La Posta Mountain Warefare Training Facility, California
The Mountain Warfare Training Facility is located 50 miles east of San Diego, near the city of Campo. The 1,063 acre site has a firing range, an administration building, and a dormitory. The Navy has operated on the 1,300 plus acres since the early 1960s, and is seeking to set aside an additional 4,486 acres of federal Bureau of Land Management property for the facility. The Mountain Warfare Training Facility served as a satellite tracking station for many years until current technology made the giant tracking dishes obsolete. The property was reconfigured as a training center when the station was shut down in 1986.
In 1998, Naval Base Coronado gave permission for the Special Warfare Community to use the site for mountain warfare training. This site is exceptionally important because of its unique physical characteristics similar to many foreign countries. Its close proximity to most military bases in San Diego County allows for maximum training time with limited travel time and expense. The unencumbered area around LaPosta makes it an ideal location for special reconnaissance training, map and compass training, and other specialized special warfare training. LaPosta, like San Clemente Island, is one of the few places that allow special forces to train in a real life environment with limited encroachment problems.