Wednesday, March 16, 2016

Moving out west.... Fort Huachuca, Arizona

I find it kind of funny that our last post at Fort Drum was 30 min. from the Canadian boarder. And the next post which is Fort Huachuca is 30 min from the Mexican boarder. So from lots of snow to lots of heat. Fort Huachuca is located near the city of Sierra Vista, in Chochise County in Arizona. Being in a dessert in Arizona it obviously gets hot. Summers have days in the 100's, Spring in the 80's, falls are warm and mild winters with only a few inches of snow total. We have had snow twice each year since we have been here, and it melted by the next morning. So this was a good place for me to thaw out after all the snow in NY. One of my favorite quotes about the area is, "The area is so desolate and barren, an old army description of the fort states, "It is the only fort in the Continental United States where you can be AWOL (absent without leave) for three days and they can still see you leaving"
Fort Huachuca has a interesting history for sure. It was originally founded to counter the Chirircahua Apache threat and to secure the Mexican border. It provided protection,shelter and a stream so they set up shop, so to speak. There was a lot of ups and downs for the fort, and it has a rich history including holding Geronimo, and became the base for the "buffalo Soldiers" and now it is now known as the United States Army Network Enterprise Technology Command (NETCOM). Fort Huachuca is also home to Raymond W Bliss Army Medical Center, a U.S. Army Medical Department Activity (MEDDAC). You can find more information on the history by searching in google but thought I would give an little summary to get you going.