

[warptman]

Don't leave your vehicles at Dimond parking on International, they charge way too much. International Self Storage charges $50 a month for outside parking. I used to keep my truck here but now I leave it with my uncle.

Tackle? I use the most universal Alaska spoon for fishing, the Pixie! This hook catches just about anything!

You will be coming here when the Silver Salmon start hitting the Kuskokwim, a lot of people from Akiak head down the river a little ways and fish.

Next time your husband talks to the School District, have him tell them Joe Joe said hi...Everyone knows me in Akiak, or should...lol

[warptman]

Here is a crappy picture of Akiak a few years ago, I was taking pictures for the Alaska State Troopers checking on ice conditions.

[momofmany926]

I will tell him to pass on the greeting! Thanks you Joe for the information on the parking, do you know what a garage type storage place would charge? We are driving up in our Chevy Malibu and the U-haul truck will be towing our Mazda MPV. Thank you for the photo of Akiak, there aren't a lot of photos online of the village. How bad is Canadian Customs when you are crossing over by car?

[bortstc37]

just have passports ready and everything in order. they'll probably go through your trailer.

honestly, i wouldn't bother with bringing two vehicles. you'll hardly use one as it is, and it'll be sitting in anchorage 9 months of the year.

when it comes to groceries, here is your lifesaver:
Span Alaska Sales - Shipping Groceries World Wide Since 1972
buy staples in bulk from there during the school year. make your bread from scratch, etc.
get as much local meat as you can, whether it's hunting/fishing yourself (be cautious about hunting, some locals might not be too keen on it, but fishing would probably be okay) or getting it from locals who hunt and fish. buying meat at the local store or having it shipped frozen can be very expensive (you'll end up paying a minimum of $5 per pound).
you should definitely do a big shopping trip in anchorage before moving out. also, wait until you're in alaska to ship things to the village- it's a lot cheaper to mail things in-state. buy rubbermaid totes (pretty cheap at fred meyer), fill them, and secure them with zip ties. hopefully the district is giving you a lot of this information already!

i was looking up photos on panoramio (a good site for this kind of thing), and this was the only one i found:


so rubbermaid totes will also be good for storage in case of another flood!

[bortstc37]

also, this is a good link for finding photos:
Alaska Division of Community and Regional Affairs