Whelp, the bride and bosslady has swung over into the “okay” column regarding moving to Alaska. Although she hasn’t previously been to the Final Frontier, Momma Navy sent me there before to south central (on ship) and the Delta Junction regions for work efforts.

We are actively discussing heading up that way for the next chapter at the end of this summer. In complete transparency, We are not new to “Hair Brained” and have lived on boats and/or overseas for almost 20 years to include some more remote locations like Romania and the island of Kauai. We are retired, in good health, mid 50s and no kids…following my retirement from Italy, have been renting an apartment in Maine for a couple of years…so no anchors in the lower 48.

Quite frankly, looking for something a bit more grand and challenging than what we have found to date and we have been discussing/researching and virtually exploring for a month or so. Not a lot to move, see living on sailboat and 30 year navy career, so we are thinking Upod from uhaul and drive our truck from Maine to Seattle for shipping to Anchorage. We would drive the northern route thru Badlands, Yellowstone, etc and fly from Seattle. Bride not as interested in ALCAN option…so Air Alaska it will likely be!

Ultimately would like to find something on Kenai Peninsula a couple of acres but are initially planning to rent in the Anchorage Matsu areas as fail safe and adjustment to location…albeit 3-4 hours away from ultimate, hopeful, destination.

Any thoughts and suggestions from the trust greatly appreciated.

Godspeed and Good Hunting, Always

There are several members here who live/lived in Alaska, and I'm sure they'll be along shortly.

Something to consider is that a couple of remote acres may seem enticing at 55, but will it be as enticing at 65 or 70? Most folks would rather be somewhere with less effort required and closer to better medical care at that age, which isn't that far off. (Not to mention somewhere warmer...) So you might consider looking at Alaska short term to enjoy it and get it out of your system, and start thinking what the next step from there might be in 5-10 years.

Also remember that cost of living is significantly higher in Alaska. Most folks nearing retirement are looking to move to low COL areas, not the opposite.

Just some food for thought.

I applaud your gumption!

I’m also glad you’ll be renting first and I would suggest spending the winter there before buying anything so you know full well what it’s like.

There are a couple members here who live there and would be better able to fill you in…

quote:

Originally posted by RogueJSK:
There are several members here who live/lived in Alaska, and I'm sure they'll be along shortly.

Something to consider is that a couple of remote acres may seem enticing at 55, but will it be as enticing at 65 or 70? Most folks would rather be somewhere with less effort required and closer to better medical care at that age, which isn't that far off. (Not to mention somewhere warmer...) So you might consider looking at Alaska short term to enjoy it and get it out of your system, and start thinking what the next step from there might be in 5-10 years.

Also remember that cost of living is significantly higher in Alaska. Most folks nearing retirement are looking to move to low COL areas, not the opposite.

Just some food for thought.

Rogue,

Great input and much appreciated. I am aware of our Alaska vets and hoping they are able to add to the insights of their previous informative threads! Regarding, Cost of Living that is the biggest concern. Fortunately, the bosslady is the CFO and much better with numbers than I…I guess there was a reason I never received an allowance and took a brown bag to lunch every day!

Ironically, I grew up in your neck of the woods…Harrison High School Class of ‘89. In my misspent youth, spent just a few weekends floating the Buffalo or hiking/hunting in the Ozarks…might have had some influence on this next chapter. Thanks again!

Godspeed and Good Hunting, Always

I sailed into and around an Alaska a lot. It's one of the most beautiful states for sure, but I don't think I'd want to live there for too long. Like Rogue, I'd be thinking about the "next" stage of slowing down age. As he said, get it out of your system and enjoy the vastness for this chapter.

As long as you're able to pack up and leave Alaska like you packed up to get there, no issues.

Most of the people I know who lived in Alaska were from somewhere else.
Most of the people I know who lived in Alaska, now live somewhere else.

Kinda echoing what others are saying, I knew a guy who was an Alaska native. He had a business in Fairbanks, was a pilot and had an airplane. I met him in Arizona. He said, “Alaska is a young man’s state.” I don’t believe he was much older than 55 when I met him.

If you are serious, rent for a year before you sell your house and make moves that are hard to reverse.

My parents did that before moving to Florida to make sure that they could take the heat.

I spent 23 years there. It is not for everyone, those who recommended renting for a couple years are spot on. You may like it, but women have a different outlook about the weather and daylight vs darkness. Best wishes no matter what. Alaska was good to me, it is truly a special place.

Sunlight can be rare during certain times of the year.

At approx. 1000 hrs December 24, 1973 arrived Ft. Greeley / Delta Junction after driving up the Alcan Hwy...Snow/ice/cold (below -0 (below zero) temperatures....... Both myself and wife were active duty US Army on PCS re assignment...Spent 4 winters there and 2 more winters in Fairbanks..... My job was Outside Cold Weather Testing ... Coldest temp that I experienced was -82*F (-127* F chill factor)...... As others before have suggested to rent and spend a full winter before the decesion to make a permanent move... Learned real quick that people either loved it and did not want to leave or they hated it and could not wait for the operatunity to get out and leave for warmer climates ... Yes i agree that Alaska is better suited for younger people.....And yes on the long periods of darkness during the winter months (cabin fever) or long periods of daylight during the summer months (having to put tin foil on bedroom windows to fool the personal body clock that it was time to go to bed/sleep)..... Would love to go back but at the age of 76yrs old probably will not happen. ....... Back then our law enforcement was a State Trooper and his dipatcher was his wife ... And was basically it for almost 100 mile radius.. Great officer.. When travelers came thru asking for Smokey Reports we would tell them to slow down and behave themselves and we would contact the troopers if they actually needed a trooper..................................... drill sgt.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: drill sgt,

Maybe hare-brained, rather than hair brained.

Winter (lack of) light, and distance from anything are the main reasons people decide they can’t make it up here.

This winter in Anchorage wasn’t too bad, mainly because it was warm off and on, and had little snow.

The two previous years each had record snow, and -everyone- was tired of frickin shoveling and snow blowing.

If you’re used to seeing family easily, you won’t be doing that. It’s a half day of travel and an expensive flight, then renting cars and maybe hotels/ABnb.

If you want something not in Anchorage, it isn’t in the state. You’ll have to fly out.

And yes, it’s expensive.

What is it that you're looking for in Alaska? Coastal and interior Alaska are very different from one another and offer very different things. And then there's southeast which is a whole other level of different.

For retirement, at least there's no state income tax or sales tax. That said some buroughs (we don't have counties) have sales tax. Property taxes can be ridiculous especially in Anchorage. My small 1,500 sqft house is over $600/month in taxes and our idiotic city council keeps finding ways to increase them.

The Kenai peninsula is 2 very different places between summer and winter. Summertime the population explodes with everyone wanting to get on the rivers and lakes for fishing. Soldotna is about the only good sized town on the peninsula. It may be worth looking there for your first season of renting, it's not the metropolitan area of Anchorage or the Matsu. At least it has a Fred Meyer and a McDonald's.

Anchorage is more or less the, "Center" of Alaska as far as economy, cultural stuff, transportation and shopping. Like I said, property taxes suck. Rents are expensive and parts are downright seedy. We've got a homeless problem that the city council refuses to effectively deal with. There are some nice areas of town like south Anchorage, hillside, Earthquake Park and Eagle River (where I live). There are also some shitholes like midtown, downtown, Mountain View and Fairview. It is easy to get out of with the airport being here. The road system also leads south to Kenai, north to Denali and Fairbanks and east to the interior. It's a good area as an introduction toAlaska since you can get out and see other areas of the state from here.

The Matsu offers a lot of the same things as Anchorage without some of the negatives. That said, I despise Wasilla and cuss up a storm every single time I have to drive through it and the never ending series of stoplights that take forever to get across town. It's also known as the meth capital of Alaska. If I was going to live in the Matsu, I definitely look at Palmer, lot more of a small town feel to it. That and the Palmer Ale House absolutely rocks.

Seward is a cool town on the south end of the peninsula, but you are at the end of the road. Half of the businesses there close for the winter. Resurrection Bay is amazing and there's a lot of marine recreation and fishing. The hardware store is an institution, everything from 10 penny nails, to firearms and fishing tackle. And they have a resident ermine to keep the mice population down.

Homer is a very cool town at the end of the peninsula. Bigger than Seward but also further at the end of the road. Probably best salt water fishing in the state especially halibut. But like Seward, the population explodes in summer and most recreation is focused on being out on the water.

Let me know if you have questions and I'll try to answer.

Or another option is to put the car on the ferry in Bellingham, WA and ride up. You'll probably have to get off in Haines and then drive into the rest of Alaska from there. Due to budget cuts, the ferry system is not currently sailing across the Gulf of Alaska to Whittier.

I've been up there twice in the last two years, but never in the winter. My son is looking at an Internship in Kenai next March, and a possible move afterwards.

I love it there, and if I could afford to make a living of it I'd move there in a heartbeat. The biggest obstacles for me are:

1. It's expensive. Like stupid expensive. And unless they're looking to hire cops from the lower 48, which I doubt, or an IT guy who's been out of that game for 10 years, I don't have many other marketable experience.

2. Cold, dark winters. Wouldn't really bother me, but my wife would absolutely hate it. Happy wife, happy life.

3. From what I saw of the locals, they're good people but probably not really quick to embrace outsiders, at least not compared to the midwest. Again, I could handle that, but my wife would hate it.

If my son does move up there, though, I'll at least have an excuse to visit, and a place to stay when I do!

If you can afford it, which it sounds like you can, I say go for it! It would be a really fun place to spend your early retirement years while you're still able to physically manage it, and if you eventually need to move back south there's no reason you couldn't do that when the time comes. You only get to live once...might as well make the most of it!

92fstech:
1. Everyone is looking for cops. State troopers, Anchorage, are always hiring. Desperately. IT isn’t much different, but pay is sometimes not commensurate with Outside. IT techs up here like Alaska, because anyone good that wanted only higher pay already moved. Companies know you want to be in Alaska, so pay hasn’t risen as it has in some hot economies in the L48. Good places to check are gov, hospitals, telcos. Anchorage (city gov) always needs IT.

2. Yes it’s dark, and yes that is a major reason lots leave. The other big reason is distance from anywhere, and everyone. It takes $1000-2000 airfare and extra days to see relatives and friends.

3. Villages are definitely not accepting. But Anchorage and most of South-Central is. We’re all (mostly) from somewhere else, so in my experience are very welcoming. I’ve had holiday dinners with more friends than blood relatives. I like to say we choose our families, and end up with better families.

Doing the cop thing up there could be fun. I just turned 40, though, which could be a problem for some retirement plans. I have no desire to be a trooper and write traffic tickets all day, or be a number at a big metro PD, though...I'm more of a small town guy. I really liked Valdez and could see working there or someplace like it. It's definitely pretty far from everything else, but that's a big part of the appeal.

I'm not unhappy where I'm at, my wife really wouldn't like it, and it's not worth living with a miserable woman or getting divorced lol. Honestly the biggest appeal of moving to AK for me is the recreational opportunities, and I imagine if I was up there working full-time I wouldn't have as much time to do that stuff as I'd like anyway...or be able to afford it. Now retiring and moving there like the OP is thinking of doing...that would be about perfect.

Probably the best case scenario would be my son moving up there so I could go visit a couple of weeks per year. We have had pretty good luck finding cheap flights out of Chicago if you're willing to go during off-season.

Everyone likes doing different things, totally understand and fine with that. I myself don’t feel drawn to a condo in FL for retirement, but I always like going there.

I myself do like it there, been round a fair amount, but never lived there. I have also been up in the ‘off season’ a handful of times.

There are ways to sample without jumping in with both feet. You could do a long term rental without buying or moving everything up there. You would have so many areas to explore and check out being there a good while.

So many, especially those not born there, live a number of years then end up back in the lower 48.

I was once prairie dogging in South Dakota, the ranch was about 15 miles back on various gravel roads. I told him the world could end and you’d hardly notice it living back there. One can kinda live the lifestyle, without committing to full time AK living.

Even if you did end up wanting to make the move, you could get a much better feel for location by living there a while before buying property. If I had only the choice of Maine or AK, I’d pick living in Alaska.

All, thanks for the advice and thoughts! For most, the idea might sound outlandish and more than a touch difficult or unconventional; truth in advertising that is precisely what we have been doing for our entire adult lives. I acknowledge Uncle Sam’s safety net was never far away but even that comes with its own cost—as many of you know! Regarding weather and logistics…loved Romania, but winter with winds coming off the Russian Steppes is no picnic and services can be very limited in Eastern Europe. We have been monitoring closely from here in Maine and honestly not drastically different when you scrutinize.

2000Z-71,

Doc — old habits die hard — sincerely appreciate offer of continued comms. I couldn’t locate your public facing email in your profile. I will avail myself of your experience as we solidify plans and send bell ringer, sepcor, when have inquiries worth your time! Again, thank you for your thoughts and insight!

Keep it coming all!

Godspeed and Good Hunting, Always