PAINANI
PAINANI

PAINANI · RUN / LOCAL

29 · Nuevo León, Mexico

Chipinque

Run the paved park road from the Chipinque gate to the Meseta above San Pedro Garza García, 719 m up in 6.97 km, and back down the same road.

Trail runningRoad runningOut and back
13.9 kmDistance719 mElevation gainHardSite gradeSan Pedro Garza García, MonterreyNearest base

Site grade

HardFeatured

719 m of gain in 6.97 km on pavement, roughly a 10 percent average grade with the steepest half above km 3, at 880 to 1,298 m in a city where summer heat starts before sunrise.

The experience

The Carretera gains 719 m in 6.97 km on pavement, from 881 m at the gate to 1,298 m at the Meseta. The grade is gentle for three kilometres and then is not. The descent is the same road.

The gate is at the end of a city avenue in San Pedro Garza García. Monterrey's towers are visible from the hairpins, and the park's own map counts 37 trails and 56 km of network above the road.

Just off the road stands the Casa del General Juan Andreu Almazán, built in the 1930s as the retreat of the revolutionary general; the park lists it among its historic sites. The park was decreed as a protected area in 1992 and became part of the Parque Nacional Cumbres de Monterrey in 2000.

Where the sources disagreeThis is a road, not a trail: cars drive it until the 19:00 vehicle cut-off and bicycles use it all day, and the park lists it as the easy route on its map. Entry costs 88 MXN per adult; every summit trail above the Meseta needs a permit bought in advance, from 350 MXN. Black bears live here and have taken food off picnic tables; the park's rule is to back away calmly, never run. Fines for breaking park rules reach 1,500 MXN.

Trail path

The line
you follow.

StartChipinque entrance gate, end of Avenida Gómez Morín, San Pedro Garza GarcíaFinishChipinque entrance gate, San Pedro Garza GarcíaDirectionUp the Carretera to the Meseta, back down the same road
  1. 01Entrance gate
  2. 02Carretera hairpins
  3. 03Empalme junction
  4. 04Meseta and Explanada
  5. 05Entrance gate

Route sections

01 · The Warm-Up LieEntrance gate to km 3
The road leaves the gate at 881 m and gains only about 150 m in three kilometres. It feels like the whole climb will be this kind. It will not.02 · The Real GradeKm 3 to the Meseta
From km 3 the road climbs about 260 m in four kilometres through oak and pine, in hairpins shared with cars and cyclists, to the Meseta at 1,297 m.03 · The TurnaroundMeseta
The plateau has the Explanada, the hotel, a cafeteria and restrooms. Above it, every trail to a summit needs a paid permit booked in advance. Turn around here.04 · The Brake TestMeseta to the entrance gate
Seven kilometres of pavement downhill at a steady grade. Quads, not lungs. Keep right; the road is a shared road and cyclists descend it fast.

Weather profile

What the sky
is likely to do.

Monterrey is hot for most of the year and the climb starts at 881 m, low enough to share the city's heat. Winter cold fronts bring cloud and drizzle to the sierra. Summer afternoons bring storms.

Season & timing

Managed seasonOpen every day of the year, 5:30 to 21:00. Last vehicle entry 19:00, last pedestrian entry 20:00. Holiday hours may change.Best windowOctober to March, at the 5:30 opening. In summer, start at the gate the minute it opens and be down by nine.SurfacePaved road shared with cars and bicyclesDirectionUp the Carretera to the Meseta, back down the same road

Signature moments

What you will
remember afterwards.

01

The gate at 5:30 with the city still lit below

02

Monterrey's skyline from the hairpins

03

The oak and pine canopy above km 4

04

The Explanada on the Meseta

05

The straight descent with the Sierra Madre wall above

CLIMB

719 M

The park road gains 719 metres in 6.97 kilometres

That is the park's own figure for the Carretera, gate to Meseta, on its 2026 trail map. The road is the easiest of the 37 routes on the map and still averages more than 10 percent.

Access & logistics

AccessDrive or take a taxi to the end of Avenida Gómez Morín in San Pedro Garza García; the gate is where the avenue ends. Telediario gives bus route 308 from downtown Monterrey as a 50-minute ride to the entrance. Enter on foot and run the road.PermitsPay the entry fee at the gate or online. No further permit for the road or the marked trails below the Meseta. Summits above the Meseta need a permit booked in advance, from 350 MXN per person.BookingsNone for the road. Buy the entry ticket online at chipinque.org.mx to skip the gate queue on weekends.WaterRestrooms and a cafeteria at the Meseta. Carry your own water for the climb; nothing on the road between the gate and the plateau.FoodThe Meseta has a cafeteria and a hotel restaurant. Do not carry strong-smelling food; the park asks this because of bears.DurationNone published. The park's trail map lists no estimated time for the Carretera.

Key hazards

  • ▲Cars on the road until 19:00
  • ▲Cyclists descending fast
  • ▲Black bears near picnic areas and bins
  • ▲Heat from late spring to early autumn
  • ▲Lightning on summer afternoons
  • ▲Fog on the upper road during winter cold fronts

SafetyOrientation only. Always use current official maps, alerts and safety guidance. Run on the right, carry water and a light before dawn, and back away calmly from any bear.

Check hours and buy entry →Request this run →

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Official sources

Last verified 2026-09-16 · Record CETC-RUN-029 · Orientation only. Always use current official maps, alerts and safety guidance.

Photograph: Tereso Hernández · CC BY-SA 3.0