Guatemala Geography Profile 2012

Roughly two-thirds of the total land area of Guatemala is made up of mountains, many of which are volcanic. The Sierra Madre system, traversing Guatemala from east to west, divides the country into two drainage areas of unequal extent. The Pacific slope, relatively narrow, is abundantly watered and fertile in its midregion, in which the greatest density of population occurs.

The northern slope, notably the broad area around Lake Petén-Itzá, ranges from grazing land to tropical rain forest and is thinly populated. Most of the volcanoes of Guatemala are extinct; severe eruptions have been recorded, however, for Tacaná on the Mexican border. The country's highest point is Volcán Tajumulco (4220 m/13,845 ft). Earthquakes are frequent in the vicinity of the southern volcanic belt, where many towns have been destroyed.

The longest rivers of Guatemala are the Motagua; the Usumacinta, which forms part of the boundary with Mexico; the Chixoy; and the Sarstún, forming a section of the boundary with Belize.