So, CO and WY sent me here...

[stiffnecked]

I'd say most major cities in Alaska are modern, with flush toliets and everything.

[Wynternight]

Originally Posted by CybrSlydr

I'd love to - but I'm getting out of the Army (involuntary) due to disability - left ankle fracture, so high impact activities like running are no longer an option for me. Else that's exactly what I'd do.

On Google it seems like Juneau and Anchorage are exactly what I'm looking for - amazing climate, just about the right size, etc. How "modern" are these cities? How to define Modern... lol What about cleanliness?

Heya Cybr. you can't rehab and rest the ankle for a year or two then get back into low impact stuff before working back to high impact activities?

If low cost of living is a must on your list of needs then Alaska will be tough for you.

[CybrSlydr]

Originally Posted by stiffnecked

I'd say most major cities in Alaska are modern, with flush toliets and everything.

Bwahahha - when the only thing you had for a toilet was the tire of the truck you were on patrol with, even portajohns are acceptable.

Heya Cybr. you can't rehab and rest the ankle for a year or two then get back into low impact stuff before working back to high impact activities?

If low cost of living is a must on your list of needs then Alaska will be tough for you.

The issue is that the joint space between my foot and tibia is significantly smaller than it should be due to the repairs they had to make. I'm told that were I to get into high-impact activities like distance running and the like, the joint would only last a few years before it pounded its-self into pieces. This happened on 18 July 2011, so I'm very near the one-year mark right now.

Low cost of living is a plus, but if job wages are high enough to compensate, then that's no issue. I don't need a lot - a 1 BR/1 BA apartment with enough room for a bed, computer and some clothes is all I really need. Good cell coverage, high-speed internet and moderately priced fuel (I hear lots of places up there use fuel oil - a completely foreign concept to me and the car I drive requires premium 91 or better) is what I mean.

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by CybrSlydr

Low cost of living is a plus, but if job wages are high enough to compensate, then that's no issue. I don't need a lot - a 1 BR/1 BA apartment with enough room for a bed, computer and some clothes is all I really need. Good cell coverage, high-speed internet and moderately priced fuel (I hear lots of places up there use fuel oil - a completely foreign concept to me and the car I drive requires premium 91 or better) is what I mean.

If you want low cost-of-living, pick any other State besides Alaska. Alaska has the highest cost-of-living in the nation. The price of paradise does not come cheap.

If you want to avoid hot and humid areas of the country, live within 25 miles of any coast. It may get hot in some places, but it will not be humid. Since you prefer mountainous States with large cities and a relatively low cost-of-living, I would seriously consider Colorado, western Wyoming, or western Montana. Of course none of those places are near a coast, so expect humid summers.

If you are looking for a federal job with the National Parks Service, US Forest Service, or BLM Rangers, they take your personal preferences into consideration, but like the military they determine your duty assignment.

Considering your criteria, somewhere near Juneau or Anchorage would meet your requirements. Both are on the coast, not humid, have lots of mountains, and the amenities that you are accustom. However, neither Juneau or Anchorage has a low cost-of-living. Juneau, while having the lowest unemployment in the State, the overwhelming majority of the work is for the State. Anchorage, being the biggest city in Alaska, is the best bet for obtaining a job.

As far as technology and amenities are concerned, Anchorage and Juneau may be a decade or so behind the lower-48, but everyone still has everything you would expect from a modern city. Juneau, however, could not be considered a city. By lower-48 standards Juneau is a small town with a population of 31,275 in both the town and the borough, according to the 2010 US Census. Anchorage has a population of 380,821, including the borough.

[CybrSlydr]

Originally Posted by Glitch

If you want low cost-of-living, pick any other State besides Alaska. Alaska has the highest cost-of-living in the nation. The price of paradise does not come cheap.

If you want to avoid hot and humid areas of the country, live within 25 miles of any coast. It may get hot in some places, but it will not be humid. Since you prefer mountainous States with large cities and a relatively low cost-of-living, I would seriously consider Colorado, western Wyoming, or western Montana. Of course none of those places are near a coast, so expect humid summers.

If you are looking for a federal job with the National Parks Service, US Forest Service, or BLM Rangers, they take your personal preferences into consideration, but like the military they determine your duty assignment.

Considering your criteria, somewhere near Juneau or Anchorage would meet your requirements. Both are on the coast, not humid, have lots of mountains, and the amenities that you are accustom. However, neither Juneau or Anchorage has a low cost-of-living. Juneau, while having the lowest unemployment in the State, the overwhelming majority of the work is for the State. Anchorage, being the biggest city in Alaska, is the best bet for obtaining a job.

As far as technology and amenities are concerned, Anchorage and Juneau may be a decade or so behind the lower-48, but everyone still has everything you would expect from a modern city. Juneau, however, could not be considered a city. By lower-48 standards Juneau is a small town with a population of 31,275 in both the town and the borough, according to the 2010 US Census. Anchorage has a population of 380,821, including the borough.

That's funny - to me, a city is anything over 10,000 people. Lol When home is less than 1,000, something 10x that is huge.

[AlaskaNana]

Originally Posted by AKStafford

There's several areas that would fit your desire for cold, close but not too close to metro area and mountains... The Kenai Peninsula, the Mat Su Valley and near Fairbanks are the most likely.
Jobs depending on your skill and experience.
Is it possible to do a week trip up here and take a look around?

Shhhhh, trying to keep the Kenai Penn a secret.

[Arushan]

Originally Posted by Glitch

If you want low cost-of-living, pick any other State besides Alaska. Alaska has the highest cost-of-living in the nation. The price of paradise does not come cheap.

If you want to avoid hot and humid areas of the country, live within 25 miles of any coast. It may get hot in some places, but it will not be humid. Since you prefer mountainous States with large cities and a relatively low cost-of-living, I would seriously consider Colorado, western Wyoming, or western Montana. Of course none of those places are near a coast, so expect humid summers.

If you are looking for a federal job with the National Parks Service, US Forest Service, or BLM Rangers, they take your personal preferences into consideration, but like the military they determine your duty assignment.

Considering your criteria, somewhere near Juneau or Anchorage would meet your requirements. Both are on the coast, not humid, have lots of mountains, and the amenities that you are accustom. However, neither Juneau or Anchorage has a low cost-of-living. Juneau, while having the lowest unemployment in the State, the overwhelming majority of the work is for the State. Anchorage, being the biggest city in Alaska, is the best bet for obtaining a job.

As far as technology and amenities are concerned, Anchorage and Juneau may be a decade or so behind the lower-48, but everyone still has everything you would expect from a modern city. Juneau, however, could not be considered a city. By lower-48 standards Juneau is a small town with a population of 31,275 in both the town and the borough, according to the 2010 US Census. Anchorage has a population of 380,821, including the borough.

Those states are never humid at all. The humidity is pretty much strictly only found in the Eastern half of the continent. Except for maybe areas of AZ during monsoons and the very high humidity that you only feel in the form of a damp chill in the Pacific Northwest.

I think many places meet the OP's criteria.

[CybrSlydr]

I'm talking with the people over on the CO forums as well as WY. Seems like WY might be a bit too remote while CO is pretty expensive as well. It sounds like I might not really have a choice on CoL if I'm wanting cool mountainous regions. I'm also talking to the Pittsburgh folks as I have family around Pittsburgh. Though family being there is a 0% factor - I'd probably not see them much anyway as I'm pretty independent.

Honestly... The weather and scenery is currently the biggest selling point on AK for me - I REALLY like your guys weather!!! lol

[Glitch]

Originally Posted by CybrSlydr

I'm talking with the people over on the CO forums as well as WY. Seems like WY might be a bit too remote while CO is pretty expensive as well. It sounds like I might not really have a choice on CoL if I'm wanting cool mountainous regions. I'm also talking to the Pittsburgh folks as I have family around Pittsburgh. Though family being there is a 0% factor - I'd probably not see them much anyway as I'm pretty independent.

Honestly... The weather and scenery is currently the biggest selling point on AK for me - I REALLY like your guys weather!!! lol

Alaska is a very big State and has lots of different weather patterns. For example, if you live in Kodiak, Seward, Whittier, Valdez, Cordova, or anywhere in the southeastern panhandle, you can expect a great deal of precipitation. South of Cordova and that precipitation is mostly in the form of rain. The Tongass National Forest is considered a temperate rain forest. From Cordova north, you can expect most of that precipitation in the form of snow. North of Cordova the forest changes from a temperate rain forest, with lots of firs, to a boreal forest with very few firs and mostly spruce and birch, and is a lot less dense.

South central Alaska gets much less precipitation than the southeast, but it is regularly cloudy over the Kenai Peninsula and the Mat-Su Valley. It is also colder during the winter than south of Cordova.

Interior Alaska has the most sunny days. They get about the same precipitation as south central Alaska, but unlike south central Alaska where it mostly drizzles, it really rains in the Interior. So you can get rain in the morning, and it will be sunny and nice the rest of the day. More often than not, it will be overcast all day long in south central Alaska. The Interior is where the vast majority of the thunderstorms and lightening strikes occur, and by extension the bulk of the forest fires. The Interior is also where the hottest temperatures are to be found during the summer, and the coldest weather during the winter.

Western, eastern, and northern Alaska also have very different weather patterns. Living near the coast will help mitigate both the summer and winter temperatures. Summers will be cooler and winters will be warmer.