The falls plunge about off a sheer columnar basalt cliff, unbroken for almost , into an amphitheater-like basin, similar in form to the main drop of nearby Comet Falls. The columnar basalt was likely formed by cooled eruptions of Mount Rainier, which is a stratovolcano. Near the base, it crashes onto a rock ledge and fans out towards the left bank, before dropping again vertically onto a pile of talus and cascading downwards. It is located in a steep canyon on the southwest face of Mount Rainier. Pearl Creek drains to another glacial stream, Pyramid Creek, which parallels then flows into Kautz Creek and finally into the Nisqually River. There are also more cascades below the main drop of Pearl Falls.