Fort Carson is located on the front range of the Rocky Mountains and only 60 miles South of Denver on Interstate 25 at Exit 135. The post is in the Southwest corner of Colorado Springs, beneath and in the shade of Cheyenne Mountain.

At 6,035 feet, Colorado Springs sits over one mile above sea level, with some areas of the city being considerably higher. The city is located close to the base of one of the most famous American mountains, Pikes Peak, at the eastern edge of the southern Rocky Mountains. In 2006, Colorado Springs was selected as the No. 1 Best Big City in "Best Places to Live" by Money magazine.

Colorado Springs averages 300 days of sunshine per year, and receives approximately 15 inches of annual precipitation. Average snowfall for the area (included in the previous annual precipitation calculation) is 5.5" in November, 5.7" in December, 5.0" in January, 5.1" in February, 9.4" in March and 6.3" in April. Due to unusually low precipitation for the past few years before 2006, Colorado Springs has had to enact lawn water restrictions. Average January low and high temperatures are 14°F/42°F and average July low and high temperatures are 55°F/85°F.

Colorado Springs has relatively mild winters, with large snow accumulations in the downtown area relatively rare, a strong warming sun due to the altitude, and only occasional periods of sub-zero cold snaps and blizzards from October 31 to March/April.

The hottest temperature ever recorded in Colorado Springs was 101°F on June 7, 1874 and the coldest temperature ever recorded was -32°F on Jan. 20, 1883. Colorado Springs is also one of the most active lightning strike areas in the United States. This natural phenomenon led Nikola Tesla to select Colorado Springs as the preferred location to build his lab and study electricity.

Colorado Springs is served by an extensive bus system called Metro (short for Mountain Metropolitan Transit). Metro also operates the Front Range Express (FREX) service, which connects Colorado Springs to Denver and several other metropolitan areas. Although the Metro system serves much of the city and its nearest suburbs, it lacks service to many important areas and has only limited hours of operation. Please visit www.springsgov.com and check the Transportation and Transit tab for more information on Metro. Taxicabs are available by phone or can usually be chartered at the airport or downtown.