The nearest higher neighbor is Mount Duckabush, 1.6 mi (2.6 km) to the east-northeast, and O'Neil Pass lies 1.5-mile to the northeast.

O'Neil Peak is located in the marine west coast climate zone of western North America.

As fronts approach, they are forced upward by the peaks of the Olympic Range, causing them to drop their moisture in the form of rain or snowfall (Orographic lift).

[5] Traveling east to west, his second exploratory party of 1890 traveled up the North Fork Skokomish River, circled around the north side of Mount Steel to O'Neil Pass, then descended into Enchanted Valley and followed the Quinault River to Lake Quinault.

The volume of work accomplished by O'Neil and his team expanded the body of knowledge about the interior of the Olympic Peninsula, and sections of the route that they blazed are now part of the park's trail system.