Has anyone lived here ?

Are things expensive there relative to Raleigh ?

How is the social life there ?

inquiring minds want to know....

3/12/2012 9:14:38 PM

Have not lived there myself, but plenty of friend have. Yes, it's expensive as shit over there. Social life, can't really answer, there is a decent amount of military there with Elemendorf-Richardson there.

3/12/2012 9:17:04 PM

Obligatory

3/12/2012 9:18:06 PM

you might get to see the Northern lights, so . . . . . .. . .


also

3/12/2012 9:40:05 PM

A gallon of milk is like $8.

3/12/2012 10:06:48 PM

Never lived there. Visited for a week once. Expensive as crap. Absolutely gorgeous though. My favorite place I've been.

3/12/2012 10:11:27 PM

doesn't the government "pay" people or give them stipends or something for living there? Thought I heard that from someone once.

And pretty much any sale you hear about from fast food to department stores all say not valid in Hawaii and Alaska so I assume things cost a bit more up there

[Edited on March 13, 2012 at 12:03 AM. Reason : .]

3/13/2012 12:02:31 AM

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alaska_Permanent_Fund

3/13/2012 12:06:07 AM

Go ahead and pick out your west coast gang on Alaska State Troopers. Fresh seafood will be more bountiful than citrus fruit.

3/13/2012 12:41:06 AM

how much would it take to live comfortably.

50K , 60k, 0r 70k ?

3/13/2012 7:08:51 AM

70k, i was up last year for 2 weeks, everything was ~30% more expensive

i'd live there if the opportunity arose though

3/13/2012 8:28:43 AM

Quote :

"Absolutely gorgeous though."

really? i mean maybe out in the "suburbs" if you can call them that, and of course anytime you venture out of a city in alaska its beautiful, but i thought that actual anchorage proper looked like a rust belt town. then again, last time i was there was in 06, so maybe they've fixed the place up.

3/13/2012 9:52:53 AM

You don't think this is gorgeous?





And yes, I'm including the areas surrounding downtown in that "gorgeous" comment. But, it's still Anchorage. If you're focusing on the buildings and not the scenery around you, you're doing it wrong.

3/13/2012 10:01:44 AM

I think there is a big difference between walking through downtown Anchorage, which felt run down and rust belt-y to me, and the surrounding area. Once you get outside of downtown proper, it starts to feel more like Alaska. Certainly the vista/backdrop is beautiful, but the actual city itself didn't seem all that great to me. Sure it's great to admire the views if you're there for a short time, but if you had to live there? I dunno...

3/13/2012 10:24:47 AM

the downtown market area is nice but the suburbs/housing are bleh, its cold and supplies are limited, not a lot of wealthy people make up the population either. All along the main highways are abandoned buildings/cars/trash etc. Kind of sad but the reality is the place is way to big for way too few people

3/13/2012 11:16:01 AM

The city of Anchorage is a shithole. You have hotels and restaurants that haven't been updated since the early 80's, "office parks" that look more like trailer parks, and enough Inuit homeless loitering around that you'll be reminiscing about the panhandlers on Hillsborough. And don't even get me started on the women. The surrounding area, as stated, is lovely. But the actual city is devoid of any redeemable qualities whatsoever. Like any metropolitan area, there a few nice areas, but I'd strong advise against moving there on a permanent basis.

3/13/2012 2:15:46 PM

that is much more commensurate with my Anchorage experience.

3/13/2012 2:22:16 PM

...so if Anchorage kinds sucks, where is good to go up there? How's Juneau? I feel like that's barely really Alaska, but it might be within striking distance for a weekend (or long weekend) with a jet from work.

8/26/2013 12:27:51 AM

Not much in Juneau, but I hear Ketchikan is nice. Very BC.

8/26/2013 12:33:15 AM

I wouldn't let the comments made in this thread deter you from setting up homebase in Anchorage if you're just going for a long weekend. Seems most of the feedback is directed to someone looking to move to Alaska. When I spent a summer in Anchorage years ago, I thought it was a perfectly fine city. Then again, I was rarely in the city itself. It's close enough to scenery and attractions.

8/26/2013 1:29:13 AM

I have a friend and a relative that live in Anchorage. I can confirm that it's expensive, which can be expected due to it's remote location. (Same with Hawaii). It costs more to transport goods there, so of course it will cost more to buy them there.

From what I hear, it can get kind of depressing in the winter. Not only do you have the snow and cold to deal with, but they only average about 7 hours of functional daylight per day during the winter, and as little as 5 hours in December. (Mid December Sunrise is around 10AM and sunset is around 3:30PM) It's not as bad as it is in northern Alaska, where they can got 2+ months in the dark, but still. Of course, with that being said, you get the benefit of longer days in the summer. So I guess it evens out if you can tough out the winter.

Other than that, all I can add is that both of the people I know that live there always comment on how beautiful it is. I never hear any complaints from them or comments that they want to move back to the lower 48, especially during the summer.

8/26/2013 9:51:11 AM

I would move to Alaska in a heartbeat. Went there for our honeymoon and it is by far the most incredible place I have ever been and we only saw a tiny part of the state. The winter would suck but there was just such a peaceful feeling out there and the scenery can't be beat.

8/26/2013 11:20:38 AM

I couldn't deal with the light cycles. Doesn't Alaska have a really high alcoholism/drug/suicide rate?

8/26/2013 11:31:53 AM

Although if you have a job that allows you to sleep in, it would be pretty sweet to have a 10AM sunrise.

But the 4:30AM Sunrise and 11:30PM Sunset in the Summer would suck for sleeping in.

[Edited on August 26, 2013 at 12:17 PM. Reason : a]

8/26/2013 11:59:14 AM

So Sarah Palin was governor of the state with the largest socialist fund for taxing natural resource proceeds in the country?

8/26/2013 12:18:42 PM

^^ it wasn't bad when we were there since places up there have shades that block most of the light. Was really nice when you are trying to find your cabin late at night and it is basically daytime out there. I heard that in the winter if you go out into the wild it is actually not that dark when the moon is out because it reflects off the snow.

8/26/2013 12:22:14 PM

Quote :

"Doesn't Alaska have a really high alcoholism/drug/suicide rate?"

Yeah, it was #1 or 2 last time I checked, which is pretty common among places which receive less daylight.

8/26/2013 2:40:27 PM

The natives is alaska are predisposed to alcoholism.

8/26/2013 2:42:07 PM

Statistics in Alaska are skewed though, because it has 2 totally different cultures. You have the "American City" culture that lives in areas like Anchorage and Juneau, then you have the "Native" culture that lives farther north in the Arctic areas. It's pretty damn hard to compare any state in the lower 48 statistically to a state like Alaska or Hawaii.

8/26/2013 2:49:12 PM

Anywhere you go that has to import majority/all of their product and is isolated from the lower 48...it is safe to assume it is expensive as fuck.

They do "pay" you do live there. Permanent fund dividend...its around 1200 bucks a year. You have to live there a calender year to be eligible.

[Edited on August 26, 2013 at 2:51 PM. Reason : and both my points have already been made. I didnt read prior to posting]

8/26/2013 2:50:18 PM

You can't see anything like that view above from downtown Anchorage. The city itself seemed like a mix of downtown Raleigh (lots of government buildings and slow gentrification) and somewhere like Morehead City.

I've been there in both the summer and the winter. The cold and the dreariness would wear on me I think over a long winter. The thing that struck me is that no one bothers to salt roads or sidewalks (or at least they weren't in 2011-12), so I felt like I was constantly about to fall on my ass the entire time I was there. Stuff is expensive. Some cool bars.

8/26/2013 7:20:53 PM

below a certain temperature, salt isn't going to do any good. it lowers the melting point of water by a few degrees, but if it's cold enough, it won't do anything.

8/26/2013 7:42:34 PM

http://www.hgtv.com/living-alaska/show/index.html

I've seen a few episodes of Living Alaska on HGTV, which I believe is a new show, some cool scenery out there, but it also looks like everyone is freezing all the time.

8/26/2013 8:22:53 PM

^^ This. From Nov.-Feb. in Anchorage, average high temps don't break 28 degrees and the lows are in the teens/single digits. Salt would just be a waste of money. And whatever the salt does melt will just re-freeze once the sun goes down. Pretty much all northern states in the US will stop using salt if High temps are predicted to be in the mid 20's for an extended period of time.

8/27/2013 10:48:50 AM

Is the pussy in alaska cold? or is it even warmer due to like opposites or some shit

I'm Krallum and I approved this message.

8/27/2013 10:50:59 AM

I don't know but I've been told,
Eskimo pussy is mighty cold.

[Edited on August 27, 2013 at 10:52 AM. Reason : a]

8/27/2013 10:52:32 AM

I agree about the salt. I went the first week of March and the highs were above freezing during the day, then would refreeze at night. Seemed like at least something could have helped, at least on the sidewalks.

8/27/2013 1:30:20 PM

Quote :

"^^ This. From Nov.-Feb. in Anchorage, average high temps don't break 28 degrees and the lows are in the teens/single digits. Salt would just be a waste of money. And whatever the salt does melt will just re-freeze once the sun goes down. Pretty much all northern states in the US will stop using salt if High temps are predicted to be in the mid 20's for an extended period of time."

that's why you throw chains on those tires and use 4wd

8/27/2013 2:06:30 PM

Quote :

"..so if Anchorage kinds sucks, where is good to go up there? How's Juneau? I feel like that's barely really Alaska, but it might be within striking distance for a weekend (or long weekend) with a jet from work."

If you can make it work you should check out Adak! It's got the largest airstrip of any of the Aleutian islands because it used to be an Army/Navy base. The base was downsized over time then completely abandoned in the late 90's. Pretty much the only people left are a handful of seasonal fish processing employees, otherwise it's a ghost town. It's not your typical beautiful vacation destination, but it's a really cool and surreal place to explore. Plus, it's one of the only places in the US where you can still step on a landmine while you're out hiking!

Other than that, anywhere in SE Alaska is going to be beautiful. Seward is pretty cool and it's close to Anchorage.

As for Anchorage, I've spent 3 non-consecutive months there for work. One each in spring, summer, and winter. As I'm sure you already assume, summer is wonderful and winter is brutal. There's a reasonable nightlife and some live music. If you're not into outdoor activities you're going to be missing out on one of the best reasons to live in Alaska. The people I know who live in Anchorage love it, but admit it's not for everyone. In the time I've spent there I can't say it's somewhere I'd like to settle, but I spend enough time in Alaska that all I really want is somewhere warm when I leave.

8/27/2013 6:40:18 PM

^^you wouldn't want to use chains when driving on packed snow. It's just a huge inconvenience. You would be surprised how good modern snow tires are.

8/28/2013 3:49:42 PM

Anyone been recently? I'm going to Alaska for 12 days in late May/early June next year and I've heard that Anchorage is basically good for about a half a day and that's about it.

8/18/2017 5:36:21 PM

went back in june. breakfast at the snow city cafe is top notch. we didn't do anything in anchorage but there were quite a few things to do with 1-2 hrs of driving. wildlife conservation center, float planes, iditarod hq, glacier cruises etc. anchorage was pretty much your average city with some incredible mountain scenery.

8/19/2017 9:42:52 AM

Bump. Leave for Juneau next Thursday, but kinda regretting spending 3 nights there before we get to Anchorage. Anything aside from the glacier we should be doing?

5/19/2018 12:59:46 AM

i think we'll be going on an Alaskan cruise next summer.

5/21/2018 8:33:49 AM

Went last year and the year before. The flying is awesome, if you can get to Talkeetna do a sight seeing flight to Danali. K2 https://www.flyk2.com/ seemed to be the best operator. There's a small skydiving place in Palmer that has some epic views if you've not done it elsewhere https://www.facebook.com/AlaskaSkydiveCenter/. The areas to the south of Alyeska are gorgeous, and there is a small zoo with some local wildlife and bears.

Some flying:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6z6fKtAuUhU

Some jumping:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DcOJUR8z-A0&feature=youtu.be

5/23/2018 9:32:20 AM

So it's almost been a month since I came back, but Alaska is still on my mind...

We spent 3 nights in Juneau, 3 in Anchorage, 2 in Seward, 1 in Talkeena, and 2 near Denali NP and it didn't feel like enough time. So far, I've been to 45 US states and more than two dozen countries, and I'd honestly rank Alaska up there with the most spectacular and scenic places I've been. If you're into nature/wildlife/mountains/adventure, it's one of those places that no matter how much you read about it or hear stories from others, you've really got to experience it yourself. I think one of the most underrated aspects of Alaska during the summer is the insane amount of daylight you get. Up by Denali, the sun only really dips beneath the horizon for like an hour around midnight, before it comes right back up again, and it truly never gets 'dark'. Anchorage is like 3.5 hours south, but when we were waiting for our flight to leave at 1:05 A.M, it still felt like 7 or 8PM around midnight. I'm not sure why this mattered to me so much, but it totally did. In this pleasantly weird/manic way, you just have so much energy throughout the day, which is what allowed us to cover so much ground without being tired. Anyway, here's a rundown of what we did/saw:

Juneau: I was worried that 3 nights here would be complete overkill, but surprisingly it wasn't. The downtown area where we stayed was just OK, but we rented a car and drove as far as you're actually able to go before the road 'ends'. It's cut off from the rest of the state because of the massive Juneau ice field, so you're kind of on an 'island'. We 'accidentally' hiked all the way to the Mendenhall glacier and actually walked on top of it by taking an unmaintained trail, and it was one of the top experiences we had. You can kayak there or hire a tour group, but the 4-5 hour hike was pretty fun, and like I said, we weren't even TRYING to get there; I just wanted to get closer to take some zoom shots with the DSLR and we wound up just hiking down to it. The Juneau locals are pretty weird and tell cool stories, so that was a plus too. Alaska Brewing has pretty mediocre beer, but it was still worth doing. All in all, I'd go back because there are so many awesome hiking trails around and the weather was actually pretty decent. It feels a lot more like Washington State or Oregon than Alaska, because it kind of mists all day instead of actually raining, but we were never cold or uncomfortable.

Anchorage: We flew from Juneau to Anchorage and it was pretty awesome to look out the window and see the topography of Alaska. I hadn't heard glowing reviews of Anchorage, so I wasn't expecting a whole lot, but I was wrong. Anchorage is more of a big town/sprawling suburb than a city, so if you can just accept that it's a place where people live, work, and shop and not a tourist destination, you can appreciate it for what it is: a great jumping point off into the rest of 'real' Alaska. If you were to just spend time in downtown Anchorage and not have a car to drive around the area, I can see why people think it's nothing special, or even dumpy. The downtown area has some good restaurants, but it's not exactly vibrant- there's a visible homeless population, and it just feels a bit old and run down. But when you drive around, it's impossible not to notice all the mountains surrounding the city, and they're really close. We hiked Flat Top and Rendezvous and the views were incredible. We were lucky to be able to see Denali and the entire Alaska range since the weather was clear, and getting up into the mountains took maybe 30 mins tops. Generally speaking, the food in Alaska is crap, but Anchorage had some decent options, and some great breweries. We liked Midnight Sun Brewing the most, but the Moose's Tooth was pretty good as well. All in all, Anchorage is the perfect place to begin and end a DIY/non-cruise Alaska trip. The airport is great, Anchorage is easy to get around, and it's not too far from amazing hiking. I could seriously see myself living there over places like Denver or SLC- at least during the summer time ONLY

Seward: The drive to Seward from Anchorage alone is one of the most scenic I've ever taken. You wind through mountains and down the coast, and we saw humpbacks leaping out of the water and white belugas by the sea, and bald eagles soaring through the air. The town of Seward itself, however, had a weird vibe to it that I couldn't really get past. Maybe it was the weather (COLD and cloudy/rainy), or maybe it was the sketchy people and odd restaurants/bars (AVOID: Seward Brewing). We stayed there because we wanted to do the Kenai Fjords NP tour, which had its pros and cons. The pros were definitely all the wildlife we saw right next to the boat: humpbacks that came within like 5 feet of the boat, pods of Orcas, puffins, seals and sea lions, etc. The glacier we went up to was just OK when compared to the Mendenhall, but watching it calve was neat. TBH, taking the 7+ hour tour with the "AYCE" salmon/prime rib buffet at the end, was way too long and the food sucked. A 4-5 hour tour for $100 would have probably been a lot more enjoyable than the $200+ we were on, since it seemed like it would never end. TL;DR: don't do the most expensive/long tour- most the wildlife we saw we just outside of the harbor anyway. Also, Exit Glacier, was kinda meh compared to the Mendenhall, but it was a quick hike, and you can see how much its retreated over the year.

Talkeetna- After we left Seward, we headed back up into the Interior, past Anchorage and Wasila. The drive up there was great, since you get to see the reverse of what you saw before, but then once you get past Anchorage/Wasila, your view becomes wooded forests and the Denali range in the distance. Of all the towns we saw, Talkeetna was probably the funkiest and coolest: it's kind of like Boulder CO and Berkeley surrounded by woods and with enormous mountains in the distance. Denali Brewing had great food, and so-so beer, but I'd go back since it had a cool vibe and made for interesting people watching. We stayed just outside the small downtown area in a B&B and saw moose from right outside our window, which made for some great photos. In hindsight, our biggest regret was not going flight seeing, since that's THE place to do it from. I didn't really look into prices and assumed it would be outrageously expensive, but short flights aren't THAT bad. Had we not wasted money on that damn Fjord cruise with the add-ons... Oh, well. NEXT trip, it's going to be a top priority.

Denali- I've been to the Andes and Alps, seen a good deal of the Rockies, Sierra Nevada, Tetons, etc, but Denali shits all over them. They say that only 1/3 of people who visit Denali NP actually get to see the mountain because it's usually covered in clouds, but I guess we got super lucky. Before we left Talkeetna, there were some pretty great vantage points of it and the Alaska range, but the closer you actually get, the more mind blowing it becomes. The view points in Denali State Park were pretty impressive before we actually visited the park, but once you actually get inside, you start to realize how massive it really is. We did the regular bus tour, which was fine. On our way to Eielson visitor center, we saw grizzlies (literally digging up grubs on the side of the road beside the bus where we stopped), caribou, Dall sheep, moose, etc. We didn't see any wolves, but that was pretty much all we DIDN'T see. Our bus driver was pretty awesome, and he told us to close our eyes before the 'big reveal' and when we finally go to a point where we could see the full view of the mountain, it was pretty much a religious experience for me. The mountain isn't actually visible from within the park, until you're like 50+ miles inside of it, so while the top of it peeks out from time to time, it wasn't until that moment that it hit me. Unfortunately, the road to Wonder Lake wasn't open yet (we went on 6/2, and I think they open it in mid June), but it didn't matter. We hiked a few trails from the Eielson visitor center and had lunch, just staring at the mountain for a few hours. On the way back, we saw more bears and wildlife, and then we headed to 49th State Brewing in Healy, which was by far the coolest brewery we saw, with the best beer. If you've seen Into the Wild, there's a replica of the bus from the movie. Definitely worth checking out.

Sorry for the long post, but I think anyone who's ever thought about going to Alaska should just fucking do it. My biggest regret is not going to Alaska sooner, because I assumed it would be too expensive (it's definitely expensive, but not compared to lots of other places like Scandinavia, Singapore, HK, Hawaii, most of CA, etc), or too much trouble to get around and explore (the roads were great, gas wasn't too expensive, and we booked our rental car early, so that was fairly cheap). I am really glad we decided NOT to take a cruise, because while I'm sure you will see a lot of amazing wildlife and glaciers, you're missing out on the chance to go and do whatever you want. The thing about Alaska is that you can easily see how much the glaciers have already retreated, so they're not going to be around forever, so you might as well see them while you've got the chance, along with the insane amount of wildlife that might not be around either. And whatever you do, try to make it to Denali on a clear day- you'll never be able to forget it...

6/27/2018 11:41:08 AM

^I was so epically pissed that the primary way to access and experience (especially if you get way into the legit parts of the park) Denali was by a "tour bus." Waiting in line with a bunch of 70 year olds my anger only grew. It seemed like the antithesis of what is probably one of the "wildest" parks in North America.

Then I actually went on the bus. I think after the 5th Grizzly sighting (which didn't take long), and even some of the vistas before Eielson, my anger gave way to amazement. By the time we reached Eielson my mind was pretty much blown and I was high-fiving those old folks every time Denali showed herself from behind the clouds. Simply an amazing place.

6/28/2018 9:56:45 AM

I, too, was irritated that the only way to get into the real parts of the park was by sharing a school bus with strangers, but we did meet some locals from Anchorage that were pretty cool and told us some interesting stories about what it's like living in Alaska and making good use of such great access to the outdoors. Apparently the park allows 400 cars or something to drive all over the entire park for a brief period September, but you have to win some type of lottery to get a permit. Generally speaking, I don't like to be around other people in National Parks, but given the logistics and sheer size of the park, having to take the bus makes total sense. I've seen some absolutely idiotic behavior at other NPs (Hello, Yellowstone), and I can only imagine how many people would meet an early death if the didn't have the current system in place.

6/29/2018 11:59:35 AM