Cerro Castellan is a summit in Brewster County, Texas, United States.
Description Cerro Castellan is part of the Chisos Mountains where it is set in Big Bend National Park and the Chihuahuan Desert. The top of the butte is a caprock composed of Burro Mesa Rhyolite which formed 29 million years ago during the Oligocene period.Gray, J.E., Geological, Geochemical, and Geophysical Studies by the U.S. Geological Survey in Big Bend National Park, Texas, U.S. Geological Survey Circular 1327, p. 35, Retrieved 2024-11-10. The next lower layer of volcanic rock is composed of Wasp Spring Tuff of the Burro Mesa Formation, followed by Chisos Tuff and Bee Mountain Basalt of the Chisos Formation.Crouching Mule - Hidden Canyon: A Trip Down the Maxwell Scenic Highway, Francis Redfern, Retrieved 2024-11-10. Based on the Köppen climate classification, the mountain is located in a hot arid climate zone with hot summers and mild winters. Any scant precipitation runoff from the peak's slopes drains to the Rio Grande which is to the southwest. Topographic relief is significant as the summit rises over above Ross Maxwell Scenic Drive in one-half mile (0.8 km). The mountain's toponym was officially adopted on March 15, 1939, by the United States Board on Geographic Names. The Spanish name Cerro Castellan may translate to "ruler of a castle on a hill,"Edward Callary, Texas Place Names, University of Texas Press, 2020, . or "castle-warden's hill" where castellan is the caretaker of a castle.Cerro Castellan, Texas State Historical Association, Retrieved 2024-11-10. The iconic landmark is also known as Castolon Peak, and the former village of Castolon took its name from the nearby butte.Louis F. Aulbach, The Great Unknown of the Rio Grande, 2007, , p. 21.
See also List of mountain peaks of Texas Geography of Texas
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Cerro Castellan: Weather