Originally Posted By DamageDone:
Op, legit question as wife & I are looking for off-grid property and Alaska is on my short list.

If you know, what are the purchasing terms for resale?
Can an Alaskan native who bought land under this program, resell it in a year? 5yrs? never?
I ask, because the property we just purchased in FL has a 1 yr hold on resale tied to the contract, so its a thing.
TIA.

Originally Posted By taliv:
Is rainwater collection something people do in alaska?

If it’s snow It’s not going in the tank til spring right?

Originally Posted By taliv:
Is rainwater collection something people do in alaska?

If it’s snow It’s not going in the tank til spring right?

Originally Posted By Rosta97:

I will look at the purchase contract and see. Off the top of my head I believe if you purchased it outright you can sell it without issue. If the state financed it for you; you have to coordinate any sale through them. But I will double check.

Originally Posted By Rosta97:
Alright so let’s talk about the land I did get.

So what was I looking for?  

Want a recreational cabin for now. Somewhere to spend weekends and a week or two here or there to disconnect from technology and reconnect with nature. My wife is hell bent on making it our permanent residence in the future but likely won’t be until the kids are grown.

Wanted something off the beaten path with hunting and or fishing nearby. Ideally wanted something off the road system to avoid anyone just going by. Wanted something that we could easily get to on a Friday night after work so we could go on just a regular short weekend. For example we found an awesome cabin in Homer with an ocean view; but at 580 miles away it would be a once maybe twice a year thing. That distance is like if you lived in New York City and bought a cabin in Halifax Nova Scotia.

So we decided we wanted something within about 120 miles from our house or so.

So when the new land auction came out we reviewed all the options and there was really only one area we were interested in and it hand 8 or so parcels available in the area.

The area is about 85 miles from our house up in the hills and in good hunting area(we found caribou remains on the property when we went to check it out).

It seemed like a good balance of everything we wanted so we decided to bid on 2 adjacent parcels. One that was 18 acres and one that was 16.

We ended up winning the 18 acre one and losing the 16 by about $500. Of course hind sight being 20/20 you kick yourself “of course I would have paid $500 more for it”. But remember it was sealed bid so you had no idea if anyone else even bid and you don’t really want to pay thousands over appraised value if you don’t have to.

I kinda of went back and forth do I just eat the deposit and give up the 18 since I really wanted more acreage than 18. But ultimately decided 18 would be good enough.

Looking around at land out there it seems a lot of people buy it and then never do anything with it. And seems most people don’t visit theirs in the winter at all. So hopefully won’t be an issue.



So let’s talk a little more about the parcel I did get. Like I said it’s about 18 and a half acres. Has other land owners with similar size parcels on the left and right. But no one behind it for near as makes no difference forever(in reality it’s like 25 miles ).

The parcel itself is about 75 miles from the Arctic circle. It sits at about 3,000ft of elevation and is entirely south facing.

The closest town to the parcel is the town of Central, AK.  Population 38. It’s a big gold mining town with the miners only living there in the summer for the most part. It has a bar/restaurant/gas station/ hotel/ general store/laundry mat(it’s all one business in the same building) and a post office. Central is about 50 road miles from my property. Fairbanks(where I live now) being the next closest at 90 miles or so.

https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/A576D95A-5084-48B6-B08A-828E485F72D8_png-2668467.JPG

The weather there can be unforgiving. It’s a cold windy bitch in the winter. Will hit -90 with wind chill a few times a winter. In the summer it’s nice. Wind keeps the mosquitoes away while it’s blowing. Blue berries everywhere. The winter starts early and end late. This is a picture I took near there in late September https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/3EA0A876-9E75-4FCE-A48C-461E3143B665_jpe-2668482.JPG

Common wildlife is caribou, moose, grizzlies, wolfs.

So one of the better parts is in Alaska if you aren’t in a borough(think county) you don’t pay property tax and my property is just outside the borough line so there is no property tax. I have made an MS paint to illustrate this.

https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/9FCBD1E1-F085-4C84-A0E1-86F2C81C887B_jpe-2668480.JPG



The land isn’t road accessible; but the trail to it can be driven by a 4x4 truck or SUV in the summer. This is a big plus for hauling stuff out. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to get my trailer up it, but my truck will no problem.

It isn’t plowed in the winter obviously so snowmachines are the only way to get to it in the winter.

It is about 6 trail miles from the road.

Here is approximately the property. The pin is the corner and I estimated the lines from there. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/73AD27F6-9CE6-414D-B686-D7F96ED33ECF_jpe-2668483.JPG

You can see the trail to get to it on the map as well.


Here is a picture I took on the ground when I went to check it out. The land is approximately where I am pointing. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/A9AAAA59-6DA6-4BA8-ADAF-3FB9158E3AE9_jpe-2668485.JPG

Originally Posted By TX_M1:
I came here for a cabin, I don't see a cabin


TAG and a free bump

Originally Posted By M4ger:
so, serious question.

how far to the nearest residence?

Originally Posted By akcaribouhunter:
Tell them to smoke or dry the squirrels then cook them.

Lots of people make the mistake of rushing up and thinking they can build a big building asap.
Also need to learn to do things in the dark.

Nothing wrong with a honey bucket.

Originally Posted By taliv:
How much does land like that go for per acre?

Originally Posted By Rosta97:

I guess I should have covered that.

I got this for $21,000. Used my one time veterans discount and paid roughly $16,000 for the 18 acres.

The land auction itself can vary greatly. Parcels on road systems bring in more as well as ocean front.

Originally Posted By Abominable:
Ost

Originally Posted By Rosta97:

I guess you’d have to define residence. People bought the two parcels next to mine. If/how soon they’ll build on it I have no idea. Seems there is quite a few lots up there people bought and never did anything with.

There are other cabins in the area. But the way the land is sloped you can’t see them from the trail and won’t be able to see them from my land. I don’t think anyone lives up there full time. I went up a couple winters ago and there were no tracks out to the area.

Be interesting to see if there has been traffic this winter when I go up this weekend.


So long story short, there are a handful of recreational cabins along the 6 mile trail ride to
Mine. Couldn’t tell you the closest. I’d guess It’s probably 1km or so.

The closest occupied year round residence is likely 20-30 miles away.

Originally Posted By HDS64:

So it’s safe to pee off the porch without neighbors watching

Originally Posted By colt_thompson:
Here's a cool thread that details off grid living
https://www.ar15.com/forums/outdoors/Better-LATE-than-never--THREE-Years-in-Idaho-/19-694998/

Originally Posted By Handydave:
Looks great. definitely subscribing

paging @Canoeguy to the log cabin courtesy phone

Originally Posted By Rosta97:
Alright so for the cabin:

I want this to be a nice property my kids and their kids can inherit so I decided to go log. While a traditional stick build could be done cheaper it just doesn't have that authentic feel to it.

Since I want it done this summer and the trees on the property aren't big enough to use I'm going to be buying the lumber.

I'm going to go basically off the design of this public use cabin, but am going to make it bigger than this one.

https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/2BC365BF-3901-4F17-A968-48DCCA2AC120_jpe-2669572.JPGhttps://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/06F03473-F751-4B02-90C0-4AA1F112BEAD_jpe-2669573.JPG

Since there is the possibly we end up living in it full time I wanted it as big as possible while still being able to only have 1 log per wall length. Mine will be roughly 19x19ft with a loft using 20ft logs and the butt and pass technique for stacking them. Looking at using 6in logs since they seem to be the most cost effective(10in logs are almost double the price of 6in logs)  and not so overly heavy that we can't move them by hand.

Here is a quick sketch I drew up of the front. Each grid square is 6in. https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/AD158DFB-F1A9-482D-B92C-5F2E3D5DCE46_jpe-2669575.JPG


I'll freely admit I am not an architect or a carpenter. I have spent a lot of time wrenching on cars but never done a lot of carpentry. So I'm open to any and all suggestions on that front.

Here is an estimated spreadsheet I came up with for the costs. Also included a 20% charge since I'm sure I am going to get nickel and dimed to death on screws and nails and hinges etc.
https://www.ar15.com/media/mediaFiles/231690/B96E626D-63B8-4A96-933B-999312DCC998_jpe-2669579.JPG
I want to get it build to the point we could spend a weekend in it this summer. But it doesn't have to be perfect and will get a lot of upgrades in coming years.

Originally Posted By akcaribouhunter:
Make sure you build it at least 36 in above the tundra. Being able to get under and level it are huge. Plus it keeps the ground from heating up.
Make sure your pads are oversize. Some have insulated them.

Trying to remember who had the kit cabins in Fairbanks area for a decent price.

Originally Posted By Canoeguy:

Oh I am happy to help. But it’s a pretty big conversation. You are more than welcome to give me a call, OP. I realize you don’t know who I am but I am the fellow who runs a log home manufacturing and construction company. I would guess I have built probably 500 or so log structures. I don’t turn key, I only build the log portion.  I am not going to Alaska but I am more than happy to share what I know.


ETA: just to be clear I build all over…but Alaska would definitely be a biiig delivery fee ;)

Originally Posted By Inquisitive_Spaniard:
I’d follow this thread but you’ll probably die in 8 years and make me sad all over again.

RIP Aviator

Originally Posted By Canoeguy:

I would guess I have built probably 500 or so log structures.

Originally Posted By H4ppyB34r:
Looking at the plans you have, looks like 8ft height on the walls...

If you plan to do a loft above like the public use cabin, perhaps add some height so you have a more useable area below the loft, and up on top.

How are these insulated? I know logs have fairly decent R value alone, the larger ones obviously more so.

I'm assuming there is a dimensional lumber wall built inside to allow for additional insulation and wiring to be done... Could be way off

I build houses in TX, so my experience is -10% of anyone in the cold climates

Originally Posted By MtnMusic:
Is the roof insulated? (Don't see that on the spreadsheet).... IME if the floor and roof are both pretty well insulated, then bare log walls are just fine.

Originally Posted By H4ppyB34r:
Looking at the plans you have, looks like 8ft height on the walls...

If you plan to do a loft above like the public use cabin, perhaps add some height so you have a more useable area below the loft, and up on top.

How are these insulated? I know logs have fairly decent R value alone, the larger ones obviously more so.

I'm assuming there is a dimensional lumber wall built inside to allow for additional insulation and wiring to be done... Could be way off

I build houses in TX, so my experience is -10% of anyone in the cold climates

Originally Posted By Canoeguy:
You don’t want log spikes you need log hogs and for this they need to be 9”

What species of wood are you using? The weight guestimations are pretty high. For instance I can lift a 6x12x16’ by myself and I am an out of shape middle-aged dude. Are these peeled or millled? I most definitely recommend milled.