Hey! I was wondering if I could ask you a few questions about Homer, I am thinking about applying to the school district if I do not get a job offer in Anchorage.
1. Are there apartments to rent? 2. How far is it from Anchorage, is only possilbe to get there in the summer? 3. Is there a wal-mart or a substitute for wal-mart, or do I have to drive all the way to Anchorage to find the kind of things one would buy in Wal-mart? 4, How big is the town, people wise?
Hi Karen-- I just have a few moments before I have to head off to work but I will try to answer your questions:
1. Yes, there are several apartment buildings in town as well as cabins and such available. See the links I list below for more info.
2. It is 220 miles--about 4 hours--to Anchorage. The trip can take longer in the winter if the weather is really bad but since the highway is a major state road, it is well-maintained and kept open through all but the most horrendous weather. It has been closed briefly (a day at most) a couple of times in the past twenty years due to avalanches but by far you will encounter more delays in the summer during tourist season. It took me six hours to make the trip one weekend last August.
3. There is a big Fred Meyers store in Soldotna, about an eighty-mile drive up the road. Here in town we have a supermarket, a couple of discount grocery stores, a drug-variety store, etc. You can generally find most of what you need here in town but if we need to be in the Kenai-Soldotna area for some reason, we will hit the Home Depot, the warehouse store or the Fred Meyers up there before coming home.
4. The official population is about 5,000 for Homer and 10,000 for the whole southern Kenai Peninsula. Probably a bit less in the winter.
I have listed some links you might find useful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer%2C_AK
http://akms.com/htguide/
There is a Yahoo group--Alaska Living--that can usually answer questions about living here as well. Reading our local newspapers on-line might answer your questions about what's available in town.
There are also more local links--to the newspapers and such--on the sidebar of my other blog--Northern Life
Thank you so much for your help. I have been doing SOOOO much thinking of where I want to end up in Alaska.
I am really keeping my fingers crossed about Anchorage at this moment. I keep hearing negative things about finding a job teaching in Anchorage because of the competition, but without jinxing it - things seem to be going my way. Won't know for sure until next week.
Homer will definitely be on my list of places to visit if I do not end up living there.
Again, Thanks! There is something about your blog, the quietness, that I love. It reminds me of how I love going to the beach in the winter when NO ONE is there, and HATE going on a beautiful summer day when EVERYONE is there.
Made sense to me. I'm the kind of person who enjoys being up late at night or early in the morning when no one else is around and the world is quiet.
I haven't actually meant to be so quiet but my on-line time has been less than I would like lately due to the needs of real life. I may get a bit less laconic after I retire. But not chatty.
Comments
1. Are there apartments to rent?
2. How far is it from Anchorage, is only possilbe to get there in the summer?
3. Is there a wal-mart or a substitute for wal-mart, or do I have to drive all the way to Anchorage to find the kind of things one would buy in Wal-mart?
4, How big is the town, people wise?
Thank you!
I love the pics on your blog!
I just have a few moments before I have to head off to work but I will try to answer your questions:
1. Yes, there are several apartment buildings in town as well as cabins and such available. See the links I list below for more info.
2. It is 220 miles--about 4 hours--to Anchorage. The trip can take longer in the winter if the weather is really bad but since the highway is a major state road, it is well-maintained and kept open through all but the most horrendous weather. It has been closed briefly (a day at most) a couple of times in the past twenty years due to avalanches but by far you will encounter more delays in the summer during tourist season. It took me six hours to make the trip one weekend last August.
3. There is a big Fred Meyers store in Soldotna, about an eighty-mile drive up the road. Here in town we have a supermarket, a couple of discount grocery stores, a drug-variety store, etc. You can generally find most of what you need here in town but if we need to be in the Kenai-Soldotna area for some reason, we will hit the Home Depot, the warehouse store or the Fred Meyers up there before coming home.
4. The official population is about 5,000 for Homer and 10,000 for the whole southern Kenai Peninsula. Probably a bit less in the winter.
I have listed some links you might find useful:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Homer%2C_AK
http://akms.com/htguide/
There is a Yahoo group--Alaska Living--that can usually answer questions about living here as well. Reading our local newspapers on-line might answer your questions about what's available in town.
There are also more local links--to the newspapers and such--on the sidebar of my other blog--Northern Life
Hope this helps!
I am really keeping my fingers crossed about Anchorage at this moment. I keep hearing negative things about finding a job teaching in Anchorage because of the competition, but without jinxing it - things seem to be going my way. Won't know for sure until next week.
Homer will definitely be on my list of places to visit if I do not end up living there.
Again, Thanks! There is something about your blog, the quietness, that I love. It reminds me of how I love going to the beach in the winter when NO ONE is there, and HATE going on a beautiful summer day when EVERYONE is there.
That probably made no sense.
I haven't actually meant to be so quiet but my on-line time has been less than I would like lately due to the needs of real life. I may get a bit less laconic after I retire. But not chatty.