How to Compliment an Alaskan Woman

1. Respect her independence.

You’ll rarely find a more independent woman than an Alaskan. Since she’s fended for herself and explored the outdoors since birth, she has an impressive arsenal of mechanical and survival skills. Bottom line: she doesn’t need you to be a knight in shining armor. Your best bet here is treating her to some space and let her do her own thing. She’ll love you more for it.

2. Admire her toughness.

The daughters of avid outdoors people, adventurers, and commercial fisherman and women, Alaskan girls grow up tough. They’re also straight shooters with little patience for BS. Instead of being intimidated, respect her by showing you admire her grit.

3. Comment on her resourcefulness.

Frugality and fierce pragmatism are second nature to her, and her upbringing taught her how to turn lemons into lemonade, blueberries into jam, and moose into jerky. Your Alaska bae can likely sew, knit, can, fish, and shoot with the best of them, so every once in a while, pay a compliment to her resourceful ways.

4. Invite her along on your adventures.

An Alaskan woman isn’t satisfied to be cooped up in the kitchen or spend the weekend shopping. With her craving for adventure she’s better suited as your hiking buddy, so instead of buying her things, hit the trails and let her show up your backcountry skills.

5. Appreciate her fashion sense.

Your girl may not be fashionable according to most conventional standards, but she’s adept at pairing hoodies and puffy vests, dressing down any outfit with Xtratuffs, and making Carhartts look cute. This is no small feat — so let her know when her outfit is particularly on point.

6. Let her do her own heavy lifting.

Alaskan households skip the gendered division of labor, opting to treat girls as equal participants in pretty much every activity. Your Alaskan woman is no stranger to physical work and doesn’t need you to change her tire or haul furniture for her. Years of manual labor mean her legs and biceps can be a thing to marvel at, so you’re better off doing just that than offering to step in and help.

7. Appreciate her natural glow.

Alaskan women eschew beauty tutorials and attribute their natural glow to plenty of dirt, nature, and sunshine. Elaborate beauty routines would slow her down anyway, so tell her that you love how she lets her natural beauty shine through.

8. Take an interest in her creative projects.

Whether painting, writing, or knitting, Alaskan woman have creative outlets that often spring from the copious amounts of free time they had in their childhood. Show her you care by asking to see what she’s working on once in a while and accept her handmade gifts with pride.

9. Gush about her cooking.

Alaskan woman can whip up delicacies that satisfy the appetite of any meat-and-potatoes type. Next time she catches, fillets, and grills up a fish for you, watch her light up when you tell her you’ve never had a better piece of salmon.

10. Call her “down to earth.”

Your Alaskan girl isn’t easily riled and never worries about breaking a heel. In fact, she probably hardly ever wears them — she’s more comfortable stomping around in fishing or hiking boots. Nor is she afraid of a little dirt. Pay her the ultimate compliment by telling her you love how down to earth she is.

11. Allow her to dream big.

She doesn’t allow other people to define her life and wholeheartedly chases after her dreams — whether you come along for the ride or not is up to you. Compliment her by encouraging her, supporting her ambitions, and being sure you’re not slowing her down.

12. Accept that she’s wild at heart.

Your Alaskan’s first loves were the wilderness, the mountains, and the sea. Undoubtedly, she has a penchant for adventure and an insatiable travel bug. If you’re with an Alaskan, you have an unusually free-spirited woman on your hands. Appreciate the fact that she’ll always be wild at heart.