Kames and kettles are commonly (although not necessarily) found together in the sub-glacial ice contact zone. Often times a landscape with many small hills, with several small ponds or lakes, is referred to as "Kame and Kettle Topography" to describe the phenomenon.

Kettles are small lakes like those pictured above. They form during the ablation phase of the glacier, when large chunks of ice are stagnating. Often times these ice chunks are buried in glacial till. The weight of the ice depresses the ground surface, and subsequent melting of the ice produces closed depressions filled with water, which are then maintained by precipitation and meltwater.

Kames are typically small hills a few meters to tens of meters tall, although some can achieve heights which are much taller. They form in the following manner: a stream at the top of the glacier intersects a crevasse, filling it with sediment. A stratification of the sediment forms; during times of higher ablation, larger particles are able to be entrained and thus deposited in the crevasse, whereas in times of lower discharge, more fines are deposited. As the glacier ablates, the sediment collapses into a hill. Kames, like eskers, are often mined for their sand and gravel deposits.