Mount Arkansas is set just east of the Continental Divide in the Mosquito Range, which is a subrange of the Rocky Mountains.

[3] The mountain is located eight miles (13 km) northeast of the community of Leadville on land managed by San Isabel National Forest.

Precipitation runoff from the mountain's slopes drains into headwaters of the East Fork Arkansas River.

[1] The mountain's toponym has been officially adopted by the United States Board on Geographic Names,[4] and has been recorded in publications since 1877.

[6] Due to its altitude, it receives precipitation all year, as snow in winter and as thunderstorms in summer, with a dry period in late spring.