Life in Cordova, AK. (Anchorage, Homer: rental, credit card, buying)

[unforgiven1]

To anyone living in or near Cordova, I am considering a move to Cordova and have a few questions.

1) I like to hunt and ski, are these activities available close by?

2) I know it's expensive but are there rental units in the region under $1K/month?

3) Is it really that gloomy and rainy, that is part of why I left OH for FL, which I hate...too hot and too much traffic.

4) I see it is off the highway system. How far do you have to ferry to get on the highway system? Do residents get a discount on the ferry? or a yearly/seasonal ticket that they can purchase. For some reason these are not easy questions to get answered via internet search.

5) lastly if anyone can give me reasons why I should or should not move there I would appreciate it.

Thx

[Dakster]

I am going to refer to the 500 pound Gorilla in the room.

Why Cordova? Do you have a job lined up, wealthy, or get a pension where it doesn't matter where you live?

As far as the Ferry is concerned, just know that it loses money every year and that it is already subsidized by the state. The state that is going thru financial turmoil with the huge drop in oil prices. You can check prices for the Ferry here:

Alaska Marine Highway System - Official site of the Alaska DOT&PF

Plan on buying tickets in advance... You'll have to look up where you would want to go. Once you are an AK resident you can join Alaska Airlines club 49 and basically that gets you free checked bags. That is about the only thing I know for travel that an AK resident can benefit from. Plus getting their credit card and linking certain grocery stores to it will help you build miles up.

Despite what it seems like, it isn't cheap to live in AK....

[unforgiven1]

yes i have a job lined up. apparently no place in AK is cheap, but then FL isnt either and I live in one of the most expensive areas.

thanks for the no holds barred reply.

[unforgiven1]

Cordova seemed southern most in AK. city data indicated most sun of the southern coast. Its on the water and not big (i am needing small...too much city past 4 yrs) like to fish and close enough to 48 I could visit with a week off.

Have any recommendations for other towns in the southern coast? Juneau is too big for me at this point. I looked at Sitka but it appears the sun never shines there.

[Arktikos]

The sun rarely shines anywhere along the southern coasts of Alaska. Cloudiest places in the U.S., by far. Not for everyone, but I like the typical cloud cover. If you have skin cancer concerns, it's clearly the place to be.
Cordova gets well over 100 inches of rain, plus 100 inches of snow, per year. I think they have a ski lift. Driest places would be Haines and Skagway, plus they're on the highway system if you're so inclined. But, no alaska airlines flights into them, like in Cordova.
Roads, like ferries, lose money every year, btw, and our legislature doesn't have the balls needed to raise fuel taxes to help pay for public transportation. No local discount for ferries.

[jdhpa]

If you aren't locked into Cordova, you may want to consider Homer. Small(ish), on the water, on the road system, flights to Anchorage (and from there to the -48). Probably not a good choice for skiing, though.

Best of luck to you

[Dakster]

Originally Posted by unforgiven1

yes i have a job lined up. apparently no place in AK is cheap, but then FL isnt either and I live in one of the most expensive areas.

thanks for the no holds barred reply.

At least you took it correctly. Job is the most important. If you don't like it you can look to move out of there.

[unforgiven1]

thanks blind cleric. all the potential job offers are on the southern coast, except for some north of Anchorage, which I believe would be too cold for me.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by unforgiven1

Cordova seemed southern most in AK. city data indicated most sun of the southern coast. Its on the water and not big (i am needing small...too much city past 4 yrs) like to fish and close enough to 48 I could visit with a week off.

Have any recommendations for other towns in the southern coast? Juneau is too big for me at this point. I looked at Sitka but it appears the sun never shines there.

Despite it being close to the lower 48 doesn't mean that travel will be any easier. You lose at least two days to travel.

Fishing...it takes a year to legally subsistence fish.

[Haolejohn]

Originally Posted by unforgiven1

yes i have a job lined up. apparently no place in AK is cheap, but then FL isnt either and I live in one of the most expensive areas.

thanks for the no holds barred reply.

Hate to break it to you, but Florida and Alaska don't compare with the cost of living...maybe rent, but that is only one component to cost of living.