Despite being one of the smaller volcanic peaks in the Oregon Cascades, Mount Washington is the most prominent landmark between North Sister and Three Fingered Jack, with the Cache Mountain cinder cones to the northeast and Hayrick Butte and Hoodoo Butte to the northwest. The volcano forms a crest of steep, icy mountains with North Cinder Peak and Three Fingered Jack to the south of Mount Jefferson. The volcano has a pinnacle appearance resembling the spire-like shape of Mount Thielsen. According to Harris (2005), the volcano resembles Cleopatra's Needle from certain angles and the Sugarloaf Mountain in Brazil from others. The proximal relief for the volcano is , while the draping relief is .[a] The volcano has an overall volume of .