Cofre de Perote

The Cofre de Perote is the big, flat-shouldered mountain on Xico's western horizon. At 4,282 meters it is one of the highest peaks in Mexico, an old shield volcano whose Nahuatl name, Nauhcampatépetl, is usually translated as "the four-sided mountain." The Spanish name comes from the block of rock at the summit, which looks like a chest, or cofre.

The mountain has been a national park since 1937, covering about 11,700 hectares of pine and sacred fir (oyamel) forest. Xico itself sits on its lower, wetter slopes, so climbing the Cofre means passing from coffee and cloud forest up into cold, dry highland woods, where frost is common and snow falls on some winter days.

Most visitors go up from the Perote side, through the village of El Conejo, at about 3,250 meters. From there a rough road climbs toward the antennas near the top, and the last stretch to the rock is a short walk. On clear mornings the view takes in the Pico de Orizaba to the south and, on the best days, all the way to the Gulf.