Visitor & Gate Information

 

Welcome to Fort Drum, New York

Home of the 10th Mountain Division (Light Infantry)

 

Background

Fort Drum is the home of the 10th Mountain Division (LI), located in northern New York’s picturesque North Country. The installation is in the middle of one of the most historically unique and geographically beautiful areas of the United States. Fort Drum is approximately 30 miles south of Canada, with the Great Lakes to the west, the Adirondack Mountains to the east, and the St. Lawrence River and the Thousand Islands in between. The installation covers about 107,265 acres, or 168 square miles, stretching into two counties.

 

Population

Nearly 15,000 military service members and about 3,700 civilian personnel (including contractors) work at Fort Drum, with about 16,000 family members living on post or in the local area. In addition, more than 14,000 military retirees reside within the local region.

 

Training Support

Fort Drum provides full-spectrum training and base operations support to all of the service branches, 11 states, and parts of Canada. Annually, Fort Drum offers training and base operations support to more than 15,000 Reserve and National Guard members as well as personnel from other federal, state, and local agencies. 

 

Fort Drum Access Control

In general, anyone may access the installation, provided they meet security screening criteria. 

All individuals who attempt to access Fort Drum must present a valid form of identification. Note: Effective Nov. 1, 2024, all personnel entering Fort Drum must physically pass all identification to the guard at the access control point. 

Individuals who do not possess a federal common access card with ePIV may access the installation by working with the Visitor Control Center (VCC).

Note: Civilian retirees who possess REAL ID-compliant identification and retirement documentation (SF-50) as proof of eligibility can complete a brief background check and register with VCC staff. Once registered, retirees will have access for one year and may enter at any gate. When entering Fort Drum, retirees will need to present their REAL ID and SF-50 to gate personnel. At the end of the year, they can re-register at the VCC and submit to the same voluntary background check. Civilian retirees without REAL ID will need to follow the steps outlined below. 
 

Visitor Information

Visitors are defined as anyone not possessing a federal common access card with ePIV.

The Visitor Control Center, located in Bldg. 11008 outside of Lt. Gen. Paul Cerjan / Main Gate, is open from 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week. All visitors must process through the VCC except for commercial trucks, which will remain at Gas Alley.

All visitors must voluntarily submit to a background check to determine fitness for access.

All visitors must have a reason to enter. 

• Individuals may self-sponsor if visiting for just one day between 7:30 a.m. and 11 p.m., or
• They may be sponsored by a DoD CAC holder if visiting overnight or for multiple days. (See Sponsorship Information below.)

* To apply for a day pass, complete IMDR-ES Form 3. The form is available at the VCC and on this website, and it can be hand-delivered or emailed to the VCC.

* Visitors 18 or older must present a valid identification card containing their birth date.

* Visitors who wish to bring their vehicle on post must present a valid driver's license, registration, and proof of insurance.
 

Sponsorship Information

Sponsors MUST:

• Be in possession of a valid DoD CAC or Mountain Community Access Badge.
• Be 18 or older and fall into one of the following categories: Soldiers, family members, retirees and their spouses, or Department of the Army civilian employees.
• Meet their guests at the VCC to sign them in.

DoD ID cardholders may pre-coordinate for the arrival of any visitor by applying for a pass in advance through the Visitor Control Center. Please follow the steps below to download and submit an Application for Sponsorship (IMDR-ES Form 2). A request must be submitted a minimum of 72 hours in advance of a visitor's arrival. 

• Be willing to accept responsibility for their sponsored guests while those guests are visiting the installation.

Once a pass is obtained, pass holders may enter Fort Drum via any gate that is open.

Any individual attempting to access Fort Drum without a DoD CAC or an approved pass / badge will be redirected to the VCC to be properly vetted -- even a service member in uniform or a government employee. 

 

Trusted Traveler Program Information

The Trusted Traveler Program allows DoD CAC holders 18 or older to escort non-DoD CAC holder visitors (except foreign nationals) within their own vehicle without completing sponsorship paperwork. Those who exercise Trusted Traveler must escort their visitors while they are on Fort Drum.

Trusted Traveler does not eliminate the requirement for all individuals 18 or older to provide authorized identification: driver's license, government-issue ID, school ID, passport, etc. Please note that contractors, Mountain Community Homes non-military residents and foreign nationals are NOT eligible to participate in the TTP -- even those who possess a valid DoD CAC.

 

Foreign nationals who are NOT on official orders must follow the above steps to obtain sponsorship and a pass. Additionally, individuals must be escorted by their sponsors at all times after entering Fort Drum until their departure.

Contractors who do not possess a DoD CAC or Local Access Badge will not be allowed on post without a sponsor. Please contact your supervisor for additional information. Personnel who require a Local Access Badge are asked to call (315) 772-8585 to make an appointment.

Special events:

Special procedures will be put in place and announced for communitywide special events, such as Mountainfest.

 

INSTRUCTIONS FOR SUBMITTING
IMDR-ES FORM 2 and IMDR-ES FORM 3

Either form can be printed, filled in, signed, and dropped off in person at the Visitor Control Center, Bldg. 11008, between 5:30 a.m. and 10 p.m. daily.

Forms also can be filled in, sign electronically, and emailed to usarmy.drum.imcom.mbx.des-acp@army.mil.

If there is an issue found during background checks, you will be notified telephonically.

If there are no issues, passes will be prepared and will be available to be picked up at the VCC outside of Lt. Gen. Paul Cerjan Gate during normal business hours.

Pass requests will be processed in the order they are received. If you plan to visit on a particular day and you want to avoid waiting in line at the VCC, you can submit your request in advance and your pass will be waiting for you. Please allow up to 72 hours for processing.

If sponsored personnel will arrive after 10 p.m., please annotate it in your justification. The passes will be moved to Lt. Gen. Paul Cerjan Gate, where they can be picked up inside with appropriate identification.

Questions may be directed as follows:

• Captain of the Guard at (315) 772-9959, 7:30 a.m. to 4 p.m. Monday through Friday;

• Sergeant of the Guard at (315) 772-8392, 24 hours a day; or

• Visitor Control Center at (315) 772-8585, 5:30 a.m. to 10 p.m. seven days a week.

 

REAL ID compliance

Due to circumstances resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic, the Department of Homeland Security has extended the REAL ID enforcement deadline to May 7, 2025. 

By this date, not only must all states be issuing REAL ID-compliant licenses or IDs, but individuals also must have visited their state’s driver’s licensing agency and obtained a REAL ID-compliant card, or acceptable alternative such as a U.S. passport, if they wish to fly on commercial aircraft or access federal facilities.

Federal agencies, including Department of Homeland Security (DHS) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA), may only accept state-issued driver’s licenses and identification cards as identification for purposes of accessing federal facilities – including TSA airport security checkpoints – if the license or card was issued by a REAL ID-compliant state in accordance with the REAL ID security standards (meaning the license or card must include the REAL ID-compliant star marking). 

Enhanced Driver’s Licenses (EDLs) issued by Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Vermont, and Washington are considered acceptable alternatives to REAL ID-compliant cards and will be accepted for official REAL ID purposes. Most EDLs do not contain the star marking, and this is acceptable.

REAL ID-compliant cards will have of one of the following markings on the upper top portion of the card. If the card does not have one of these markings, it is not REAL ID-compliant and it will not be accepted as proof of identity.

For more information, visit the DHS REAL ID Frequently Asked Questions webpage at https://www.dhs.gov/real-id-frequently-asked-questions.

Driving Directions

From the west: Take Interstate 81 Exit 48A, and merge onto Interstate 781. This is a direct route to the Main Gate.

From the east (Plattsburgh, N.Y.): Take NYS Route 190 / Military Turnpike to NYS Route 374 West to NYS Route 3 West. Follow Route 3 West to NYS Route 3A. Follow signs to Fort Drum.