The remote peak is set approximately 14 km (8.7 mi) south of Glacier National Park and the nearest higher peak is Moby Dick Mountain, 10.62 km (6.60 mi) to the west-northwest.

Nautilus Mountain is notable for its steep rise above local terrain and for its absolute elevation.

Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises 2,100 meters (6,890 ft) above the Duncan River in 5 km (3.1 mi).

The landform is named for the Nautilus, a fictional submarine belonging to Captain Nemo in Jules Verne's 1870 novel Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Seas.

[6] The mountain's toponym was officially adopted on November 1, 1963, by the Geographical Names Board of Canada.