Post by Ted Clayton on Jun 12, 2006 19:18:40 GMT -5
*wbc - would be cheechako 
I'm an early-50s, Olympic Peninsula (WA) guy, considering a serious recon trip to AK this summer.
Being born & raised in the coastal mold, I used to figure something Interior was the only way to go. Nowadays, I put more on the people/community factors ... sometimes hard to discern ... but I still favor the Continental zone.
The OP is still nice. The temperate rainforest is awesome, and has growed into me. If it weren't for Seattle and the greater Vancouver-Portland megalopolis, I'd be going nowhere.
But facts are facts: my home region has become (the powers-that-be aim to solidify it as) California-north, and I should opt out.
A sensible regional recon is a big undertaking. Given a mega-region like AK, a summer looky-see is almost laughable. A guy planning to relocate is almost reduced to a plain ol' crap-shoot. But I'll do what I can.
I've spent all of my life (the parts I had control of) in serious rural circumstances, have no urban habits or conditioning, and venture to town monthly, usually under compulsion - then right back to the woods. But I've always had a gravel road, leading to chip-seal, then asphalt, and on to anywhere in North America.
I used to always figure, be smart, stay road-accessible, minimize the culture-shock and readjustment load. But again, I tend now to put a friendly thumb on the people-factors pan, and give less to the objection calculations.
Good collection of boards here, with thoughtful participation.
Ted Clayton
I'm an early-50s, Olympic Peninsula (WA) guy, considering a serious recon trip to AK this summer.
Being born & raised in the coastal mold, I used to figure something Interior was the only way to go. Nowadays, I put more on the people/community factors ... sometimes hard to discern ... but I still favor the Continental zone.
The OP is still nice. The temperate rainforest is awesome, and has growed into me. If it weren't for Seattle and the greater Vancouver-Portland megalopolis, I'd be going nowhere.
But facts are facts: my home region has become (the powers-that-be aim to solidify it as) California-north, and I should opt out.
A sensible regional recon is a big undertaking. Given a mega-region like AK, a summer looky-see is almost laughable. A guy planning to relocate is almost reduced to a plain ol' crap-shoot. But I'll do what I can.
I've spent all of my life (the parts I had control of) in serious rural circumstances, have no urban habits or conditioning, and venture to town monthly, usually under compulsion - then right back to the woods. But I've always had a gravel road, leading to chip-seal, then asphalt, and on to anywhere in North America.
I used to always figure, be smart, stay road-accessible, minimize the culture-shock and readjustment load. But again, I tend now to put a friendly thumb on the people-factors pan, and give less to the objection calculations.
Good collection of boards here, with thoughtful participation.
Ted Clayton