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I went to Alaska in May '10 to "make money" and have had mixed results fishing. This last boat I was on did a lot of "fixing" and not a lot of fishing. That had a positive unintended consequence .
Yup, thiis happens a lot there, lol.....The fishing industry there is horrible for now, even guys whom have been doing it forever have trouble getting on boats. But I heard the factory trawlers are picking up when I was last there they were getting layed off. Good luck on search in ND.
Thank you OP for taking the time to provide first hand info. Some of my younger family members are considering trying for jobs in ND. I'd appreciate some answers, please -
1. Williston is the town covered on the news, but is it the only boom town choice for the $20 & + hr jobs?
2. Housing -
A. What are folks doing once they get there? Are there hotels to stay in or are those full too? I'm thinking several can room together in a hotel until a place to live is found.
B. What about close towns such as Epping, Springbrook, etc. Is there housing there?
3. Cost of living - what can they expect for housing & food costs?
4. Do the blue collar jobs operate all winter, or shut down? Don't want to be without a job once get there!
5. Vehicle - we live in Indiana, so we are familiar with cold weather. However, obviously not as cold as ND. Do your vehicles need "special" equipment to operate during the coldest nites & days - such as, special batteries, battery warmers, engine warmers, etc.
6. Is there one central number to call for available jobs/companies info?
Thanks for your help. I'd like to get as much info as possible so they will make an informed decision.
Obviously if you search the forum they will find the answers but I believe the intention of the OP was to create a thread that answered all the common questions repeatedly asked in other threads. Like a one stop question spot. International man- all you ever do is tell people to search the forums. How bout a little help here guy- i search and search and sometimes 40 threads will come up in response to my search and the first 25 will have nothing to do with what im looking for....just a little thought
Being new on this site I am really trying to get a feel should I take the leap of faith and come to North Dakota or not. I really appreciate the feedback that appears from others. I think most people just want a job and get honest assessments of the area and conditions. Thanks everybody!!!
My life in Kodiak and some of my work has prepared me for what to expect in ND. I sleep in a hammock in the woods year round, live out of a backpack that was barely w/i airport limits, walk everywhere I go, have worked 16 hr days on the Bering Sea for 26 consecutive days w/ crappy sleep, have not showered (but smelled amazingly fresh) for longer, have worked 12 hour days in the cannery for longer, have been in my hammock for snow squalls w/ 15 degree weather & 60 mph winds, worked in -30 degree freezers for several hours, and more.
I'm left with a few questions about everyday/winter living in Williston (or any other nearby "oil town"):
Looking at weather.com I got a good idea of the average monthly temperatures along with the records for each month. When it's windy what exactly does that mean? It blows pretty hard here in Alaska, 50+ mph winds are not uncommon in Kodiak during the winter. But, they aren't an everyday occurrence either. I see that the record in Feb. is -50 w/ the average low @ 7. During an "average" winter how often does it reach -15, -20, -25, etc.? A few times? Often? Is it usually blowing hard at these temps?
One of the benefits of Kodiak life is that I do not need a car. Since my purpose is to make $ to pay down my CC's I only view it as an added expense. Of course having one would make life so much easier but is it possible/practical to walk or bike to work in "oil towns"? Let's say I was a trucker...other jobs? (i.e. walking/cycling one-way for ~30 minutes, winter cycling doesn't bother me)
Yikes. I can only go off this past winter which I've been told is one of the worst they've had. We had a solid couple weeks minimum where the high was in the -20's. I think what made it worse was the snow, apparently while it does snow up here it's not too bad. I'm from Utah, so it didn't really bug me, but apparently there was a lot of snow for this winter.
It can get windy, but it's not severe and it's not daily. If you've ever to been Wyoming - it's not like that.
I realize you've been living in Alaska outside without a car or anything similar for awhile... but that's not something I feel at all comfortable recommending up here. I know gets just as cold, but I just don't think it's safe. I REALLY do not think cycling in the winter (or even walking) is safe up here. It's not that you can't do it, it's the semi traffic that would concern me. The area is absolutely overrun with semi traffic, one small slip up on your bike, feet, or from a truck and you're a goner. A lot of semi drivers up here have no patience. People have already been killed because of semi's failing to yield to oncoming traffic, it's a daily occurrence to get cut off in this town in a car by a semi. I'm terrified for my life driving, I couldn't imagine walking or cycling anywhere here.
BTW - I'm not saying all semi drivers are awful up here. Just that there are a lot of really bad ones.
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Leads into another question rather easily regarding housing. I know vegetation is more sparse in ND but are there any trees in the area? Like two w/i 14 ft of each other? This is where I am in Kodiak.
There might be. The problem you're going to face is that any area you do find like that will likely be on state property, whether it's a state park, wildlife management area, corps land, etc. There's a lot of state/federal property in this area and they do keep track of people living on the land and will kick you off it. Because it's an oil boom, everyone knows who owns what. While they're might be "boonies", the property owners have become very conscious of what's happening on their property. It's going to be a lot harder for you to pull something like that off up here because people will probably notice and they probably won't let you stick it out.
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Any of these areas happen to be out in the "boonies"? In Kodiak no one knows where I'm staying. I like it that way, I don't have to worry about my stuff and I'm only a 5 minute walk from "downtown."
Is it possible to erect a temporary structure in a secluded area? (i.e. fold-up plywood shelter) I guess anything is possible. Just curious how long you think it'll be up before the police knock on my "door."
Here in AK (some areas, not Kodiak) there are outlets outside for engine block heaters. Is this something that is in ND as well?
I addressed the boonies comment, you're not going to be able to pull that off for long up here before someone finds you.
In the local news yesterday there was an actual story of a guy getting 2 days in jail for plugging in a space heater at the Raymond Center. He was even a member (he paid for a monthly pass), yet the police arrested him and he now has a misdemeanor over it. (Most locals do not support this, btw.) Before you plug anything into an outlet outside I would check that it's OK with the building owner.
Part of the problem up here that you're going to run into is that you're probably the 4,000th person to come up here with a similar plan and some people have just lost their patience/tolerance with the situation. It's unfortunate, but it's also easy to understand their frustration as they've seen their home basically get turned upside down.
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Is there any kind of public transportation from Williston to other oil communities? I'm going to take a stab at "no" due to the population levels but I'm curious.
Read a lot about Walmart being understocked/sold out of "food." It is a good reference point as just about anyone knows Walmart... but there must be other stores... Stop-n-Shop, Shaws, the local grocer. Same thing across all stores to the same degree?
Frozen pizza, canned and other prepared foods the first to go (hopefully) but veggies, fruits, plain oatmeal and SlimFast stick around? I'm use to shopping on an almost day-by-day basis.
We have 3 grocery stores - WalMart, Albertson's and Economart. If WalMart is out of what you need (which is very common) you can usually find it at Albertson's or Economart, but it will be more expensive.
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From what I've been reading it sounds like this may not be feasible... true?
Does the post office accept mail sent to general delivery?
I'm not sure. I do know that they are constantly running out of PO Boxes. You can go in and ask about general delivery or even try calling. Be warned, though, the post office is like everywhere else. It's overloaded and the line is usually twisting through the building.
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Thank you all very much for your help. If any answers you prefer to keep "secret" (i.e. secluded spots) feel free to send me a PM.
No problem! If you have any more questions feel free to ask!
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