The Geography and Location of Three Different Military Bases Visited this Year

By Ashley O’Dell

First stop Quantico, Virginia

Located on the Potomac River, Quantico got its name from the Indian Tribe, The Patowomacks who used to inhabit the area in 16th century.

Quantico deprives from Indian Language meaning “By the large stream”

The base was Established in 1917 and was considered a new Industrial city.

At that time they built freighters and Oil liners in time of war

Quantico Railroad Station: Located in Heart of Town, where I took my first train ride back to Rhode Island

Established by Major General George Barnett, who was looking for a place to train Marine Officers that was close to Washington D.C

Today this school prepares all Marine Officers in basic training needed.

THE WOODLAND AREA IS USED TO

TRAIN MARINES TO SURIVE OUTSIDE

USING DIFFERENT SURVIAL TACTICS

Located on the tip of coastal plane it Extends into piedmont which consists of rolling hills and a forested area

Here they learn tactics Like Land

navigation, which is used to find your way

without using a computer or a GPS

The advantage of having the Main officers school located in Quantico Virginia is that is very close to the Nation’s Capital

Quantico Is only 35 miles from Washington D.C

Second Stop: Naval Air Station Pensacola, Florida

Located on the gulf coast In Pensacola Florida

Before The US occupied Florida The Spanish had their own base called Fort Barranca which is situated still on the Naval base today

President John Quincy Adams saw advantages of building a naval base in Pensacola Harbor and construction began in 1825

Today, the Pensacola Naval Complex in Escambia and Santa Rosa counties employs more than 16,000 military and 7,400 civilian personnel.

Fort Barranca Today on Naval Air Base

http://www.navalaviationmuseum.org

National Museum of Naval Aviation is a popular exhibit

to visit on Base

Planes from different eras and time reside here, including the recent air force one Jet

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W6tB8Lf7YoU

Blue Angels practice and perform here in Pensacola Florida on The Naval Air Base

However What Pensacola is most known for is the gulf Coast

Beautiful Water and Sand The gulf is a Wonder of its own

However… dangers threaten this ecosystem

BP Oil Spill On April 20, 2010, the

oil rig Deepwater Horizon

malfunctioned into spilling oil into

gulf coast

http://video.nytimes.com/video/2011/04/11/science/100000000769803/oil-spill-enviro-update.html?scp=8&sq=Gulf%20Coast&st=cse

Impact to the region is still under investigation

Hurricane Ivan hit Pensacola in 2004

Last stop Vance Air Base, Enid Oklahoma

Vance started off the home to herds of cattle that roamed through the plains of Oklahoma

In 1941 the need for a new air Base during World War II was made in Enid Oklahoma by two army men

Vance has grown throughout the years and is known for training Navy, Marine and Air force pilots.

Enid Oklahoma is very flat with fertile plains and low hills

It is Located in in the Red Beds Plains. The largest land region in Oklahoma. The Red Beds Plains slope upward from east to west. In the east are some forested areas. In the west the region is covered with grass.

Because of Oklahoma’s location they get hit with the highest concentration of tornadoes every year Just a few weeks ago Vance Air base was surrounded by 100 tornadoes forming throughout Oklahoma into Kansas

Already Oklahoma and the Midwest is being hit hard with tornadoes because of the change in climate and rising temperatures.The video above is from April 14th and shows the tornadoes forming in Oklahoma

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bWNqnW0BNvE

This year I’ve been to three very different places

Each with a different geography and disasters

I hope next year I get to go to many new places so I can discover the rest of the United States