 Mount Elden is one of five large peripheral silicic volcanic features within the greater San Francisco Peaks volcanic system (part of the San Francisco volcanic field) which include the nearby Dry Lake Hills, the Hochderffer and White Horse Hills to the northwest, and O'Leary Peak to the northeast.Because these features developed within close proximity of the San Francisco Mountain strato-volcano there is a strong likelihood that each is a geologic subsidiary of the larger mountain.Geologically, Mount Elden is a lava dome composed almost entirely of dacitic lava flows which emerged from several vents.