[1] Its unofficial name relates to its position at the tip of Grand View Overlook, one of several scenic viewpoints along Rim Rock Drive.

[5] The spire is composed primarily of cliff-forming Wingate Sandstone, which consists of wind-borne, cross-bedded quartzose sandstones deposited as ancient sand dunes approximately 200 million years ago in the Late Triassic.

The caprock at the summit consists of fluvial sandstones of the resistant Kayenta Formation.

[6] The floor of the canyon is Precambrian basement rock consisting of gneiss, schist, and granites.

Precipitation runoff from this geographical feature drains to the Colorado River, approximately three miles to the northeast.