@Holly Saunders discussed some of the television shows concerning Alaska on another thread here, so I thought I would start a thread for that discussion in case others were interested. Some of you have been here, and many understand little about it, just as the majority of Americans. The TV shows present a largely false impression, and will likely now stop since the state no longer subsidizes their production. Here is a site that gives one an idea of the size of the State of Alaska. It won't compare countries, but it does do other states: http://www.alaska.org/how-big-is-alaska and here is my driveway: If no one is interested, I won't be offended. I just didn't want to hijack another thread with this.
oooooh I want that driveway...I don't want - 35 degrees to get it.. but how wonderful to have such a long driveway..
I spent most of my time in the Aleucians but I do wish I had taken some time after a job I completed in Ekuk to wander around the mainland for a couple of months. I met a few Inuits who told me a lot of stories and urged me to do some exploring but I landed another contract (that I could have done without) and left without returning. The prices weren’t as high as I thought they were going to be but the pay was great and the fresh salmon right out of the water was superb!
OK, a more serious question. I think I remember you saying you moved to Alaska from Florida many years ago so I presume you're American born. However would you prefer Alaska to belong to Canada or the USA... and whatever your choice.. why?
Quick answer, @Holly Saunders …… oil. I have never given much thought to Alaska but I Binged, "Is Alaska bigger than England?" and got this result. Total area England: 130,373 square kilometers, whereas total area of the state of Alaska: 1,717,854 square kilometers. Alaska, therefore is over 13 times bigger than England. With 586,412 square miles, or about 365,000,000 acres, Alaska is the largest state in the union and; one-fifth the size of the lower 48 states. I suppose it's a lot bigger than many other countries, too. Fascinating stuff.
Yes many , outsiders have said the same, but we're very strong willed people.. much more than outsiders think, simply because we have a reputation for being ''polite''... However on the subject of size and not to hi-jack Don's thread, ..I once invited a friend who lives in Charlotte .. to come and visit, she was all up for it, and very excited at the thought, until I said she'd have to fly.... she was totally stunned,.. she had no idea we were an Island, and she couldn't come by road to here!!..and I'm serious!! Sorry Don... back to the topic!!!
Well, you can drive to Alaska. It might take a while. Ooops, not you, @Holly Saunders , but we here in the lower 48.
My one and only time to Alaska was on a cruise ship out of Seattle via the Inland Passage way to Skagway Great cruise and stunning scenery.
@Holly Saunders, Alaska IS part of the U.S.--the 49th state and we just passed our 60th anniversary of statehood. I am American born and moved here from southern Georgia, not Florida. It is 600 + feet through the woods to the nearest dirt road. Oh crap, we just had another aftershock (I assume) and it nearly knocked me out of my seat....
OMG I hope it's an aftershock and not a precursor to anything more serious!! yes I know it's part of the USA, and I know it once belonged to the USSR.. but for some reason I though Canada had owned it at one time, clearly I was mistaken.. however my question still stands, would you prefer Alaska ( not you personally) to be a part of Canada or the USA?
Yep, you can drive here from everywhere in the lower 48 but not from Hawaii.... You cannot, however, drive to most of Alaska. Roads service only a small part of the state as you could see if you accessed the link. I lived off the road system for my first three years here. We could have traveled by boat, but airplane is the only practical way to travel for most of the state. There were 19 miles of roads in the village where we lived, but the roads didn't go anywhere or connect to anything. The cruises up the Southeast provide lots of views of glaciers and such, but it is really just a very small part of the state. The best way to see the areas on the road system is to fly in and rent a car, then drive the circuit--Anchorage, Fairbanks, Tok, Glennallen, then down to Homer near where Jewell's old homestead is and back to Anchorage. You can also drive to Valdez (where the oil terminal is) and Deadhorse (where the oil fields are) as well as a long dirt road The Denali Highway (about 135 miles long) that is closed in winter and not allowed by most rental car companies...driving to Deadhorse is not generally allowed by rental cars either. I believe we are also the only state that doesn't have road access to the state capitol.