Geography and Environment
Cholula is located in the center west of the state of Puebla in the Valley of Puebla, 122 km east of Mexico City and eight km west of Puebla. This valley is bordered by the Sierra Nevada to the west, the La Malinche volcano to the east, and extends over parts of the states of Puebla and Tlaxcala. The Cholula area extends over 111.03km2, which is divided politically into the municipality of San Andrés (61km2) and San Pedro (51.02km2). The Cholula area borders the municipalities of Juan C. Bonilla, Coronango, Cuautlancingo, San Gregorio Atzompa, Puebla, San Jerónimo Tecuanipan, Calpan and Ocoyucan.
The San Pedro municipality has twenty two communities outside the city; the largest of which are Almoloya, San Cosme Tezintla, Acuexcomac, San Cristóbal Tepontla, San Agustín Calvario, Zacapechpan, San Matías Cocoyotla, San Diego Cuachayotla, and San Francisco Cuapa. These communities primary economic activities are agriculture, floriculture and brick making. Other important communities of San Andrés outside the city include San Francisco Acatepec, San Antonio Cacalotepec, San Rafael Comac, San Luis Tehuiloyocan, San Bernardino Tlaxcalancingo and Santa Maria Tonanzintla.
The geography of the Cholula area is mostly flat with an average altitude of between 2,100 and 2,200 meters above sea level. There is a gentle descent from northwest to southeast along the Atoyac River. There are two main elevations: the Zapotecas Mountain, which rises about 200 meters over the valley and the Tecajetes, which rises 210 meters. There are also low hills that rise in the communities of San Francisco Acatepec and San Bernabé Temoxtitla. There are many stories about the Zapotecas Mountain. One tells of a man who made a pact with a demon in order to obtain money to sponsor a festival. This mountain area is used for mountain biking and motocross, with the Chalchilhuapan mountain used for parasailing.Each year, there is a mountain biking event just north of the city in March in three categories: beginners, advanced and expert. The race begins from the main plaza of Cholula and extends for 50 km through a number of small communities. San Andres has a parasailing school, which trains beginners and organizes parasailing events.
The Valley of Puebla is an expanse of plains crossed by a number of small rivers, streams and arroyos, with the most significant being the Atoyac River. The Atoyac River has its beginning in the runoff of both the Iztaccíhuatl and Popocatepetl volcancos. Cholula is located in the river’s upper basin. This river passes through the San Pedro area and forms part of the border between San Andrés and the city of Pueba. There are also tributaries such as the Ametlapanapa, Zapatero and the Rabanillo and number of fresh water springs and seasonal arroyos.
The only forested area is an area associated with the Sierra del Tentzo, which contains holm oak and scrub. The rest of the area is either farmland or covered by human settlements.
The area has a temperate climate with an average temperature of between 18 and 20C, and typically no more than 20 to 40 days with frost per year. January is the coldest months with average temperatures of between 10 and 16C, and May is the warmest with averages between 20 and 22C. There is a rainy season that lasts from May to October which provides about 800 to 900 mm of rainfall per year. These conditions are what made the area important agriculturally starting in the pre Hispanic era.
Read more about this topic: Cholula, Puebla
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