The lower portions of the buttes are composed of relatively soft, clay-rich sedimentary rock called the Brule formation.

[2] Below this level and visible only further east than the buttes is the Chadron member of the White River Formation.

[2] The cap rock is a harder mixture of sandstone and conglomerate, while the Brule layers are a softer clay.

The surrounding area is considered a badlands as North Pawnee Creek cuts numerous channels into the Brule Formation soils.

The Overlook, the Lipps Bluff trail, and the area within 200 yards of the cliffs are closed to hikers from March 1 to June 30, to protect nesting falcons, eagles, and hawks.

[4] Subsequently the Pawnee Buttes are also utilised as a filming location for various scenes in the 1978 Centennial miniseries which is an adaption of James A. Michener's novel.