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PAINANI

PAINANI · RUN / LOCAL

38 · Nuevo León, Mexico

Cerro de la Silla

Climb 1,150 m in 2.8 km from a Guadalupe park to the 1,820 m north peak of Monterrey's mountain, on marked limestone with hands on rock, then come back the same way.

Trail runningScramblingOut and back
5.2 kmDistance1,150 mElevation gainHarderSite gradeMonterreyNearest base

Site grade

HarderFeatured

1,150 m of gain in 2.8 km is an average gradient of 45 percent, reaching 50 percent in places, on limestone that must be climbed with hands and feet in several stretches. The height is modest; the angle is not.

The experience

The ascent averages 45 percent and touches 50. It is limestone, grass and rock steps, several of them climbed with hands, from 540 m to 1,820 m with no flat ground between.

The mountain has been a federal Natural Monument since 26 April 1991. The everyday climb starts through a private subdivision in Guadalupe, and the reward is Monterrey's whole grid seen from the peak on its emblem.

Cerro de la Silla is the emblem of the state of Nuevo León and of the city of Monterrey. It was decreed a Monumento Natural on 26 April 1991 across Guadalupe, Monterrey and Juárez; the 2014 management programme limits walking to the established interpretive trails. The old cable car's concrete platform, on the way to the Antenas peak, still overlooks the city.

Where the sources disagreeThe trail starts inside the Bosques de la Pastora subdivision, which is private: cars cannot enter and you pass a gatehouse on foot. CONANP lists the area as open every day with a fee 'according to the Ley Federal de Derechos'; the Municipio de Guadalupe and the route guide both say entry is free, and there is no ticket point on the path. There is no water on the mountain and Protección Civil Guadalupe has rescued hikers on Pico Norte repeatedly in 2026: four lost on 19 February, two out of water on 24 August. The direct route has rattlesnakes and wild boar, and the gradient makes the descent the dangerous half.

Trail path

The line
you follow.

StartParque Hundido, Avenida Alfonso Reyes, Contry La Silla, GuadalupeFinishParque Hundido, Avenida Alfonso Reyes, Contry La Silla, GuadalupeDirectionUp the marked path to Pico Norte, back down the same line
  1. 01Parque Hundido
  2. 02Subdivision gatehouse
  3. 03First slab
  4. 04Rock steps
  5. 05Pico Norte summit plaque

Route sections

01 · The GatehouseParque Hundido to the subdivision gatehouse
The trail begins inside a private subdivision that cars cannot enter. Park at the edge of Parque Hundido on Alfonso Reyes and walk in; the guard at the gatehouse controls who passes.02 · Forty-Five PercentGatehouse to the first slab
The angle sets in immediately and averages 45 percent for the whole ascent. Rock and grass, a marked line, and three slab sections where the marks stop and you follow the slats.03 · Hands on LimestoneFirst slab to the rock steps
Several stretches are climbed with hands and feet. In the summer heat this is where people run out of water; Protección Civil has walked two hikers down from here in August 2026 for exactly that.04 · The Plaque at 1,820Rock steps to Pico Norte
The highest of the mountain's four peaks, with a memorial plaque and the whole metropolitan area below. The Antenas peak, the one with the distance markers, is the other summit; this one has none.05 · The Same Way DownPico Norte to Parque Hundido
The descent is the ascent reversed on rock that is slick when wet. Both 2026 rescues that made the news happened on the descent, in the afternoon.

Weather profile

What the sky
is likely to do.

Cold in winter, hot in summer, in CONANP's words. The canícula, the July and August heat, makes the route punishing and is when the dehydration rescues happen. Limestone is slippery after rain.

Season & timing

Managed seasonCONANP: open every day of the year. The Municipio de Guadalupe recommends climbing in the first hours of the morning.Best windowOctober to March, starting at first light. In summer, be off the rock before the heat builds.SurfacePaved street to the subdivision gate, then dirt and limestone rock, grass between the rock, marked path with three unmarked slab sections, rock steps that need hands near the topDirectionUp the marked path to Pico Norte, back down the same line

Signature moments

What you will
remember afterwards.

01

The first slab where the marks stop

02

Hands on limestone with the city already below

03

The memorial plaque on Pico Norte

04

The Antenas peak across the saddle

GRADIENT

45%

The average angle of the 2.8 km ascent

La Cumbre Cotidiana measures the climb at 45 percent on average and 50 percent in places, 1,150 m of gain in 2.8 km. It gives the round trip 8 hours.

Access & logistics

AccessFrom Monterrey take Avenida Revolución or Las Américas to Avenida Alfonso Reyes in Contry La Silla and park at the edge of Parque Hundido. Walk into the subdivision to the gatehouse; the trail begins beyond it.PermitsNone to carry. CONANP refers to the Ley Federal de Derechos for fees but nothing is collected on the path; Guadalupe lists entry as free. Stay on the established trails, as the management programme requires.BookingsNone.WaterNone on the mountain. Carry 3 litres, as the route guide recommends, and electrolytes in summer.FoodNone on the route. Shops and restaurants in Contry La Silla.Mobile coverageNot documented. The February 2026 rescue began with a 911 call from the lost group, so there is some signal on the mountain; do not rely on it.DurationNo CONANP time. La Cumbre Cotidiana gives 8 hours for the round trip.

Key hazards

  • ▲Steep limestone that needs hands in several sections
  • ▲No water on the route
  • ▲Rattlesnakes and wild boar on the direct route
  • ▲Three unmarked slab sections
  • ▲Slick rock after rain
  • ▲Summer heat, with no shade on the rock

SafetyOrientation only. Always use current official maps, alerts and safety guidance. Carry 3 litres of water, shoes that grip limestone, and start early enough to be down before dark.

Check the monument with CONANP →Request this run →

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Official sources

Last verified 2026-09-16 · Record CETC-RUN-038 · Orientation only. Always use current official maps, alerts and safety guidance.

Photograph: MetalixOne · CC BY-SA 4.0