Pico de Orizaba

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The Pico de Orizaba or Citlaltépetl (from Nahuatl citlalli=star and tepetl=mountain), is the highest mountain in Mexico and the third highest in North America. It is located towards the eastern end of the Eje Volcánico Transversal mountain range, on the border between the states of Veracruz and Puebla. It is currently dormant but not extinct: the last eruptions occurred in 1687, with previous eruptions in 1630, 1613, 1569, 1566, 1545-65? and 1537.

The Orizaba Peak (as it might be, but seldom is, called in English) overlooks the valley and city of Orizaba, from which it gets its name. The name Citlaltépetl is not used by Nahuatl speakers of the Orizaba area, who instead call it Istaktepetl (Iztactépetl in the traditional orthography for Classical Nahuatl) 'White Mountain'.

The Pico de Orizaba is ranked 7th in the world in topographical prominence. If sea level were to rise 714 meters, connecting the Arctic-Atlantic with the Pacific oceans in British Columbia, the Pico would still rise over 4,900 meters above sea-level, and would be the highest peak on a continent stretching from the new shoreline in British Columbia to what is now the Isthmus of Tehuantepec. That continent would include the mountain ranges of the western contiguous United States, such as the Cascades, the Sierra Nevada, the Rockies, and the various Sierra Madre ranges.

Although the Pico de Orizaba is about 75 miles inland, to the west of the port of Veracruz, its peak is the first land visible to ships approaching the port, and at dawn the first rays of sunlight strike the Pico while Veracruz still lies in shadow.

The peak is one of three volcanoes that contain permanent snow and glaciers in Mexico. The others are Popocatépetl and Iztaccíhuatl.

A companion peak lying about four miles to the southeast of the Pico de Orizaba is the Sierra Negra, which is visible to the left of the Pico in the picture above and the first below. At 4,640 m. (15,223 ft.) this companion peak is lower than its 5,636 m. neighbor but is still higher than anything in the 48 contiguous states of the U.S., and on its summit, serviced by the highest road in North America, is one of the world's premier astronomical instruments, the Large Millimeter Telescope.

The Pico de Orizaba was important in such pre-Hispanic cultures as those of the Nahuatl-speaking Aztecs and the Totonacas.

The summit and its surrounding foothills are part of a National park. There are many routes for approaching and climbing the volcano, and many people visit it.

The elevation given here is based on a modern survey by a GPS professional. See [link], details of the survey are on page 23. Higher elevations given by various other authorities are incorrect.

Image:Pico_Orizaba_Dawn.jpg|Citlaltépetl at dawn Image:Pico_Orizaba_Pines.jpg|Citlaltépetl from above Xometla

Pico de Orizaba

See also