It is located 185 kilometres (115 mi) west of the city of Christchurch in the Canterbury Region of the South Island.

Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 1,400 metres (4,593 feet) above the Macaulay Valley in three kilometres.

[2] The mountain's toponym was applied by Julius von Haast to honour Nicholas Chevalier (1828–1902), a Russian-born artist who visited New Zealand in 1865.

[5] Prevailing westerly winds blow moist air from the Tasman Sea onto the mountains, where the air is forced upwards by the mountains (orographic lift), causing moisture to drop in the form of rain or snow.

The months of December through February offer the most favourable weather for viewing or climbing this peak.