Anybody from Anchorage?

[RSKennan]

If all goes well, I'll be moving to Anchorage sometime around April. My family currently lives in Hartford, Connecticut, so anything would be a step up. I've been scouring the internet for information on the area, and it seems great to me, but some of you guys have gotten me worried...

What's wrong with Anchorage?

Is it just boring?

I heard there were neo-nazi's moving into the area, is this a huge problem?

Is it just that there's "nothing to do" up there? (I'm happy just staying at home, or going hiking/camping.)

I'm moving my family to Alaska for the natural beauty and a simpler life than is possible here in "the insurance capitol of the world"; is Anchorage dirty, littered or otherwise decrepit?

Cold, Shmold. I'm not about to move to the interior just yet, but I lived in Buffalo, New York (another area known for cold and snow) as a kid. The Great long nights and cold winters are part of the allure for me, as my idea of hell would be a tropical island. I worked on a fishing boat in Massachussetts that went out in cold as low as 29 degrees, with no maximum wind chill.

Sorry for all of the questions, but any answers are greatly appreciated, since this is a big move for my family.

 

[roytheodd]

My girlfriend lived there for six or seven years (moved away about three years ago) and she's a gamer. That's the best I got for you, even though it's not really what you were looking for.

 

[Jasperak]

I would gladly switch places with anyone in AK. I spent 4 years up in Fairbanks and loved it. Once the wife earns her PharmD we may move back (Fairbanks or Anchorage). I did not get to spend much time in Anchorage, but the time I did have I loved. Boscoe's is one cool store. So is the one comic shop in Fairbanks, although I cannot remember its name.

I hate the armpit of America here in DC. This place bites. I hate the wet cold. Hated it when I was younger (grew up in Northeastern PA) and despise it even more now. I would gladly take the 50+ degrees colder in AK. Alas though the lowest I think it got in Fairbanks was around -54 degrees for me while I was there. I won't talk about Delta Junction though.

 

[Seravin]

I like Anchorage

I've lived in Alaska my whole life and I have yet to find anyplace I want to live more.
Alaska is a place you either hate or love. I know more then a few people who came up here on a whim or on vacation and never left. I know about the same number who can't wait to leave

As for the questions:
There's nothing 'wrong' with Anchorage. At ~300,000 people it supports a variety of stores (including my FLGS), theaters, and restraunts. Nightlife is really only okay by big city standards, but you don't move to Anchorage for the bar scene, anymore then you'd move to DC for moutain climbing. That said, most Alaskan's think that Anchorage is a great suburb of Seattle and only 15 minutes away from the real Alaska.

I wouldn't call Anchorage boring. Again, the nightlife is okay if you're into that. In the summertime I can be hiking within 20 minutes from my house - and there's some truly spectacular places less then an hour away. During the winter I spend most of my time hanging out with friends.
Can't forget the hunting and fishing either.

Neo-nazi's? News to me. That said, it's a heavily conservative state and there's probably more guns per household then there are children. There's a lot of hunting/fishing going on up here and a definite sense of self-reliance.

Is Anchorage dirty/littered/decrepit?
Not really, but there are times. After seven+ months of winter litter will accumulate. When the snow is gone it can be pretty ugly for a week or two. But there's a couple programs where people get out and pick up trash during the spring.
That said, spring isn't all that nice around here either. Most of the season is spent waiting for the snow and ice to go away.
We also have our bad parts of town - as far as that goes. Having inadvertantly walked through a bad part of Cleveland, I'm less impressed with our urban decay. However I wouldn't necessarily want to live on the north end of Anchorage without doing a lot of research before buying/renting there.
Finally, Anchorage is in bowl, shaped by the mountains and water. When it's really cold, exhaust can hang down over the city. It looks grungy, but usually goes away pretty quickly.

However, I've watch the sun circle the horizon at 2am on a sunny evening during summer solstice.
Just last week I saw the northern lights wavering across the sky while driving home.
I've watched a moose eat a friend's flower garden and have seen them back up traffic while they leisurely cross the highway.
I've woken up with it so cold, everything was covered in frost - even the trees looked like they were made of ice crystals.
While hiking on a trail about 20 minutes from town I've had to be aware of bears wandering the area.
I like it here.

Tips for moving.
Make sure everyone you bring understands cold. I routinely suggest that people spend a week up here in January before deciding to move up here. Plenty of places in the lower 48 can get colder then Anchorage - few places get darker. Around winter solstice the sun comes up just after 10am and will set around 3:00pm. I remember a whole week one year where I never saw the sun. Some people can't handle it. It's all temporary though. After solstice we keep gaining more light until summer solstice, where the sun never really quite dips all the way below the horizon. Then we start to lose light again.

Make sure you understand the seasons. Summer is only three months, and it starts to get cold in the fall. We ususally have a first snowfall by early October and permenent snowfall by Halloween - this year is an anomoly. Snow doesn't start to go away until late April at the earliest, and I've seen snow fall in late May. Late January/Eary February is where the coldest temperature falls. -20 isn't unheard of, although 0 to -10 is more common.

It's all cyclical in a druidic sort of way.

I've left things out, but this post is already way too long.

 

[Kesh]

If all goes well, I'll be moving to Anchorage sometime around April. My family currently lives in Hartford, Connecticut, so anything would be a step up. I've been scouring the internet for information on the area, and it seems great to me, but some of you guys have gotten me worried...

What's wrong with Anchorage?

Is it just boring?

Nah. The biggest problem with Anchorage is the clouds. 7 days a week, clouds. Sometimes 8.

Oh, and you have to get used to earthquakes. Lots of little ones, the occasional big one. We had a 7.9 last week... house shook for a full minute & a half.

I heard there were neo-nazi's moving into the area, is this a huge problem?

I haven't heard anything like that. We've got our share of troublemakers, but overall it's a pretty quiet town. Just stay out of Wasilla if you want to avoid the marijuana market.

Is it just that there's "nothing to do" up there? (I'm happy just staying at home, or going hiking/camping.)

I'm moving my family to Alaska for the natural beauty and a simpler life than is possible here in "the insurance capitol of the world"; is Anchorage dirty, littered or otherwise decrepit?

I think you'll be quite happy then. Anchorage is the cleanest city I've ever seen. From what I understand, it was a dump about 10 years ago, but new regulations cleaned the town up. It's nearly spotless now.

As for stuff to do, there's plenty of clubs, bars, movie theaters, hockey, concerts, etc. Gaming is a bit tougher to find, but there are comic shops and game shops scattered throughout town.

For nature, there's bike trails and hiking trails leading out of the city. And if you drive about half-an-hour to Eagle River, there's a nice section of national parks you can visit and hike through. If you take the three-day trail, you can hike right up to one of the glaciers. I plan on doing that in the summer.

Just be sure to carry a good gun if you do take that trail. A bear can ruin your day. Oh, and get used to moose... in the city limits.

Cold, Shmold. I'm not about to move to the interior just yet, but I lived in Buffalo, New York (another area known for cold and snow) as a kid. The Great long nights and cold winters are part of the allure for me, as my idea of hell would be a tropical island. I worked on a fishing boat in Massachussetts that went out in cold as low as 29 degrees, with no maximum wind chill.

Sorry for all of the questions, but any answers are greatly appreciated, since this is a big move for my family.

Oh, it's no trouble. Glad I could help. Feel free to ask anything you want.

 

[Gumby]

Wandering Bard summed everything up quite eloquently. There's a couple other Anchorageites on this board - Immort, who you'll usually find haunting the Story Hour and Rules boards, and our friend Matt, who mostly lurks (to such an extent that I can't remember his username).

 

[alsih2o]

Anchorage
Written by Michelle Shocked
I took time out to write to my old friend
I walked across that burning bridge
Mailed my letter off to Dallas
But her reply came from Anchorage, Alaska

She said: Hey girl it's about time you wrote
It's been over two years you know, my old friend
Take me back to the days of the foreign telegrams
And the all-night rock 'n rollin'
Hey Chel, we was wild then

Hey Chel, you know it's kinda funny
Texas always seems so big
But you know you're in the largest state in the Union
When you're anchored down in Anchorage

Hey girl I think the last time I saw you
Was on me and Leroy's wedding day
What was the name of that love song you played?
I forgot how it goes
I don't recall how it goes

Anchorage
Anchored down in Anchorage

Leroy got a better job so we moved
Kevin lost a tooth, now he's started school
I got a brand new eight month old baby girl
I sound like a housewife
Hey Chel, I think I'm a housewife

Hey girl what's it like to be in New York?
New York City, imagine that!
Tell me, what's it like to be a skateboard punk rocker?
Leroy says, "Send a picture"
Leroy says, "Hello!"
Leroy says, "Aw, keep on rocking girl"
Yeah, keep on rocking

Hey Chel, you know it's kinda funny
Texas always seems so big
But you know you're in the largest state in the Union
When you're anchored down in Anchorage
Oh, Anchorage
Anchored down in Anchorage
Oh, Anchorage

 

[RSKennan]

Thank you all for your replies. Anchorage sounds like my kind of place. I'm looking forward to the move, and hopefully to meet you all. Incidentally, I've read about Bosco's in my online research of Alaska, and that is part of the reason I chose Anchorage. The community I want to live in has to have a game store, and from the descriptions on the website, it seems like it's better than the ones we have down here in CT. Hiking and good living is what I'm looking for! Now to prepare my family... My girlfriend is skeptical, and my son is too young to know, but he loves the pictures. We're going no matter what, she's already agreed to that, but the real test will be whether I can convince her to stay after an Alaskan winter. I'm so psyched!

 

[Goose]

If your the outdoorsy type, youll love AK, if your not, it just sucks. Boscos rocks, awesome store. I grew up in CT, was born in hartford but raised in manchester. small world huh.

 

[Dinkeldog]

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It would seem so...

Don't worry, I have my own private hell hole: I'm stuck in Scandinavia

Green slime, while your purple quoting color is lovely, it's very difficult to read on the boards. Could I possibly convince you to change colors a little bit?

Thanks...