Sierra Norte de Puebla

The Sierra Norte de Puebla is a rugged mountainous region accounting for the northern third of the state of Puebla, Mexico. It is at the intersection of the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt and the Sierra Madre Oriental, between the Mexican Plateau and the Gulf of Mexico coast. From the Mesoamerican period to the 19th century, this area was part of a larger region called Totonacapan, and area dominated by the Totonac people, extending further east to the Gulf of Mexico. Political maneuvers to weaken the Totonacs led to the region being divided between the modern states of Puebla and Veracruz with the Puebla section given its current name. Until the 19th century, the area was almost exclusively indigenous, with the four main groups still found here today, Totonacs, Nahuas, Otomis and Tepehuas, but coffee cultivation brought in mestizos (mixed indigenous/European people) and some European immigrants who took over political and economic power. While highly marginalized socioeconomically, the area has been developed heavily since the mid 20th century, especially with the building of roadways linking it to the Mexico City area and the Gulf coast.

The region consists of sixty eight municipalities, most of which are considered rural, located at the far north of the state of Puebla, north and east of where the state of Tlaxcala cuts into Puebla. Most of the Sierra Norte corresponds with the Puebla subregion of the Carso Huasteco, which covers an area of 448,927 hectares or thirteen percent of the state.

The area is at the intersection of the Sierra Madre Oriental and the Trans-Mexican Volcanic Belt. These mountains extend eastward into the state of Veracruz until the narrow Gulf of Mexico coastal plain. The areas rocks is mostly sedimentary with some volcanic, but all have been altered by tectonic processes caused by the moving earth and forming the mountains here. The area is very rugged with few narrow valleys with about 60% of the territory made up of steep slopes. Altitudes range from 100 to 2,300 meters above sea level. The area is filled with caves and caverns, many of which are little explored. The area’s mountains are divided into the Sierra de Zacapoaxtla, Sierra de Huauchinango, Sierra Teziutlán, Sierra de Tetela de Ocampo, Sierra de Chignahuapan and Sierra de Zacatlán. The highest altitudes are over 4,200 meters above sea level. Main elevations include Apulco, Chichat, Chignahuapan, Soltepec and Tlatlauquitepec.

...
Wikipedia