alaska

[chickenbottom]

well i wasnt sure where to put this but ill put it here. im really thinking about moving to alaska it seems like a great place. land is pretty cheap and housing is fairly cheap for what i want. im just wondering about my chickens would they be safe? low heat in winter, bears. things like that. ive always wanted to live off the land. plant a garden. can that and use it year round. i think its amazing. i saw a post like this earlier but she hasnt replied back to me. what are yalls opinions on this? i have nothing against modern living but olden days seem so great to me.

 

[Moabite]

I understand the calling. I recommend visiting for a few months first. If you still like it, then go for it.

 

[MrsDeb]

Well, you'll either love it, or hate it.....Ive been here 40 years

I can tell you that coming from Florida you might have a hard time transitioning, maybe not. Prepare
yourself for 23 hours of daylight in the summer and 23 hours of dark during the winter. Housing isn't "cheap" anymore...neither is land, but you can certainly find good bargains when folks
from Florida decide to move back home.... (giggle).....(just being funny)

Feel free to come pick our brains.. we all usually check in here https://www.backyardchickens.com/forum/viewtopic.php?id=362268 at least once a day!

 

[chickenbottom]

actually i hate florida its to hot. i love snow and winter. if i could have winter 25/8 lol i would. i dont want to live in a residential area i want about 5 to 10 acres and a ecodome home (made out of dirt)

 

[EHaus]

I moved up here from Alabama this past June...now that winter's about here I'll let you know how it goes! Actually, going to sleep with the daylight didn't bother me as much as the weeks of constant rainy days and overcast skies did. And yesterday we had snow flurries already. But you could come up at different times of the year while putting up your house and see what you make of things, if you have that option. As far as land goes, you could check out some Alaska land for sale sites online and see what different areas appeal to you. Keep in mind that most of this state is only accessible by air or dogsled.

 

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

Quote:
One little heads up, the soil is extremely shallow in most parts of the state. You generally don't go down far before you hit permafrost, gravel beds, or bedrock. Topsoil is valuable, and you probably don't want to scrape every square inch off the top of your property to build! If you're on the road system and not too far from a top soil supplier, that may be an option, but it will add expense to your eco dome. (I couldn't find on the website how much soil it takes to build your average unit.)

There are plenty of geodesic domes out here, yurts, and variations of the EcoDome that use insulation and concrete. Straw bale construction is also not advised because you have to have suitable straw shipped in from out of state.

 

[chickenbottom]

im not talking about digging it myself i want a few truckloads its still a great price after its all said and done. as long as i can do a small garden in the summer im good i dont think the soil can get any worse than florida sandy soil lol. heres a really nice video on them building one

. i personally think they are beautiful. ehaus, thats exactly how i want it to be. about how hot is it in the summer?.

 

[chickenbottom]

are yurts safe? in the winter months expecially.

 

[HaikuHeritageFarm]

Quote:
Yes, they are able to withstand surprisingly heavy snowloads, though it can be tough to get them insulated well enough to stay heated.

Summers vary drastically from place to place and year to year. This summer in South central we had a month solid of daily precipitation, and cool temperatures. The interior can get quite warm, 80's, I think even the 90's in Fairbanks. Down here everyone's sweating in out in flip flops and tank tops if it goes above 70. Some coastal spots stay cool all summer.

I came up for summer work in Denali in 2004 and plotted my return. I went back to Denali for the summer in 2007 and have been here ever since. I found Girdwood to be a good spot to spend my first few winters because you had a reason to be excited about the snow (Ski Resort). You might like it there. I think your ecodome might fit in very well down Crow Creek Road.

 

[chickenbottom]

Quote:
Yes, they are able to withstand surprisingly heavy snowloads, though it can be tough to get them insulated well enough to stay heated.

Summers vary drastically from place to place and year to year. This summer in South central we had a month solid of daily precipitation, and cool temperatures. The interior can get quite warm, 80's, I think even the 90's in Fairbanks. Down here everyone's sweating in out in flip flops and tank tops if it goes above 70. Some coastal spots stay cool all summer.

I came up for summer work in Denali in 2004 and plotted my return. I went back to Denali for the summer in 2007 and have been here ever since. I found Girdwood to be a good spot to spend my first few winters because you had a reason to be excited about the snow (Ski Resort). You might like it there. I think your ecodome might fit in very well down Crow Creek Road.

very cool. i like rain if its not freezing outside. the yurt sounds like my house now i dont have airconditioning so its around 80 to 90 in here and im comfortable. when i did have airconditioner i kept it at 68 lol so im pretty good with temps. when does it usually start snowing and when does it end?