Station/Boat Location~
AVSUPFAC Cordova
Date there~
April 96 to Oct 98
Weather~
Temps in the summer avg. high 40's to mid 60's. Winter single digits to the upper 30's. Quite a few gray,rainy days, with the sun poking is head out occasionally. Lots of snow in the winter.
Military facilities~
None
Medical~
Anything out of the ordinary or specialty type care is sent to Anchorage. There is a small hospital and medical clinic, that can handle the day to day stuff. We were on Standard while we were there. I am not sure if Remote has started or not.
Housing~
20 Coast Guard Owned units.. 16, three, bedroom and 4, two bedroom. The three bedrooms are townhouse style with the bedrooms, main bathroom and nice size pantry upstairs and the living room, dining room, kitchen, laundry and small bathroom down. They have small decks off the dining rooms and do not have fenced yards.. really the yard consist of only the small patch of grass between units. The units all come with washers, dryers and dishwashers and an outside storage room. 2 bedroom units are one level and do not have decks. They had put in a new playground for the kids right before we left.
Shopping~
When we were there, it was VERY limited, not to mention very expensive and I have heard it is worse now. There were 2 grocery stores, 1 drugstore, 1 hardware store, some locally owned businesses, 2 banks and 2 gas stations. We did most of shopping through bush mail, the internet or hopped the C-130's, that come over from Kodiak, periodically, to go power shopping in Anchorage. Bush mail is available and is very cheap (something like 70 pounds for around 5.00), so if you buy lots of non-perishable stuff in Anchorage and ship it back to Cordova, you can save a ton of money.
Fun Activities~
Outdoor lovers paradise. Fantastic fishing and hunting, tons of wildlife to see (moose, bears (black and brown) otters, seals, beavers, eagles, trumpetor swans.. to name a few). There are 3 or 4 glaciers to visit.. Child's glacier, by the Million Dollar bridge, is spectacular and is very active. Lots of places to hike and camp. One thing about Cordova, is the sense of Community spirit. For any event, be it high school sports, holiday events, parades, what have you.. the whole town turns out! I have never lived anywhere else where I have felt that sense of spirit!
Child Care/Schools~
There is one elementary school and one Jr High/Sr High combined. I think there was only 1 or 2 day care centers.
Adult Schools~
Small branch of the University of Alaska.
Additional Info~
Cordova has got to be my all time favorite tour up here. It is the place I learned that you don't need all the "stuff" in life to be happy and that less really is more. If you get orders to Cordova, the best piece of advise I can give you, is to focus on all that this beautiful little town has to offer, instead of sitting around complaining about everything you don't have. It is one of the most beautiful places up here, not only in the beauty of the land, but the beauty of the people that make up the community. If you thrive on big city living and lots of sunshine, Cordova would probably not be your best choice, but if you really want to experience small town living in Alaska and don't need malls, movie theaters and fast food (because there isn't any of that there), you should definitely give this little gem of a town a try!
Homeport AK
AVSUPFAC Cordova
Date there~
April 96 to Oct 98
Weather~
Temps in the summer avg. high 40's to mid 60's. Winter single digits to the upper 30's. Quite a few gray,rainy days, with the sun poking is head out occasionally. Lots of snow in the winter.
Military facilities~
None
Medical~
Anything out of the ordinary or specialty type care is sent to Anchorage. There is a small hospital and medical clinic, that can handle the day to day stuff. We were on Standard while we were there. I am not sure if Remote has started or not.
Housing~
20 Coast Guard Owned units.. 16, three, bedroom and 4, two bedroom. The three bedrooms are townhouse style with the bedrooms, main bathroom and nice size pantry upstairs and the living room, dining room, kitchen, laundry and small bathroom down. They have small decks off the dining rooms and do not have fenced yards.. really the yard consist of only the small patch of grass between units. The units all come with washers, dryers and dishwashers and an outside storage room. 2 bedroom units are one level and do not have decks. They had put in a new playground for the kids right before we left.
Shopping~
When we were there, it was VERY limited, not to mention very expensive and I have heard it is worse now. There were 2 grocery stores, 1 drugstore, 1 hardware store, some locally owned businesses, 2 banks and 2 gas stations. We did most of shopping through bush mail, the internet or hopped the C-130's, that come over from Kodiak, periodically, to go power shopping in Anchorage. Bush mail is available and is very cheap (something like 70 pounds for around 5.00), so if you buy lots of non-perishable stuff in Anchorage and ship it back to Cordova, you can save a ton of money.
Fun Activities~
Outdoor lovers paradise. Fantastic fishing and hunting, tons of wildlife to see (moose, bears (black and brown) otters, seals, beavers, eagles, trumpetor swans.. to name a few). There are 3 or 4 glaciers to visit.. Child's glacier, by the Million Dollar bridge, is spectacular and is very active. Lots of places to hike and camp. One thing about Cordova, is the sense of Community spirit. For any event, be it high school sports, holiday events, parades, what have you.. the whole town turns out! I have never lived anywhere else where I have felt that sense of spirit!
Child Care/Schools~
There is one elementary school and one Jr High/Sr High combined. I think there was only 1 or 2 day care centers.
Adult Schools~
Small branch of the University of Alaska.
Additional Info~
Cordova has got to be my all time favorite tour up here. It is the place I learned that you don't need all the "stuff" in life to be happy and that less really is more. If you get orders to Cordova, the best piece of advise I can give you, is to focus on all that this beautiful little town has to offer, instead of sitting around complaining about everything you don't have. It is one of the most beautiful places up here, not only in the beauty of the land, but the beauty of the people that make up the community. If you thrive on big city living and lots of sunshine, Cordova would probably not be your best choice, but if you really want to experience small town living in Alaska and don't need malls, movie theaters and fast food (because there isn't any of that there), you should definitely give this little gem of a town a try!
Homeport AK
