I am loving Ft WW. We came here from Ft. Sill and before that Ft. Campbell.

On post housing has a wait generally but with 16th CAB moving to JBLM I think a lot of housing has freed up. They are also building more near the main gate so that they can demo the ultra old housing.

We lived in Birchwood before we moved onto post. Birchwood is meh. It’s adjacent to post because the land belongs to the army, but it was annexed by USARAK to be used privatized off-post housing on a 30 year lease. I think they are approximately 10 years into that lease. If you are wanting off post housing your best bet is searching Craigslist unless you are going to buy. There’s often lots of housing in between Eielson AFB and Ft WW. Be wary though — if a place looks amazing and is cheap it likely doesn’t have plumbing.

I’ve yet to have a problem with North Haven (the company that manages housing). Cut the grass in your backyard and don’t set the houses on fire and they’re happy. They have mowers and weed eaters available to borrow at the housing offices. They heat through steam and all the housing areas are connected to the same heating system except Siku Basin which has its own independent boiler system because of its location. You only pay for your phone/internet. Your BAH goes to rent and power and water. The maintenance staff has been nothing but respectful and kind to me. Going out of their way to make sure I’m taken care of, etc.

The commissary and px are run of the mill. They just reopened the bowling alley on post from a massive makeover that apparently took ages. I’m unsure of the time frame but it’s really nice on the inside. The hotel on post is super expensive but they did fix the TLA problem (being that you had to pay up front AND sign in in order to be granted TLA). Now it’s normal.

I am a student and employee at UAF. I’ve had a normal experience with them.

Stuff does cost more here. That’s why you get COLA. Don’t live beyond your means and run up bills here that you can’t pay once you go back to the lower 48.

Don’t be afraid of the winter. Be proactive. Get your vehicle winterized before you get here if you are PCSing during the winter. You can claim the maintenance costs on your taxes. Book your tickets for the ferry early. Again, this is if you are coming in the winter. In summer it’s much simpler. Your regular heavy winter stuff is fine for here. Just don’t hang out outside.

There is an Old Navy, Famous Footwear Sports Authority, WalMart, Sam’s Club, Fred Meyer, Safeway, a Mall, and a Barnes and Noble along with tons of local places that can cater to your needs and whims. Fairbanks is small but because it serves such a large area of the state it has a lot of conveniences you wouldn’t expect.

Have I left anything out? If you have any questions about Alaska or Ft WW please tweet me @obscurelynikki or email me!

Adrea said:

Just outside of Fairbanks, AK. This installation has lots of Outdoor and Indoor recreation, (links provided below) NAF for finding jobs, PX, Commissary, and privatized housing. There’s an Inn and the military Bassett hospital. I am an army spouse who works off base and is going to college atvia Career Step, fully paid for by MyCAA. If you’re interested there’s a link below for that as well. I enjoy the summers up here and being able to explore Alaska, the winters are terribly cold and you get stuck inside for many months.

• Bassett Hospital: http://www.alaska.amedd.army.mil/
• FTWW MWR Calendar of Events: http://www.calendarwiz.com/calendars/calendar.php?crd=ftwainwrightfmwr&PHPSESSID=9161b9ec2e8e9894ec0090c76b944da3
• Explore Fairbanks events: http://www.explorefairbanks.com/things-to-do
• CareerStep: Give them the refer ID and save an additional $50. Your Referrer ID is: ref16059 http://referral.careerstep.com/ref16059

Michelle recently drove from Fort Rucker to Fort Wainswright:

We just made the move from Fort Rucker to Fort Wainwright. If it’s just you and your husband it’s a good idea to take the ferry. My husband I really enjoyed it. It was really pretty. We have a dog. She had to stay in the car. Some people had kennels and put their dogs on kennels. We were put on the upper car deck, which if you are going to Haines (highly likely), you’ll be able to the dog on an outside deck. We found somewhere off post to live because the waiting list is about 2 months right now and I’m not staying in a hotel for that long. It took us about 4 hours to drive through Canada and it was beautiful. We didn’t have a trailer, so we had no trouble crossing into Canada.

Samantha says:

I live in Alaska now. I’ve live here for about 10 years total. I’ve done both the drive and the ferry! Driving through Canada is fun if you haven’t don’t it before. They have a hot spring you can stop at and a lady that makes the most amazing cinnamon rolls! We always stop at both when driving threw. The drive if just very long esp. if you’re doing it in a car full or with animals. I’ve done the ferry once. I would love to do it again! When you go to the restroom and flush the toilet the toilet lights up from the plankton in the water! it’s kind of neat to see in the dark. We saw whales and dolphins, along with amazing views!

And about getting your weather gear, if you’re here before winter get it all then! everything will
more then likely be on sale. but once winter comes all the prices will shoot back up.

Alaska is beautiful, even after 10 years i find views that still take my breath away!

Adrienne gives this advice:

Tametha gives her tips for dining out:

• Best Sushi Place Wasabi Bay
• Best buffett Mayflower
• Best Asian Aloha Grill

She is in  Siku Basin & it is the best housing we lived in & the service is quick. Inspection moving in was great & the waiting time was quick for us to move in.

Brittny says

If you have asthma or ezcema its not a good idea beause its SUPER dry….but some people LOVE it and some HATE it there is no middle….

Ana has been in Alaska for 12 years and thinks…

1)depending on when you comes up here, make sure you have some winter clothes!

2)try to get all your shopping in before you get here, the only great place to shop is Anchorag…e (about 8 hours from
Fairbanks.) But, there’s no Victoria Secret, aeropostale, aerie…basically all the super great clothing stores.. Fairbanks has an Old Navy and our “mall” has American Eagle.

3)this is a heads up. A lot of places don’t ship to Alaska, and if they do, it’s OUTRAGEOUS!

4)hope you only like two seasons. Winter & “summer” haha but it’s cool cause it really is dark all winter & sunlight all summer! It’s a kinda place you either LOVE or HATE.

If you like the outdoors then it’s a great place. There is a lot to do in terms of outdoors. Snow machining, skiing, snow boarding, sledding, hiking, fishing, hunting, Fairbanks has a bird observatory. And if you are into GeoCaching surprisingly we got that too (we do that in the summer time w/our kids)
And lastly, if you come to alaska GET YOUR CAR WINTERIZED! I have heard of a lot of people who don’t know what that is. Take your car to an auto shop & most places do it, my husband did our car himself, just bought the parts & went to the skill center on post & did it. Basically you put a heater on your oil pan, the extension cord is what you plug in at 20 above and colder or else you’ll 1)cold start your car which is bad for it, causes unneeded wear and tear and is more polluting 2)risk your car not starting because your car is an expensive ice block.

Here is the site:
https://myalaska.state.ak.us/home/app
Here is a site for finding a house:
http://www.ahrn.com
http://www.pcsamerica.net
And here are fort Wainwright links:
http://www.wainwright.army.mil
http://www.usarak.army.mil

Chandra has lots to contribute:

(1) On post- new housing has been built in many areas, but the wait list can be quite lengthy. The PX just had some work completed, but is still small and lacks in the variety area. The commissary is what you would expect – they carry just about everything you need in there, and it isn’t too small. We find that it is cheaper to shop at WalMart in Fairbanks, though. The Northern Lights in on post is a nice facility – if you are incoming or outbound, make reservations in advance because they fill up quickly. The rooms may not be huge, but they are nice and the provided breakfast isn’t bad either. There is a Class 6, a few shoppettes, a youth center, art and craft building, nice gym big gym and a secondary one that is older… There is the Last Frontier Community Center which has meeting space, play area for kids, coffee shop, and an area where your kids can play and you can exercise (and still see them) – though I’m not sure how much equipment or what type they have. The nice gym has an ice rink and a pool I believe. The hospital, Bassett, is small, but new and nice.

(2) Fairbanks – Shopping isn’t abundant, but not lacking either. Some of the big names are WalMart, Fred Meyer and Safeway for grocery/general shopping. Sports Authority, Barnes and Noble, Sportsman’s Warehouse, Old Navy, JoAnns, Michaels (the craft store), Pac Sun, American Eagle, Icing, Zales, Sears, Hot Topic, Journeys, Payless Shoes, Foot Locker, and The Shoe Department are some recognizable more specialty oriented shopping. There are some great local shops too, you just have to look around. Restaurants: Fast food- Pizza Hut, A&W, Taco Bell, McDonalds, Wendy’s… Sit down chain names: Chili’s and Boston’s Pizza. Local places that are not bad: Gambardella’s Pasta Bella, Geraldo’s Italian, Pagoda Chinese (in North Pole), Chowder House (soups and sandwiches), Silver Gulch Brewery (in Fox)… Things to do: Just depends on the season! The late spring and summer are AMAZING. Temperatures are bearable (on occasion I’ve seen the lower 90′s but it doesn’t stay that way for long…) The air is fresh, the sun is bright and beautiful (and long lasting!) You can visit the Museum of the North on the UAF campus, see the Trans-Alaska Pipeline close to Fox, travel to Circle to stand in front of the Arctic Circle sign, picnic downtown by the river at the Golden Heart Plaza… In the winter things are much different. VERY cold temperatures (down to -20′s and -30′s is not uncommon, and I’ve seen -57 since we’ve been here for nearly 3 years). At Birch Hill on post you can go tubing, skiing, snowboarding… other things to do are ice fishing, snowshoeing, snowmobiling… you get the idea. Bundle up and don’t stay inside all winter! The lack of daylight can be depressing so make yourself get some warm clothing (courtesy of Prospector Outfitters or Big Rays) and get out and do something.
Denali National Park is only a couple hours drive South. This is a MUST SEE before you leave the area. Drive or take the Alaska Railroad, but just do it! Take your camera… you are likely to see any variety of animals: Dall sheep, Caribou, Bear, Bald Eagles… the summer is the best time to go so you can drive into the park a little further.
As far as the driving conditions in the winter – Roads can get bad. A good set of all weather tires is great to have. You can get your tires studded for a minimal cost at many places around town, or you are allowed to use chains during a certain time of the year. Rear wheel or 2 wheel drive vehicles can be very problematic on icy roads. Also, make sure your vehicle is winterized, especially if you park outdoors. Recommendations are an oil pan heater, engine block heater, and possibly a battery blanket. You can install these yourself or pay someone to do it for you.

Overall, the Spring and Summer make the Winter worth the hassle. It’s only a 3 year tour, so anyone can make the best of it if they wish!

Brittany suggests

It can be very depressing there so make sure to take vitamins and try to stay up beat. Get out of the house when ever possible and make friends

I love Share’s tips:

Entertainment in Fairbanks:
Hockey is HUGE in Fairbanks – the ice dogs play at the Big Dipper and then the Nanooks play upat UAF (the college). There are a few fun bars/clubs dependingon your type of music. The Silver Spur is a country bar, and I honestly cant remember the name of the big club that’s down the street from there. The blue Loon is on the outskirts of town & they have movies and concerts and comedy nights there. It is a great place! And the Howling Dog is also a little bit out oftown, but definately worth the trip to experience it at least once. The Marlin is on College road – it’s a “hippy” college bar, but they have the best guiness in town! There is One movie theater in town on Airport Road, and a couple shopping centers, but no real “mall”. there is always some kind of festival/bazzaar/event going on to keep you from being bored – you just have to be willing to get out and do it.

Ft Wainwright is situated i the Fairbanks North Star Borough. There is a great Commisarry/PX there. An Awesome gym, ball fields, ski/sledding hill & so much more. It’s been a while since I have been in the housing there, but I know they have recently built more housing for all the incoming soldiers, I grew up in the area – so if you want any other info about the fairbanks/north pole area just email me.