Who has been Stationed at Fort Irwin, CA and what can those ROP Members Tell us about the Housing, Family Activities, and the Duty Station?

COL Mikel J. Burroughs — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 10:07:14 -0400

Who has been Stationed at Fort Irwin, CA and what can those ROP Members Tell us about the Housing, Family Activities, and the Duty Station?

RP Members that have been stationed there we need as much feedback as possible from firsthand experiences.

I have an RP connection that would really like to hear the good, the bad, and the ugly! Please direct your responses to SPC Private RallyPoint Member

Response by SFC Andrew Reed made Aug 22 at 2015 10:19 AM

SFC Andrew Reed — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 10:19:37 -0400

I was stationed there after my Iraq deployment in late 2004. I had two young kids at the time and they loved it there. The best perk is you are a two hour drive to many different places like Vegas, Los Angeles, Big Bear (for snow skiing) and San Diego.

I personally had great time and quite a bit professionally while I was stationed there.

Response by SFC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2015 10:24 AM

SFC Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 10:24:00 -0400

I was stationed there for 35 months and own a home in Riverside (two hour drive each way).

Response by 1LT Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2015 11:33 AM

1LT Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 11:33:13 -0400

NTC has changed a lot since even just 4-5 years ago. His/her work schedule, op-tempo, time at home will vary greatly depending on which unit they're assigned to

Response by SPC Jeffrey Bly made Aug 22 at 2015 12:35 PM

SPC Jeffrey Bly — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 12:35:02 -0400

It's another typical Army base with sand imported for everyone's enjoyment. Oh, and it gets a little warm sometimes.

Response by MSG Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 22 at 2015 5:06 PM

MSG Private RallyPoint Member — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 17:06:26 -0400

I was there from 1997-2000, so I cant really say much. Other than it is very hot in the summer. Cold and windy in the winter. DO NOT mess with any of the wildlife. Pretty centrally located to Vegas, LA, and other cities.

Response by 1LT William Clardy made Aug 22 at 2015 6:23 PM

1LT William Clardy — Sat, 22 Aug 2015 18:23:10 -0400

COL Mikel J. Burroughs, the good news is that it's much more habitable than when I was stationed there. I think the last of the Quonset huts were gone by the end of the 80s...

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 23 at 2015 2:49 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 23 Aug 2015 14:49:09 -0400

To be honest this was by far my most enjoyable duty station. Mainly cause of the job I had. The housing has improved drastically. We enjoyed the house we were given. The schools for the younger children are pretty good. The amenities on base aren't robust but not sparse. The downside is you have to plan a whole day trip to go anywhere off post. I recommend living on post due to that. Californians love to commute. I don't.

Response by LTC Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 23 at 2015 3:29 PM

LTC Private RallyPoint Member — Sun, 23 Aug 2015 15:29:39 -0400

I have been stationed here 28 months. They have a commissary, a small town center with a clothing and sales, alterations, Pizza Hut, Subway, etc. They also have a Sam Adams restaurant on post by the bank. They have 3 main housing areas: Crackerjack Flats, Sandy basin, and Sleepy Hollow for E-7 and above. There are a couple of gyms (X1 Crossfit gym), post theater, hospital, and chapels. This is a very remote post with the main training mission being training rotational training units. We are around 40-45 minutes from I-15. We are approximately 2.5 hours from Las Vegas and 3.0 hours from San Diego. I hope this helps.

Response by PV2 Private RallyPoint Member made Aug 26 at 2015 3:23 PM

PV2 Private RallyPoint Member — Wed, 26 Aug 2015 15:23:28 -0400

to be honest it sucks a lot don't dig in your back yard

Response by SGT Private RallyPoint Member made Nov 5 at 2015 2:43 PM

SGT Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 05 Nov 2015 14:43:15 -0500

Honestly, it's not that bad of a post. Most of the leadership I have encountered in my 24 months here have been outstanding. The hardest part about Fort Irwin for me is the rotational calendar. I'm currently training in Judo to compete on the national/international level, and the rotation usually falls on major tournaments. (Dang it!)

Overall, Fort Irwin is a great post to go to school, get promoted, volunteer in the community, and enjoy the great outdoors.

Response by MAJ Private RallyPoint Member made Dec 8 at 2015 8:17 AM

MAJ Private RallyPoint Member — Tue, 08 Dec 2015 08:17:49 -0500

I was stationed at Fort Irwin from 2004-2006 as the Regimental S1. Deployed for most of 2005. Great little post. Everything you need is on post. Barstow (closest town) is about 30 minutes away; Victorville about an hour. I lived on Crackerjack Street, but the turned that area into enlisted housing at the end of my tour. It was a pretty good location with Mount Blackie right across the street - good running trail to the top. The Pre-school was pretty good. It had a basic medical clinic on post. If you have more complicated medical needs, you'll probably have some road trips to San Bernadino.

Response by SSG Audwin Scott made Dec 10 at 2015 8:26 AM

SSG Audwin Scott — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 08:26:27 -0500

Never been stationed there but I have been there for NTC but other than that doesn't look like a place I would want to be stationed, it's in the middle of nowhere.

Response by PO1 William "Chip" Nagel made Dec 10 at 2015 5:45 PM

PO1 William "Chip" Nagel — Thu, 10 Dec 2015 17:45:32 -0500

Only Bases in California I know are San Diego/Coronado/Imperial Beach, Alameda (Doesn't exist anymore) and Travis.

Response by LTC Jason Mackay made Apr 17 at 2017 9:14 AM

LTC Jason Mackay — Mon, 17 Apr 2017 09:14:42 -0400

Response by SFC David McMillen made Jul 20 at 2017 4:58 PM

SFC David McMillen — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 16:58:28 -0400

I was there 90-93 and again 2004-2006. I enjoyed it, owl canyon and calico ghost town are cheap fun. Enjoy rotation breaks by getting out, sightseeing, and enjoying what the area has to offer.

Response by Cpl John Barker made Jul 20 at 2017 5:02 PM

Cpl John Barker — Thu, 20 Jul 2017 17:02:17 -0400

That was a miserable 4 weeks (pre deployment training) if you have the option to get stationed elsewhere, like literally any other base, you should. Roughly equivalent to 29 Palms. Oh, and for some reason a lot of our guys didn't seem to realize that the desert gets cold at night. Some decent places to visit but you will need to drive some distance, so would also recommend a POV that is good on gas.