Placche Zebrate (Dro) · Arco & Valle del Sarca · Italy
Bail not documentedBolting confidence: medium
Four long pitches of easy-angled friction slab on the far left of the Placche Zebrate, a touch harder than its neighbour Via del 46° Parallelo and just as popular. The rock is rough and pleasant almost everywhere, with one smoother section on the second and third pitches where the 5a to 5b moves are. A good first route on these slabs.
The route
The Placche Zebrate, known to German speakers as the Sonnenplatten, are among the best-known climbing objectives in the Sarca valley: a wide sweep of striped limestone slab lying back at an easy angle. Via Trento climbs the left-hand end in four pitches of 40 to 50 m. Most of it is about grade 4 on friction and small edges, with a short wall and a smooth slab traverse giving the harder moves. It is very busy at weekends and almost empty on weekdays. The start is shared with Via del 46° Parallelo, which runs just to the right, and the two share a belay higher up.
The climbing
| Pitch | Grade | Length | Bolts | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P1 | 4a | 50 m | 10 bolts | Climb the left edge of the channel, then slant left to a small terrace and a belay on two glue-in bolts. Ten or eleven bolts. The third and fourth bolts are shared with Via del 46° Parallelo, so take care not to follow that route off to the right. |
| P2 | 5b | 45 m | 7 bolts | The short wall above the belay, then a little left and up, and finally diagonally right to a belay directly above the previous one. Two glue-ins. |
| P3 | 5a | 40 m | 6 bolts | The small slab just left of the belay (5a), then a traverse left of about 6 m and straight up at 4a and 3c to the belay. Bergsteigen.com calls this pitch the crux, where the rock is briefly smoother. |
| P4 | 4a | 45 m | 6 bolts | Straight up, with one slightly harder slab move, to the gravel ledge where the route ends. Belay on the last glue-in bolt or on a tree on the ledge. |
Getting there
The Placche Zebrate are the big slabs at the foot of Monte Brento, beside the main road between Dro and Pietramurata. From Arco drive north through Dro; after a conspicuous fish farm there is a large car park with a toilet block on the left of the road, close to the bar 'Parete Zebrata'. Coming from Pietramurata it is on the right. Bergsteigen.com says you can come by bus to the bar. Leave nothing of value in the car: bergsteigen.com warns that cars are often broken into here.
About 30 min. From the car park take the good path towards the slabs, cross a vehicle track and keep heading for the wall while already trending left. At the scree below the wall, follow it left for a few tens of metres to a shallow channel, which is the line of Via del 46° Parallelo, at the far left of the slabs. Here the scree reaches the rock. 'Trento' is painted in red, with 'Via del 46 Parallelo' rather faded to its right; camptocamp also mentions a thread with a white sling on the left edge of the channel. Put your helmet on before you reach the wall.
Loading map
The point marks the crag, not the exact start of the route.
Parking
Parking marked on bergsteigen.com
Point from bergsteigen.com touren/klettern/via-trento-placche-parete-zebrate (map marker, rounded to four decimals)
Contains the route point and parking. Opens in most mapping apps and GPS watches.
Points are compiled from published sources, with the precision stated above. They were not surveyed on the ground: check them against a current topo.
Coordinates: 45.99540, 10.91710 (crag) · Parking: 45.99550, 10.92640
Getting down
On foot, about 45 min to the car. From the end of the route go left and follow the descent path down the wide ledge of scree and friable rock that slants down above the slabs from right to left. It brings you back past the start, from where you return by the approach path. Do not walk close to the edge, and take great care not to send stones down onto climbers below.
Retreat
Bail not documented
Retreat is not documented. The normal descent is on foot from the top. Belays are two glue-in bolts without a link or ring, so abseiling means leaving a sling and a maillon, and with pitches of 40 to 50 m a single rope will not reach from belay to belay.
Partly inferred from the route facts
Safety
Sun and weather
East facing, starting at about 390 m. Bergsteigen.com marks March to October; a camptocamp party climbed in ideal temperatures on a sunny mid-November day. Some holds are polished ('a few greasy moves but nothing problematic'). Allow 1 h 30 min to 2 h for the climb.
Sun on the wall · E-facing
Working out the sunlit hours for this month.
Sun on the wallDaylight, wall in shade● Usual season
Estimated from the wall's aspect only. Ignores surrounding terrain, gullies and the wall's exact shape. Clock times are local to the wall (Central European time), for the 15th of each month.
| Measure | Jan | Feb | Mar (usual season) | Apr (usual season) | May (usual season) | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep (usual season) | Oct (usual season) | Nov (usual season) | Dec |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mean daily high °C | 5 | 7 | 11 | 14 | 19 | 22 | 24 | 24 | 20 | 16 | 10 | 6 |
| Mean daily low °C | −3 | −2 | 2 | 6 | 11 | 15 | 17 | 17 | 13 | 9 | 4 | −1 |
| Rain days 1 mm or more | 6 | 8 | 10 | 14 | 16 | 17 | 15 | 15 | 12 | 11 | 11 | 8 |
● marks the usual climbing season. Averages for 1991-2020 at about 527 m. Area climate from Open-Meteo reanalysis. Temperatures are adjusted to the height of the crag; rain comes from a grid cell of about 10 to 25 km, and summer highs on sea cliffs can read a few degrees low. The wall and valley can differ. Data: Open-Meteo, CC BY 4.0.
What to carry
About 10 quickdraws (bergsteigen.com says 8) and a few slings or cords to build the belays, which are two separate glue-in bolts. Bergsteigen.com lists a single 50 m rope, but camptocamp gives the first pitch as 50 m, so a 60 m rope is the safer choice. Nuts and cams are of no use. Helmet essential.
Derived from the route data; check it against a current topo
From climbers
Reader reports are not being collected yet. Until they are, check a current topo and the local club or guidebook publisher for recent changes to Via Trento.
Worth knowing
Open questions
Provenance
Same area
Italy · Arco & Valle del Sarca
This is the archetypal long, easy Arco slab, first climbed in 1971. It wanders up the lower bands and then improves into a superb water-worn chimney system in the upper half. It is very polished and very busy, so start early. Original grade 6- UIAA per bergsteigen.com; gulliver gives 5c max.
5c16 pitches400 m
Read the cautions
Italy · Arco & Valle del Sarca
A succession of short walls and slabs separated by ledges, with the first two pitches shared with Amazzonia. The crux is a single 5c/6a move just below the P5 belay. It's a relaxed, well-protected outing above the Sarche gorge.
5c10 pitches250 m
Italy · Arco & Valle del Sarca
An easy, relaxing sport route on low-angle Zebrate slabs, trending left to right to join Cane Trippa at the fifth belay. It's an excellent first multipitch. Gulliver gives UIAA III / II–III / IV / IV–IV+ for the first four pitches, converted here.
5b6 pitches240 m
Italy · Arco & Valle del Sarca
Eight sustained pitches up the wall opposite the Laterna restaurant, rarely easier than 6a. The crux is a short overhanging wall on pitch 5 that can be pulled through on the bolts. Less cleaned than its neighbours, with some broken rock on pitch 6.
6c+8 pitches220 m
Around 5b · about 4 pitches
Italy · Sardinia
An abseil-in sea-cliff route next to Powaqqatsi: three abseils to a platform just above the water, then four pitches back out. A steep first step, a fine sustained slab on pitch 2, then easy slabs to the top. Check the park access rules before you go.
5b4 pitches130 m
Read the cautionsCommitting
France · Dentelles de Montmirail
A short, generously bolted beginner's multipitch on the north face of the Gigondas chain: an easy corner, a fine vertical wall, a rising traverse, and then a squeeze through a natural window in the crest to finish on the sunny south side. Polished from traffic but full of character, and done in an hour or so.
5b4 pitches65 m
Switzerland · Orny (Champex, Mont Blanc massif)
Four pitches on a pillar of orange granite beside the path to the Cabane d'Orny, made to be climbed on the way up to the hut. The rock is cut into big blocks with positive edges. The last two pitches are steeper and more sustained than the grade suggests.
5b4 pitches100 m
Morocco · Todra Gorge (Todgha)
Four pitches of even 5b, five minutes from the road. In the sun all afternoon. A good short first multipitch of a trip.
5b4 pitches125 m
Compiled from published sources and last verified October 2026. Bolts, anchors and access change. Climbing is dangerous and you are responsible for your own decisions: check a current topo and read the disclaimer.
