<P> Mexico has a 9,330 kilometer coastline, of which 7,338 kilometers face the Pacific Ocean and the Gulf of California, and the remaining 2,805 kilometers front the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea . Mexico's exclusive economic zone (EEZ), which extends 200 nautical miles (370 km) off each coast, covers approximately 2.7 million square kilometers . The landmass of Mexico dramatically narrows as it moves in a southeasterly direction from the United States border and then abruptly curves northward before ending in the 500 - kilometer - long Yucatán Peninsula . Indeed, the state capital of Yucatán, Mérida, is farther north than Mexico City or Guadalajara . </P> <P> Beginning approximately 50 kilometres (31 mi) from the United States border, the Sierra Madre Occidental mountain range extends about 1,250 kilometres (780 mi) south to the Río Santiago, where it merges with the Cordillera Neovolcánica range that runs east - west across central Mexico . The Sierra Madre Occidental lies approximately 300 kilometres (190 mi) inland from the west coast of Mexico at its northern end but approaches to within fifty kilometers of the coast near the Cordillera Neovolcánica . The northwest coastal plain is the name given the lowland area between the Sierra Madre Occidental and the Gulf of California . The Sierra Madre Occidental averages 2,250 metres (7,380 ft) in elevation, with peaks reaching 3,000 metres (9,800 ft). </P> <P> The Sierra Madre Oriental mountain range starts at the Big Bend region of the border with the U.S. state of Texas and continues 1,350 kilometres (840 mi) until reaching Cofre de Perote, one of the major peaks of the Cordillera Neovolcánica . As is the case with the Sierra Madre Occidental, the Sierra Madre Oriental comes progressively closer to the coastline as it approaches its southern terminus, reaching to within 75 kilometres (47 mi) of the Gulf of Mexico . The northeast coastal plain extends from the eastern slope of the Sierra Madre Oriental to the Gulf of Mexico . The median elevation of the Sierra Madre Oriental is 2,200 metres (7,200 ft), with some peaks at 3,000 metres (9,800 ft). </P> <P> The Mexican Altiplano, stretching from the United States border to the Cordillera Neovolcánica, occupies the vast expanse of land between the eastern and western sierra madres . A low east - west range divides the altiplano into northern and southern sections . These two sections, previously called the Mesa del Norte and Mesa Central, are now regarded by geographers as sections of one altiplano . The northern altiplano averages 1,100 meters in elevation and continues south from the Río Bravo del Norte through the states of Zacatecas and San Luis Potosí . Various narrow, isolated ridges cross the plateaus of the northern altiplano . Numerous depressions dot the region, the largest of which is the Bolsón de Mapimí . The southern Altiplano is higher than its northern counterpart, averaging 2,000 metres (6,600 ft) in elevation . The southern altiplano contains numerous valleys originally formed by ancient lakes . Several of Mexico's most prominent cities, including Mexico City and Guadalajara, are located in the valleys of the southern Altiplano . </P>

Which mountain range is found along the east coast of mexico