# Moving from Colorado to Alaska at 19 yrs old



## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

So I'm 19 yrs old living in Colorado. I work my butt off for very little paychecks, I struggle to pay bills. 
Why do I try so hard to live in longmont Colorado, a living city, when it's not what I want.
I dream of living in the bush and living off of the land like the real frontiermen did. I have skills and could pin a woodpecker to a tree with a throwing knife. 
I don't fit in here in the city and I wonder what it takes to put myself somewhere else on the map.
I know land is cheap in Alaska, but why can't I buy it? I can't find how to buy parcels of property in the middle of nowhere in Alaska. I don't need 100,000 acres I only need two or three for my cabin. The land around it just can't have neighbors. 
I need help finding the next step in taking my adventure to Alaska!


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## GTX63 (Dec 13, 2016)

You mentioned struggling and not being a fit there. How did you end up in Longmont?


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

I grew up in Pennsylvania in the sticks hunting my food and fishing in the summer. We moved to Colorado for a bit then moved to Miami Florida experienced what the city was like and I hated it. I moved back to Colorado and Colorado is now overpopulated as well. Land is expensive. I'd rather live in the last frontier where freedom still exists.


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

look u user Sourdough on this forum
It will be difficult to find small tracts without neighbors and I doubt you can find property with zero down.
look at this and adjust the parameters to the area u may be interested in. Good luck
https://www.landwatch.com/Alaska_land_for_sale/5_Acres?=&r.PSIZ=1,3&px=100000


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

I have cash I just don't want neighbors. You sound pretty angry. Are you calling me names ha? I just need information. No need for that kinda stuff


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Land watch is super basic. I'm looking for cheap. I've seen rural areas in for cheap but I'm looking for even more rural. If 5 acres is 5k then it should be cheaper further away from roads and flowing water.


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## po boy (Jul 12, 2010)

jwgrataracing said:


> I have cash I just don't want neighbors. You sound pretty angry. Are you calling me names ha? I just need information. No need for that kinda stuff


I am just trying to be helpful. Sourdough is a member on this forum and has lived in rural Alaska for years and could be a great source of information. How do I sound angry??


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## Bearfootfarm (Jul 13, 2006)

This should really be in a different section of the forum to get replies.
Try "Survival and Emergency Preparation."


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

How can I help...........???
How much are you "Willing to spend for just the land.........???
What "Skills do you have........???
Sad......to advise that land is not cheap in Alaska. Do "NOT" under any condition purchase any land in Alaska in the winter.....purchase only after you have walked the entire property, in the summer. If you find cheap land it will be swamp with standing water knee deep.......but it will look great in the winter.

*Suggest you go here:*

http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com/forumdisplay.php/70-Alaska-Cabins-and-Remote-Living

http://forums.outdoorsdirectory.com...&pp=30&daysprune=365&sort=lastpost&order=desc


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

po boy said:


> I am just trying to be helpful. Sourdough is a member on this forum and has lived in rural Alaska for years and could be a great source of information. How do I sound angry??


I thought you were calling me useless sourdough haha I thought it was unexpected cuz I didn't know it was a user


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Sourdough said:


> How can I help...........???
> How much are you "Willing to spend for just the land.........???
> What "Skills do you have........???
> Sad......to advise that land is not cheap in Alaska. Do "NOT" under any condition purchase any land in Alaska in the winter.....purchase only after you have walked the entire property, in the summer. If you find cheap land it will be swamp with standing water knee deep.......but it will look great in the winter.
> ...


Yes I plan to visit over a summer season and purchase in the summer season when I see green. I'm willing to spend under 10k to get enough land to hunt, fish, and live on. I only need to own the land that I build on. (Acre at most) the land around me I just need to be able to hunt and fish on


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## damoc (Jul 14, 2007)

You don't need to head to Alaska to be isolated I have a few acres in middle of nowhere NV that are way too isolated for most normal people.PM me if you are interested.


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

I'm not too interested in desert land for I can't make a living that suits my needs. I've thought about living in the desert because I ride motocross... But when it comes down to food and agriculture it's hard to make a living. First of all, if you ranch cattle, they are lesser in fat due to the amount of calories burnt to stay healthy. Second of all I can't think of anything else you can farm to produce a living, giving you a disadvantage compared to those in Alaska. Self sufficient income is very important to me. I'm not socially impaired. I'm good with people but I seek a higher meaning of life compared to most. I do not seek secludednesss but I seek freedom from the American system. Places that the homestead act is still in play. Such as Alaska


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Unfortunately, the Homestead Act is no longer in effect in Alaska.


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## Forcast (Apr 15, 2014)

Remember it's colder than Pa. Life is hard enough without having to depend on your skills to keep alive.


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Unfortunately, the Homestead Act is no longer in effect in Alaska.


It's still in effect everywhere. You can still rely on the homestead act all over the country even where land is more expensive if a homestead is really what you want. But they only give you less than an acre which is impossible


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Forcast said:


> Remember it's colder than Pa. Life is hard enough without having to depend on your skills to keep alive.


Pennsylvania isn't cold. Neither is Colorado. I have the skills to live in Alaska to the point where I can make Alaska luxury. The cold is the least of my worries I can handle -40 degrees. The issue I need to solve is how to afford it without giving any of my thoughts and effort towards business. I refuse to become part of the society we live in, where finance is key to happiness.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Dearest jwg, 
I admire your enthusiasm, confidence, and determination. If you want information and assistance from the folks here, I recommend you tell us a bit more. How did you acquire these skills? 

Here is what I have found about the Homestead Act. 

“ The Homestead Act was finally repealed in 1976, but a provision of the repeal allowed for homesteading to continue in Alaska until 1986.“
https://www.alaskacenters.gov/explore/culture/history/homestead-act


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

jwgrataracing said:


> It's still in effect everywhere. You can still rely on the homestead act all over the country even where land is more expensive if a homestead is really what you want. But they only give you less than an acre which is impossible


I think you are referring to "Homestead *EXEMPTION*" this is very different then the "Homestead Act of 1863".

I have a lot of first hand personal experience with Both. Where are you getting your information about Alaska, and living the lifestyle you desire in Alaska.....???


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Sourdough said:


> I think you are referring to "Homestead *EXEMPTION*" this is very different then the "Homestead Act of 1863".
> 
> I have a lot of first hand personal experience with Both. Where are you getting your information about Alaska, and living the lifestyle you desire in Alaska.....???


Sure, doesn't really matter what it's name is, all I know it's the same principal and way different from what I want so no need for me to care about it. What information about Alaska are you referring to?


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

Alice In TX/MO said:


> Dearest jwg,
> I admire your enthusiasm, confidence, and determination. If you want information and assistance from the folks here, I recommend you tell us a bit more. How did you acquire these skills?
> 
> Here is what I have found about the Homestead Act.
> ...


Like I said we aren't here to discuss the homestead act. We are discussing how a person can choose a parcel of land that is small and inexpensive in the middle of nowhere in Alaska and strive off of the land legally. I'm also not here to discuss my skills. I have survival skills that I was taught over the years growing up in the wilderness. It's a lifestyle I want to return to because the city is an awful place for a person like me to live. My focus is to learn how other people my age have been able to afford moving to Alaska. It takes lots of planning. I want to have a thorough plan so I'm not solving stupid issues when i actually put my plan into play.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Bless your heart.


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

jwgrataracing said:


> Like I said we aren't here to discuss the homestead act. We are discussing how a person can choose a parcel of land that is small and inexpensive in the middle of nowhere in Alaska and strive off of the land legally. I'm also not here to discuss my skills. I have survival skills that I was taught over the years growing up in the wilderness. It's a lifestyle I want to return to because the city is an awful place for a person like me to live. My focus is to learn how other people my age have been able to afford moving to Alaska. It takes lots of planning. I want to have a thorough plan so I'm not solving stupid issues when i actually put my plan into play.


You will not get the help you want by pissing off the people who have "Been there, Done that". You would likely be shocked at how much assistance is available to you, by some members of this forum.


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

jwgrataracing said:


> Sure, doesn't really matter what it's name is, all I know it's the same principal and way different from what I want so no need for me to care about it. *What information about Alaska are you referring to*?


You have thoughts and beliefs about Alaska, that are not accurate. I am asking where you have been getting your information.


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## Clem (Apr 12, 2016)

I'm thinking that some of the people on this forum are as old as 23 or even 24, and have been around a whole lot longer than you and may have some good insights. One guy even claims he's been on his own for 9 years!!(I know, impossible, right!?)

As far as erroneous information, it's everywhere, so why fight it? If you want to think the homestead act is the same thing as a tax exemption, think it. Maybe it'll become true, just for you!!


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## gerold (Jul 18, 2011)

jwgrataracing said:


> I have cash I just don't want neighbors. You sound pretty angry. Are you calling me names ha? I just need information. No need for that kinda stuff


Have you ever been to Alaska in the winter? What part of Alaska would you be going to. On the coast or inland?


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

gerold said:


> Have you ever been to Alaska in the winter? What part of Alaska would you be going to. On the coast or inland?


I've never been to Alaska. I found property in Nenada, but even that is too overpopulated for me. If I live in the bush, I definitely don't want some random people flying up the river in their boat while I'm stalking a moose. I want to live below the Arctic circle and stay east near the Yukon territory in Canada. I also have no problem with living in Canada but I have no idea what their laws are


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## gerold (Jul 18, 2011)

jwgrataracing said:


> I've never been to Alaska. I found property in Nenada, but even that is too overpopulated for me. If I live in the bush, I definitely don't want some random people flying up the river in their boat while I'm stalking a moose. I want to live below the Arctic circle and stay east near the Yukon territory in Canada. I also have no problem with living in Canada but I have no idea what their laws are


I have lived in Canada. The laws are different up there. Laws on gun ownership etc. A lot more law enforcement there than where you live now.


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## jwgrataracing (Jun 26, 2018)

gerold said:


> I have lived in Canada. The laws are different up there. Laws on gun ownership etc. A lot more law enforcement there than where you live now.


Then that's definitely out of the question ha


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

Well.......I wish you good luck on your adventure.


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## damoc (Jul 14, 2007)

Best wishes Just don't go Into The Wild.


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## Alice In TX/MO (May 10, 2002)

Damoc, that was my thought, too.


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## CajunSunshine (Apr 24, 2007)

I'm guessing that many people get their ideas about Alaska from (un)reality shows and so-called survivalists websites? Not too many people who have truly "been there, done that" are out in the Mainstream coaching others about it.

However, folks like Sourdough and others on some internet forums who have had decades of Alaskan experience are like gold to those who are seeking the realities of living in the Alaskan boonies. Treat them with a little respect and you may actually benefit. It would be a shame to lose out on real-world education just for the sake of arrogance.

But then, maybe the TV shows are more suited to some folks who can be snarky, and even yell and shake their fists at the screen, and the characters will keep on smiling and tell them what they want to hear.



.


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## Sourdough (Dec 28, 2011)

Here is a very good read.........about the realty of Alaska wilderness life. (I am referring to real wilderness, not living just outside of "Town".)

Cold Hands, Warm Heart: One Woman's Story of Ten Years in the Alaskan Wilderness Kindle Edition
by Marilyn Moore Shaver (Author)


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

jwgrataracing said:


> So I'm 19 yrs old living in Colorado. I work my butt off for very little paychecks, I struggle to pay bills.
> Why do I try so hard to live in longmont Colorado, a living city, when it's not what I want.
> I dream of living in the bush and living off of the land like the real frontiermen did. I have skills and could pin a woodpecker to a tree with a throwing knife.
> I don't fit in here in the city and I wonder what it takes to put myself somewhere else on the map.
> ...


Send a few emails to the village offices, in any village in Alaska. Tell them about yourself and that you are looking for a job. Go online and check the job adds in Anchorage. Find something you can do, and go after that job. Work up there for a year or two, and you will learn all you need to know. Don't be in a hurry to buy land. Take your time and look around. I wish I was your age and could go to Alaska again, I would never leave.


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## weaselfire (Feb 7, 2018)

jwgrataracing said:


> It's still in effect everywhere. You can still rely on the homestead act all over the country even where land is more expensive if a homestead is really what you want. But they only give you less than an acre which is impossible


The Homestead Act ended in 1976, Alaska had a ten year extension. No Federal land available since. There are a few areas where cheap or free property is available from various government entities, but it's almost exclusively a single building or lot, nothing you could go off grid on.

Alaska land is actually pretty scarce, most of the land is government owned. Five acre parcels are common, but five acres will get you neighbors. Unless you can find an old homestead being sold, you'll get very little that qualifies as remote. And not inexpensively.

If you really want to move to Alaska, do it. Find work in Anchorage, Fairbanks, Juneau or nearby areas and search for your ideal property there.

Or just move out of Longmont. Colorado has a lot of rural land.

My personal opinion from your arguments here is that you're a punk kid who will end up dead in the frozen wilderness, but Alaska has a few thousand people like you who manage to get to the state and walk off into the woods to live, outside normal society. If you really wanted to do what you say, you'd scrape up bus fare and hit the road.

Jeff


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## muleskinner2 (Oct 7, 2007)

weaselfire said:


> The Homestead Act ended in 1976, Alaska had a ten year extension. No Federal land available since. There are a few areas where cheap or free property is available from various government entities, but it's almost exclusively a single building or lot, nothing you could go off grid on.
> 
> Alaska land is actually pretty scarce, most of the land is government owned. Five acre parcels are common, but five acres will get you neighbors. Unless you can find an old homestead being sold, you'll get very little that qualifies as remote. And not inexpensively.
> 
> ...


Hey there cowboy, your pretty windy behind a key board. I wonder what you are like in person.


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## weaselfire (Feb 7, 2018)

muleskinner2 said:


> Hey there cowboy, your pretty windy behind a key board. I wonder what you are like in person.


Windy like Chicago or windy like a watch? Actually, I'm both at times, so it doesn't matter.

Jeff


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## emdeengee (Apr 20, 2010)

There have been several young people posting the same desire to move to Alaska or other places to homestead. The only advice I can give (as an older person) is that you are living in the 21st century. The life of the homesteader in previous centuries and even decades ago was very different with many different opportunities. 

What you see on many of these TV shows is not reality. I am particularly offended by the whole Gold Rush series as we have a very intimate knowledge of placer mining and this is not reality. But I digress. If you move to Alaska make sure that you have a trade or profession that will be marketable in the area you want to live and be prepared to have to live closer to a town or city than your end dream would be. 

Life is expensive no matter where you live or how you live. Many people think that they can hunt, trap and fish for a living or mine but they forget that they are in competition with the First Nations peoples (American Indians) and big companies.

We have many young friends who moved here to the Yukon from all over the world and many live off grid and homestead but all of them also have jobs. Some full time others seasonal.

One is a ranger in the Tombstone Mountains and she even gets to take her baby with her. Another was a submariner and he now owns an off grid coffee shop. Others work for outfitters or the government in Energy, Mines and Resources or Water, Fisheries, Forestry or Agriculture Depts or for Universities in all sorts of research including Climate, Anthropology and Paleontology. 

Others work in the mines either in mining or as crew to provide all the necessities of living way out or have claims of their own or are helicopter and airplane pilots or crew from float planes to 747s. And then we have all the teachers, doctors, dentists, nurses EMTs and fire crews, carpenters, plumbers, electricians and particularly those who are skilled in working with permafrost. Lots of work but you have to be educated or trained.

Everyone wants to come here and most never want to leave but this is the 21st century and you cannot escape it completely. But you sure can make a great life if you are prepared and realistic.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

If you want to go to Alaska just go. Once there you'll see the land and people for what they are. If you hurry you'll get there in time for the salmon run. Just watch your back. Autumn grizzlies can get pretty mean.

Good neighbors are worth their weight in gold. There are many people here who are willing to help but they only give advice to those willing to listen.


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## DKWunlimited (Sep 11, 2006)

A good starting point for a 19 year old, apply for University of Alaska - Fairbanks. Then you have housing waiting and a place to land. Even if you don't stay long enough to get the degree, many employers won't waste thier time with tire kickers who won't ever really go to Alaska, once you are there, you can explore the area, land, jobs etc. If you have the right attitude you can find locals willing to take you under thier wing and teach you everything you need to know.


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## AmericanStand (Jul 29, 2014)

Theres a few here who know Alaska,
Pay attention to them
Land isn't cheap in Alaska, its crazy expensive.
There is some crazy weird stuff going on with land in Alaska. for instance Over 90% is owned by a tiny racial group with the blessings and connivance of the government.
Luckily they are beginning to sell some and that's driving prices down.
The economy is in the pits so that's driving prices down.
So its actually a good time to buy IF YOU DONT NEED A JOB !
You can live off the land in Alaska but it hard to do without generations of experience.
But Its not a bad play to be rich or poor. rich is good anywhere the middle in Alaska is pressured by high prices and lowering income
BUT POOR ? Lots of things poor people do is more accepted in Ak.

By the way you need to live there a calendar year and in the right place before you can legally be a subsistence hunter.
As for somewhere that a guy boating up river wont interrupt your stalk? Not sure there is such.
Alaska really doesn't have many moose they don't manage to favor them.


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## Danaus29 (Sep 12, 2005)

BTW, in Alaska the term "sourdough" is considered a compliment. It's much better than being a "greenhorn" or a "cheechako" (I learned a new word today!).


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## 50ShadesOfDirt (Nov 11, 2018)

I'd investigate the areas of Alaska (or any state, for that matter), where you can freebase (not that freebase ... the one where you base your location for free, for some time period); BLM, NF, etc.

If the prospects are promising and fits the areas where you want to be, then look into these types of mobile living: truck topper/camper, truck hauling a tiny home, and so on. With these methods, you don't have to buy land right away, and you can explore the state for the best land and the best deals.

I live (sleep/shower) in a truck/topper for a few nights of the week (stealth camping), while working in a different city from where I have my homestead, as this saves the cost of having to set up an alternate household; others live permanently in truck/toppers or truck/campers, vans, etc. I have electricity, heat, water/shower, etc., in my truck/topper ...

Or, a tiny home on a trailer, if you've the skills to carpentry that up ...

A possible alternative for you ...


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## shawnlee (Apr 13, 2010)

I wonder how many who have watched life below 0 are now living life below ground...….


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## anniew (Dec 12, 2002)

seems the OP didn't find what he was looking for...


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