Is Alaska a good place to live if you enjoy the cold, isolation and simple life style?

yep

you could work for an oil company, be a park ranger or whatever it is that you are skilled at

I live up here, in the Mat-Su Valley, and I can't think of a better place to live, period. But if you enjoy those things, there's definitely an opportunity to be isolated up here. Cabin prices off the road system are pretty affordable. It's also a great place to live simply. Living off the land is very doable here. One of my favorite stories of this is Dick Proenneke's "Alone in the Wilderness", link below. Also check out www.alaska-travel-journal.com for information on different areas of Alaska that might be best suited for you. While Alaska is definitely colder than most of the lower 48, there's some areas that aren't really cold to any degree of severity, ie Southeast Alaska. South central (Anchorage, Mat-Su, Talkeetna) does get cold in winter, around -20 or so, but summer is beautiful.

The economy up here hasn't really taken the hit that the rest of country has. There's good careers in the fishing industry (commercial boats, canneries), government jobs are plentiful, and there's always employment in the tourism industry as well as oil.

On the other hand..............Alaska has the highest levels of poverty, alcoholism, suicide, gunshot wounds , and drug use, in any of the 50 states. Education is poor and so are most of the people who live there.

It is a hide out for many who want to "live off the grid ' and are anti social gun worshippers.

Yes, you can make good money working in SOME types of work in Alaska, but it is only seasonal, and the cost of living and food is out of sight, especially away from the 3 main cities. Imagine paying $20 for a small can of Folger;s coffee ? Fifteen dollars for 20 smokes ? Costs are huge and so is the amount of money that it costs to heat a house.

Jim B

Toronto.

I have a cousin who lived there for 7 years. Her dad retired from the Air Force when she was in college there. She said it was a great place in the spring and summer, but the winter where it could get so cold (-50 F) it was hard to do anything. The cost of living was high but it was the only state in the country without sales tax or income tax. Gasoline cost a fortune and had to have additives put in it to keep it from freezing in winter. Workers make more but spend more because of the cost of living. I have a friend whose brother lives in Sitka and winters in the panhandle (Sitka, Ketchikan, and Juneau) are not bad at all. I understand he loves it there. There are jobs in fishing, the oil rigs, and government.

Yes! Check out the classified ads online for the Anchorage Daily News or the Fairbanks Miner to see jobs, housing, sales, etc. Also, check out Craigslist ads.