Pico de Orizaba, a dormant volcano, is the highest peak in Mexico, and the third highest in North America, behind Mount McKinley (20,322 ft.) and Mount Logan (19,550 ft.). Its steep snow-covered cone fills the sky from the town of Orizaba, which lies at the mountain's southeast base.

The views from high on the mountain are excellent, with the Gulf of Mexico visible to the east and Popocatepetl (17,887 ft.) and Iztaccihuatl (17,342 ft.), Mexico's second and third highest mountains respectively, visible to the west.