At first glance, you might think that Fort Irwin is located in the middle of nowhere. This is partially true, of course, since the closest city (Barstow) is almost 40 miles away, but it's far from the middle of nowhere. What it is in the middle of, however, is Los Angeles and Las Vegas, each of which is a mere 2-and-a-half hours' drive.

That's not to say that you have to drive far to find entertainment around Fort Irwin. Nearby Barstow boasts one of the high desert's biggest outlet malls, the Tanger Outlet Center. With names like Nine West, Gap, Samsonite, GUESS?, Nautica, Tommy Hilfiger and Polo/Ralph Lauren, it's easy to see why this is one of the most soughtafter outlet malls in the state. The outlet mall also boasts two new additions: Old Navy and Liz Claiborne outlets.

In nearby Yermo, you can visit the Calico Ghost Town, a restored silver boomtown that was built in 1881. Though it was eventually abandoned, more than one-third of the buildings are original, and the rest have been painstakingly recreated, from zoning maps and photographs. Visitors can stroll the streets to learn how miners lived, and for the more adventurous, ghost tours are conducted regularly. There are also campsites, RV hookups and bunkhouses available for a nominal fee, for those who wish to stay past sundown.

The town of Victorville is only a half-hour drive from Fort Irwin, and home to the famous Route 66 museum, and is divided into two areas: Old Town Victorville and "new" Victorville. It might be confusing, however, since many locals consider Old Town Victorville to be the "downtown" area. Though the area was once known for "selling the most alcohol, per capita, of any city in the United States" (among other, less savory reputations), an ongoing revitalization is currently taking place, to make it as tourist-friendly as "new" Victorville.

Victorville proper is also the location of the San Bernardino County Fair each spring, while the Victorville Performing Arts Center hosts concerts, lecturers, plays and more, year-round.

For those who enjoy the cultural side of life, San Bernardino (a short drop "over the hill") offers the Civic Light Opera and San Bernardino Symphony, and there's always the famed and colorful Ramona Pageant in Hemet. First staged in 1923, the annual pageant is based on Helen Hunt Jackson's 1884 romantic novel set in California and has become one of the state's greatest outdoor spectacles. There also a variety of plays, dinner theaters, and concerts available in the area.

The mountain cities of Big Bear and Lake Arrowhead are just about an hour's ride from Barstow. The mountains offer 2,000 acres of ski slopes in winter, and summer days bring horseback riding, sailing, waterskiing, fishing, and jet skiing. The original village of Lake Arrowhead was built in the 1920s and was a main attraction for Hollywood's elite. Today, Lake Arrowhead offers lush pine forests, clear air, blue sky, hiking, nature trails and water sports, in addition to shopping where you can find anything from unusual gifts to antiques.

The Los Angeles and San Diego areas are home to attractions such as Disneyland, San Diego Zoo, Sea World, Knott's Berry Farm and others too numerous to mention. And, of course, when you tire of these other attractions, there is always Las Vegas, which offers tons of family entertainment from theme parks and a water park for the kids to gambling and shopping for the adults and a variety of Las Vegas style shows for everyone.

With a wealth of things to do, one question which will come to mind is: When will I have time to enjoy some of the surrounding attractions? A four-day comp time period follows each NTC rotation and there are two max leave periods each year: June through July and December through January.