This area of the Mojave Desert called the High Desert, I grew up in the Barstow/Victorville area. Victorville, CA is a town about 100 miles n. of Los Angeles, about 35 miles further north is the US Army's Ft Irwin NTC(National Training Center), and in the same vacinity is the giant Marine Corp Supply Depot.
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SEALs holding exercises in Victorville

VICTORVILLE -- Teams of elite military forces have descended on Victorville for a week of nighttime urban warfare training around the city.

Wednesday, February 8, 2006
SEALs holding exercises in Victorville

By MIGUEL GONZALEZ

Staff Writer

VICTORVILLE -- Teams of elite military forces have descended on Victorville for a week of nighttime urban warfare training around the city.

During Tuesday's exercise near Seventh and D streets, teams of Navy SEALs started shooting blank rounds around 2:15 a.m. according to witnesses.

"The shooting continued for more than an hour. When I went outside to see what was going on, it looked like a war zone out there," James Duffy, a graveyard shift worker at the nearby AM/PM said.

"They had people dressed as terrorists and they must have blown off at least 400 rounds of ammunition during the exercise," he estimated.

Duffy said the noise of the machine guns and M-16 rifles used in the exercise could be heard for miles.

About 300 members of the Special Operations Command, in conjunction and other armed forces, will be training over the next few days, a military spokesman said.

Some of the training exercises will include helicopters, machine guns and Humvees in different parts of the city.

"Victorville provides realistic urban training and we are preparing our units for the global war on terrorism," Senior Chief Journalist Austin Mansfield said Tuesday.

"The training will continue in various places of the city until Feb. 11, but this is not an event open to the public," Mansfield said.

Mansfield said the exercises include elite teams such as the Naval Special Warfare and the 160th Special Operations Aviation Regiment.

Some residents said the early morning gunfire scared many families.

Victorville Mayor Mike Rothschild said Tuesday that most residents in areas near the training exercises were notified beforehand.

"This will only last a few days. They are also doing some training at the Southern California Logistics Airport," he said. "I guess you cannot ignore the helicopters landing, but for the most part people should stay away from the operation," he advised.

Mansfield said Victorville provides a realistic atmosphere that is greatly appreciated for the training of these special forces.

"The exercises have been coordinated with the local police department. All military units need to prepare for many environments to be successful, and Victorville provides excellent training."

© Desert Dispatch. A Freedom Communications Newspaper. All rights reserved.

I wanna play!

Or is it ICE performing their first inland sweep?

How far away from Spring Valley Lake is that? I've got a buddy who lives in that part of Victimville.

Quoted: How far away from Spring Valley Lake is that? I've got a buddy who lives in that part of Victimville.

S.V.L. is a suburb(this is surpising) of Victorville, about 10mins(6.3miles) according to Yahoo maps.  Years ago when I was there, this area of the Mojave Desert was just sage brush and military installations, now this area is thought about as a far-flung suburb of Los Angeles.  Actually if you think about Palmdale & Edwards AFB is not that far away.

On my way to Vegas last Friday, I saw a C130 doing a low flying. Wish I could have taken that picture, but I was the driver.