The Schriever SFB guide

• Fly into Colorado Springs Airport (COS), about 25 minutes from the gate: leave the airport on Powers Boulevard north, right on Platte Avenue, right on Highway 94 east for about 10 miles, then right on Enoch Road about 2 miles to the north gate. Denver International (DEN) is roughly two hours north and often cheaper, but budget for I-25 traffic. Rent a car — there is no shuttle, no rideshare depth on the plains, and no walking to anything from the base.
• Two gates: the North Gate on Enoch Road is normally 24/7 and houses the Visitor Control Center; the West Gate on Irwin Avenue, just south of CO-94, is normally 0600–1900 Monday–Friday and is the closer one from Colorado Springs. In 2026 the Enoch Road gate is under construction, most inbound traffic has shifted to the West Gate, and during the 0500–0900 rush all three West Gate lanes run inbound only — confirm the current configuration on the Peterson–Schriever site or 50 FSS social media before your first drive.
• Visitor Control Center: 1560 Enoch Road, Colorado Springs, CO 80930, 719-567-5620, open Monday–Thursday 0700–1600 and Friday 0700–1400. Anyone without a DoD ID needs a sponsor with base access and a REAL ID-compliant license, registration, and insurance; family members and contractors should get passes arranged before arrival because the VCC closes early on Fridays.
• Everyone arrives between 0500 and 0900 along the same two-lane stretch of CO-94, so expect a slow queue at the West Gate on crew-change mornings. When snow is forecast, watch for delayed-reporting or mission-essential-only calls from Space Base Delta 1 — CO-94 and Enoch Road drift shut before the city streets do.

• No schools on Schriever. Tierra Vista housing and the Ellicott area are zoned to Ellicott School District 22, whose Ellicott Elementary holds a Purple Star designation for military-connected students.
• Most families in town use Falcon School District 49 (Falcon, Peyton, Banning Lewis Ranch, east Colorado Springs), known for its STEM and choice programs and Military Student Transition Consultants; Colorado Springs District 11 and Fountain-Fort Carson District 8 cover the older east side and the south. Colorado Military Academy, a Purple Star charter near Peterson, is a popular option too.
• School Liaison Program: reach the Schriever office through the Military & Family Readiness Center at 101 Falcon Parkway, 719-567-3920, or the Peterson–Schriever School Liaison page for enrollment help and district comparisons.
• Childcare: Schriever has one Child Development Center with infant through preschool care plus school-age programs; request care through MilitaryChildCare.com the day you have orders, because Colorado Springs waitlists run months and the Peterson CDC is the overflow.

• Schriever Clinic, part of the 21st Medical Group (Space Base Delta 1), is an outpatient clinic only — primary care and flight medicine, no emergency room. Appointment line 719-524-CARE (2273); hours Monday–Thursday 0730–1630 and Friday 0730–1130, with a 24-hour Nurse Advice Line at the same number, option 3. The larger Peterson SFB clinic at 559 Vincent Street handles pharmacy, labs, and specialty referrals.
• Emergencies go to a civilian ER — UCHealth Memorial Hospital Central downtown or Memorial North on the north side are the trauma centers, and Evans Army Community Hospital at Fort Carson serves TRICARE beneficiaries on the south side. Call 911 from the plains; response times east of Marksheffel are real.
• TRICARE West Region, administered by TriWest Healthcare Alliance.

Commissary

• None at Schriever — use the Peterson SFB Commissary, 1040 E.
• Stewart Avenue, roughly 15 minutes west on CO-94

Exchange

• Schriever has only a shoppette/Express (719-567-3915) for fuel and snacks; the full Peterson Exchange is at 1030 E.
• Stewart Avenue

Fitness

Main Fitness Center, Building 120 on Falcon Parkway, 719-567-6628 — staffed Monday–Friday 0500–1930, with 24/7 unstaffed access after a CAC registration and short briefing

Dining

Satellite Dish Dining Facility inside the Restricted Area (breakfast, lunch, dinner, and a 2300–0100 midnight meal daily; open to all base employees for dinner, midnight, and weekends) plus food trucks Monday–Friday 1030–1300 — pack lunch otherwise

MWR

50th Force Support Squadron (50fss.com) runs fitness, the CDC, the M&FRC, and Outdoor Recreation gear and ticket programs; the big MWR menu — bowling, auto hobby, Peterson Club — is at Peterson

Newcomers

Military & Family Readiness Center, 101 Falcon Parkway, 719-567-3920 — Monday–Wednesday and Friday 0800–1600, Thursday 0900–1600, for in-processing, relocation, and spouse employment help

1. 01Book the Pikes Peak Lodge at Peterson the day orders are cut — Schriever has no lodging, and June through August the lodge sells out while the per diem rate jumps to $168, so get your non-availability number early and secure a crashpad.
2. 02Check the Enoch Road gate construction status before your first morning. In 2026 the North Gate is being rebuilt, inbound traffic is pushed to the West Gate on Irwin Avenue, and from 0500 to 0900 all three lanes run inbound; the VCC still lives on Enoch Road.
3. 03CO-94 is a two-lane rural highway with real winter drift and real deer. Keep an ice scraper, a blanket, and a full tank; when Space Base Delta 1 announces delayed reporting, believe it, and follow 50 FSS and the Peterson–Schriever Facebook pages for the snow calls.
4. 04There is nothing to eat outside the Restricted Area except food trucks from 1030 to 1300 on weekdays. Stock the fridge at the Peterson commissary on the way out of town and pack lunch — the drive to Powers Boulevard for a sandwich burns an hour.
5. 05You are at 6,200 feet with a dry wind. Drink twice the water you think you need, go easy on alcohol the first few nights, and expect the PT test to feel harder than at sea level for a week or two.
6. 06Summer afternoons bring hail and lightning fast — park under cover when you can, and do not plan a Pikes Peak or Incline day that ends after noon.
7. 07If you are PCSing with kids, apply at MilitaryChildCare.com and contact the D49 or Ellicott registrar before you arrive; CDC waitlists in Colorado Springs run months, and District 49 schools of choice fill early.
8. 08Pack for four seasons in one week: a puffy jacket and sunglasses in January, a rain shell and sunscreen in July, and closed-toe shoes for the wind-blown gravel around the plains parking lots.

More Colorado guides

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