Parete nord dell'Addaura, Monte Pellegrino (Palermo) · Sicily (Palermo) · Italy
A sustained modern sport multipitch on the wild north wall of the Addaura, a few hundred metres from the city. Every pitch is 6c+ or 7a with 6c obligatory, on limestone that needs to be dry. Fully rebolted with 12 mm stainless in 2022.
Climbing mode: Big type, screen kept awake, tick pitches as you go.
Highest point about 350 m above sea level (estimate: terrain height at the mapped point plus the height of the route).
7aVIII5.11d5 pitches · 180 mEasy to bail
Chiacchiere e distintivo is a five-pitch sport route on the north wall of the Addaura, the seaward side of Monte Pellegrino, in a surprisingly wild setting for somewhere so close to Palermo. The grade is uniform: four pitches of 6c+ and a 7a third pitch, 6c obligatory, so it suits climbers comfortable at that level rather than as a first 7a. The opener and a partner rebolted it completely in 2022 with 12 mm stainless anchors and chained belays. The easiest way in is from above, abseiling the line.
The atlas doesn't show topos: they are the work of the people who bolt and document these routes. See the topo at Planetmountain – Chiacchiere e distintivo (topo by M. Giglio), Planetmountain – Chiacchiere e distintivo PDF topo (M. Giglio), or in Di Roccia di Sole - Falesie. Arrampicate in Sicilia.
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Bolts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 6c+VIII-5.11c | 40 m | 12 bolts | Long sustained first pitch. |
| P2 | 6c+VIII-5.11c | 40 m | 12 bolts | Another full-length 6c+. |
| P3 | 7aVIII5.11d | 30 m | 7 bolts | The crux pitch. |
| P4 | 6c+VIII-5.11c | 35 m | 8 bolts | Sustained 6c+. |
| P5 | 6c+VIII-5.11c | 35 m | 10 bolts | Last pitch to the rim. |
From the port area of Palermo take the panoramic road up Monte Pellegrino. Just after the Santuario di Santa Rosalia continue downhill to the left. The road is officially closed to traffic, but you can drive about 400 m to a gate on the right that closes a dirt road into the woods; park there.
From above (recommended): follow the main dirt road left, roughly NNW and slightly downhill. Where it bends right near the edge of the wall, leave it and go straight to the brink; the first abseil anchor is near some large steel rockfall cables (about 15 min, almost flat). Abseil the route to the start. From below: a cairned track leads from the end of via Annone (the highest point you can drive to above the Addaura houses) through a gap in the iron fence; allow about 30 min and a lot of vegetation near the base. The route is the right-most on the wall; the first 12 mm stainless bolt is visible from below.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Coordinates · crag
Point from planetmountain GPS for Tra sogno e realtà on the same wall
Contains the route point.
Points from published sources, not surveyed.
Coordinates: 38.18443, 13.34771 (crag)
If you came from above you finish near the car: walk back about 15 min. Otherwise, or to retreat, abseil: with two ropes, three abseils from S5 to S3, S3 to S1 and S1 to the ground. Every belay has chains with a closed ring.
Easy to bail
Abseiling the route is the normal way in and the topo says you can abseil from any belay. Every belay has chains and a closed ring, and with two ropes the descent is three abseils.
Italy
112Emergency, where the single number is in service
Emergency, where the single number is in service
Where 112 is not yet the single number, call 118 and ask for CNSAS.
Position of the crag
38.18443, 13.34771
Marks the crag, not the route: give route and pitch.
Say what happened, how many are hurt, and where you are. Checked October 2026 (sourceofficial sources).
A 60 m rope plus a tagline for the abseils, 13 quickdraws and a helmet.
North-facing wall above the sea. The topo advises waiting for dry conditions, as the rock is slippery when damp. No season is given; the one shown here is inferred from the aspect and the Palermo climate.
Forecast · next 7 days · 350 m
Loading the forecast.
| Measure | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °C | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Low °C | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Rain mm | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Chance of rain % | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
| Strongest gusts km/h | – | – | – | – | – | – | – |
Model forecast for 350 m. It cannot tell you whether the rock is dry. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
Time plan · 5 pitches
Working out sunrise and sunset.
An estimate. Queues and route finding cost time, and shaded walls go dark before sunset. Local time (Central European time), flat horizon.
Sun on the wall · N-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
From the aspect alone; terrain is ignored. Local time, 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 12 | 12 | 15 | 17 | 22 | 26 | 29 | 29 | 25 | 22 | 17 | 14 |
| Mean daily low °C | 7 | 6 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 18 | 21 | 21 | 19 | 15 | 12 | 8 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 11 | 11 | 11 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
● usual season. 1991-2020 averages at about 328 m; rain is for a 10–25 km grid cell. Weather and climate data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
Straight-line distances, up to 30 km.
No reports yet.
Italy · Sicily (Palermo)
A steep, very exposed line up the left side of the double cave on the north flank of Monte Pellegrino, weaving through stalactites and concretions over a big overhang. The difficulties are never extreme for such steep ground, with the 6c+ crux on pitch 5 and 6a+ obligatory. Modern stainless bolting from 2020.
6c+VIII-5.11c6c+VIII-5.11c7 pitches180 m
Around 7a · about 5 pitches
Italy · Monte Procinto (Apuan Alps)
One of the hardest modern sport lines on the Procinto's east face: two 6c+ pitches of steep climbing on spaced holds, a bouldery 6b, an easy link and a superb sustained 7a pitch through an overhang into a crack.
7aVIII5.11d7aVIII5.11d5 pitches135 m
Read the cautions
France · Ariège Pyrenees
The hard classic of the Calamès pillars above Bédeilhac: technical slabs, a well-bolted roof and a sustained 6c wall, capped by a short 7a slab pitch after a walk across a garden. Compact rock and close bolts make it a good place to try harder grades on a multipitch. The middle pitch is vegetated.
7aVIII5.11d7aVIII5.11d5 pitches180 m
France · Baou de Saint-Jeannet
A short, sustained and very well bolted line on the pillar left of the Arête S, parallel to La Tonton Walker. Thin walls, a steep stratified pitch on big holds and one blank slab move of 7a that most people pull through. The friendliest introduction to the harder routes of the Baou, and easy to extend to the summit by one of the routes above the Vire Vernet.
7aVIII5.11d7aVIII5.11d5 pitches100 m
Morocco · Akchour (Rif)
Five pitches through tufa columns, a leaning corner and a lichenous chimney on extraordinarily abrasive rock. The first pitch is a three-dimensional 6a+ on jugs between columns and the 7a fourth pitch is an athletic, well-bolted column climb. Two short passages on the easier pitches are run-out.
7aVIII5.11d7aVIII5.11d5 pitches160 m
Read the cautions
Researched and aggregated by AI from published sources, last compiled October 2026. It can be wrong, and bolts, anchors and access change: check a current guidebook and read the disclaimer.