Possible move to Forks, WA in 5 years or so (Olympia: low crime, employment)

[kmbjbb]

Originally Posted by west seattle gal

Multiple family medical issues and a son who needs work...Forks is isolated, and I can't imagine very many jobs being there. Personally, I found the area depressing to drive through. I agree with others, another place in Western WA would make more sense.

We have decided to not go there.

Mods - can we please lock this as it is no longer relevant?

[kikikans]

Can I ask why you are waiting five years to move? I am just curious. If we were able we would have been there years ago. lol We are military and subjects to the needs of the Air Force ( I was Navy and it was still hard to get orders there). I am from Texas originally and have been stationed on the East coast for the last decade. It's ok but my allergies are destroying my health. It seems worse each year. It was terrible in Texas a decade ago as there was never any relief. At least here the summer seems better for me. I visited WA a couple of years ago when my health issues started. We went on vacation shortly after I had a hospital stay for respiratory issues and I never felt so good! I love the look and feel of WA but man the way I feel while there is amazing. It was also the first time my eldest has been on a plane and not gotten a cold or something afterward from the circulated air! I brought a whole medicine cabinet just in case and nothing! For the first time ever! I would love to move there. I have friends in Bremerton and Poulsbo and both are lovely. Though I have a soft spot for Poulsbo. It is so charming, like a cross between small town America and a European or Scandinavian village. I think I left a bit of my heart there. I am praying that we get orders there some day. We would be more toward Tacoma because of the base but later we would possibly move out there. Anyway, I am happy you decided against Forks. We drove out because we were near it (by Texas standards) and it was so sad. The people seemed nice but other than that there wasn't much there. I did live La Push. The Beauty of First Beach and Second Beach are unparalleled. What are you children's plans for the future? College or a specific line of work? I hope it all works out and that you are still following this thread.

[kmbjbb]

We are having to wait until MIL is no longer living. We are estimating 5 years and her doctors don't think it will be that long. We will be moving 4 or 5 depending on if my mother is still living. I do not work and am on disability. Hubby will be working for a few more years. Son will be working (he's 18 now) and daughter is learning disabled so we will find something for her (she's 19).

No college in the plans and they are done with school. Son may go for a GED. (long story) The move in that direction is mainly due to needing a specific range in temperatures and climate. We did find that Forks was not a good fit, so we are planning on Sequim.

[kikikans]

No I understand if I could live in WA I would too. The climate is one major reason as in the last two years I have come up with some nutty health issues. I am quite shocked that I am dealing with that. So your children will be going with you? I know it can be hard to plan your life around the needs of others but it is wonderful that you are doing it. I hope it all works out. I am praying to at least get orders northwest coast even if it in N. Cali. But wow, I'd be over the moon for WA. It's nice to have plenty of time to plan a big move. Oddly enough our next stop is either FL or back to VA. sigh I'd take FL just for the experience and it would only be 12 months so if I wasn't enjoying it we'd be off again.

[almondding]

Originally Posted by sean98125

I don't think people understand what it means when they say that it rains a lot in Forks.

It rains.

A lot.

During fall, winter and spring the rain is relentless, anywhere from 10 to 16 inches of rain per month. Even in the summer, when Seattle is bone dry for 40 or 50 days, Forks is still seeing a couple of inches of rain per month. And it isn't a light spring rain. It's heavy. It's dark, even more so because we get so few hours of daylight in the winter but the sun never really gets through the low clouds. These aren't the cool thunderheads or puffy clouds of the Midwest. These clouds form a uniform, featureless blanket of gray that hangs over you like a shroud for most of the year.

And it's cold. The average temperature in December and January is in the 40s, which sounds balmy when looking from other places. It's a wet, damp, bone-chilling cold. The rain seeps past your rain gear and soaks you. It's the kind of cold that is hard to get out of your bones.

But, hey, go for it. Worst that can happen is that you don't like it and you wind up putting your house up for sale and it sits there for a year or two on the market because no one wants to move there.

Sounds like Nirvana!!!! (Seriously - we LOOOOOOVE that weather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Is THAT the reason everyone says Forks is depressing??
Or is it "ghetto-ish" - ie unsafe?
As far as just weather that is PERFECT!
Is there ANY other place (SMALL town/rural - like Forks) that has that weather but is safe?
(unless the safety is not the issue...?)
(lack of employment & lack of amenities are non issues for us)
Thank you

[Dendrite]

Originally Posted by almondding

Sounds like Nirvana!!!! (Seriously - we LOOOOOOVE that weather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Is THAT the reason everyone says Forks is depressing??
Or is it "ghetto-ish" - ie unsafe?
As far as just weather that is PERFECT!
Is there ANY other place (SMALL town/rural - like Forks) that has that weather but is safe?
(unless the safety is not the issue...?)
(lack of employment & lack of amenities are non issues for us)
Thank you

I don't think "everyone" says Forks is depressing, it's just that many people who ask about Forks on this forum do so with preconceived (false) notions of what living in Forks is like. The reality is that a lot of people moving to Forks from elsewhere would very likely find it "depressing" for a myriad of reasons: significant amounts of gray, dreary and cold wet weather; a depressed economy with limited to zero employment opportunities; a remote, somewhat isolated geographic location with a lack of services and amenities; as well as a population of townspeople who tend, for the most part, to keep to themselves rather than welcoming newcomers with open arms.

Those of us who live in the area and post regarding Forks are simply trying to paint an accurate picture of life there.

Don't confuse "standoff-ish" locals with "unsafe". Crime rates in Forks are generally low and no worse than any other small town in the region.

Any other small towns with similar weather? Sure, I think that many towns in SE Alaska have weather patterns, lifestyle, etc. that are very similar to Forks.

[mkarch]

Originally Posted by almondding

Sounds like Nirvana!!!! (Seriously - we LOOOOOOVE that weather!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!)
Is THAT the reason everyone says Forks is depressing??
Or is it "ghetto-ish" - ie unsafe?
As far as just weather that is PERFECT!
Is there ANY other place (SMALL town/rural - like Forks) that has that weather but is safe?
(unless the safety is not the issue...?)
(lack of employment & lack of amenities are non issues for us)
Thank you

What is it you plan to do with your time while it's dark and pouring down rain?

I drove through there a few weeks ago on my way to the coast and it's kind of a dump. It almost makes Aberdeen look nice. Lots of trailer parks with rotten old homes scattered along the highway, and it's not very scenic compared to other parts of the peninsula. The road out there is fun to drive in the day when it's dry. However aside from a seasonal lodge at Lake Crescent it's 50 miles of remote wilderness to Port Angeles and most of the area doesn't even have phone reception.

[almondding]

Well living on/near the highway wouldn't be nice...! A nice house on a little land on the outskirts would be more like it! The pictures in google maps don't look particularly "trashy" - but what's up with the houses of the "vampires"?? (shown in google maps) If they didn't even film that thing there then how do they know...???
Secluded, dreary, stand-offish - sounds good to us! As long as it's safe then it's just a matter of taste.
Some like sun...
Oh - yes - Ketchikan is another place we thought sounded WONDERFUL! - but it's very expensive and no land...
- not that Forks seems very full of acreage, but more so than Ketchikan - everything there is on the water...
Yes we're "odd" - we LOVE rain but don't particularly like water! (as in large bodies of it for scenery - drinking it is good... )

[Olympian2]

Originally Posted by kmbjbb

My family and I are thinking about moving up there sometime around 2018 or so.

As someone who has spent some time in Forks, don't do it.

The novelty of hearing gunfire from the shooting range while loading groceries at the Thriftway wears off quickly.

While they have made some improvements at the new Bogachiel clinic, anything involving a specialist will just get you referred to Port Angeles.

There are actually wetter places to live than Forks, but why?

The comment about Forks making Aberdeen look good was spot on. Forks also makes Hoquiam look nice.

Look into the west side Olympia.

[Olympian2]

Oh, sorry if anyone from Forks was offended by the comparison to Aberdeen and Hoquiam. The first time that I visited Forks, WA, my initial impression was that it reminded of Alaskan village of sorts.

Forks is having fun with the "Twilight" thing, and it is injecting badly needed money into their economy. But since the original poster mentioned health problems and an apparent retirement to Forks, well, there was a considerable shortage of physicians during the few years that my PCP was there. Unless things have changed, the hospital has no MRI. A portable MRI van shows up once per month from Virginia Mason in Seattle. (I later showed my copy of my portable MRI CD to a big city surgeon who referred to it in his notes as "blurry and low resolution", so he ordered another one.) The last time that I called the Bogachiel clinic seeking an ENT, I was told that the doctor traveled from Port Angeles to Forks once per month to see patients. It was then suggested that I look elsewhere for treatment. "Good luck!" she said.