Hiking Trail Rating Systems
The hiking trails found throughout the United States all lack a universal trail rating based on the same difficulty scale. Some of our nation’s parks have their own scales to determine the difficulty but none are exactly the same. Shenandoah National Park in Virginia uses a numerical rating and a predetermined formula to measure the difficulty of hiking trails within the park. The Willamette National Forest in Oregon uses trail conditions, steepness, elevation gain/loss and the amount of natural obstacles to grade and rate each hiking trail. The Yosemite Decimal System (YDS) is a three-part system designed by the Sierra Club and is primarily used in California. The first two classes can be used to grade hiking trails while the more difficult classes are used to grade climbing routes. Websites that list hiking trails within a geographic area have designed their own system for grading trails. Hiking Project uses a combination of shapes and colors similar to a skiing trail rating system. In alpine countries, the Swiss Alpine Club (SAC)
Swiss Hiking Scale has been established to inform hikers of the difficulty of the hiking trails based on terrain difficulty. The scale covers a range of mountain and alpine hiking and can be applied to any hiking trail within the Alps region of Europe. The United States needs to have a hiking trail rating system designed to inform hikers of the difficulty of the terrain on any given trail and the same system should be used at every state or national park to eliminate confusion for hikers. The differences in the current systems does not give an accurate grade to hiking trails and leaves room for error in understanding the terrain difficulty.
Shenandoah National Park in Virginia uses a mathematical formula to determine the difficulty of trail terrain. The formula takes into account elevation gain plus the distance of the trail. Using this formula would allow for any hiker to determine the difficulty of the trail without needing a previously determined grade for a specific trail. The following information is from the National Park Service website for Shenandoah National Park. If a hiker wants to embark on a 10-mile hike and the hiker knows the trail will incur a 2,000 foot elevation gain the hiker would apply the following equation:
2,000x2=4,000
4,000x10=40,000
Next, the hiker would take the square root of 40,000 for a final number of 200. The number would then be applied to grade descriptors to give the hiker a general term used to describe the difficulty of the trail. The descriptors range from ‘Easiest’ to ‘Very Strenuous’ with varying differences when accounting for steepness in terrain, such as when scrambling is required over a short section of the trail. The Easiest grading range is less than 50. The Moderate grading range is from 50–100. The Moderately Strenuous grading range is from 100–150. The Strenuous grading range is from 150–200. The Very Strenuous grading range is greater than 200. The example above would classify the hike as Very Strenuous because of its numerical value of 200. This system is a good basis when determining the difficulty of trail terrain, however, it does not take into account trail barriers or short distances that require advanced hiking skills. Both of these factors can change the difficulty of a trail that cannot be determined by a mathematical equation, therefore, it cannot be used to establish a universal system for all hiking trails within the United States.
The Willamette National Forest in Oregon uses a trail rating system on steepness, elevation gain/loss, trail conditions and natural barriers. It is important to note that the system has different ratings based on the activity used for the trail. For example, the hiking trail rating differs from the mountain bike trail rating. The scale uses descriptors to grade the difficulty of the trail. The descriptors include a range of Easy, Moderate and Difficult ratings. The Easy rating is used when the trail has a 20% grade, a trail size of 18–24 inches, and a trail condition composed on natural materials that do not increase the walking difficulty. The Moderate rating is used when the trail has a 30% grade, a trail size of 12–18 inches, and the trail condition is composed of materials that might create natural barriers, thus various hiking abilities will be tested. The Difficult rating is used when the trail has a 30% or greater grade, a trail size of 12 inches, and a trail with little to no indication of a specified trail with easily recognizable trail barriers. The Willamette National Forest hiking rating system is easy to follow but can become confusing because of the lack of information provided for each rating. The inclusion of multiple activity ratings could be combined into one rating because the steepness of the terrain and natural barriers do not change. This system also does not include the length of the trail, which is an important factor when designing a rating system for hikers.
The Yosemite Decimal System (YDS) was designed by the Sierra Club in the 1950s and has ratings that cover terrain difficulty for hikers and route grades for rock climbers, which is what the system is primarily used for today. The YDS is comprised of 5 classes. Class 1 is on the low end of the spectrum and includes relatively flat terrain with a clearly identified hiking trail. Class 2 includes a longer trail classified as “cross country” and requires basic navigation. Class 3 might require some scrambling meaning the hiker would be expected to use their hands on the trail. The terrain would be a lot more difficult and would most likely include natural barriers. Class 4–5 can no longer be used for hiking because they are primarily used to rate climbing routes and their level of difficulty. One important aspect to note about the YDS is it takes into account almost every difficulty that is encountered on the trail. For example, a 2-mile, flat trail that would otherwise be classified as a 2 is instead classified as a 4 because the trail includes a half mile section of scrambling where a rope is necessary. It also includes classes that are not used by hikers, therefore, it is another flawed system to be used for a hiking rating system. However, this is a successful system for climbers that could influence the design of a new hiking rating system. It cannot be used for all hiking trails in the U.S. because the system lacks a detailed analysis of trail steepness and length.
Hiking Project is currently owned by Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI) and they use a three-part difficulty rating. There are many different hiking rating scales available online but I will be focusing on the system used by Hiking Project because it mimics the same system that can be seen on skiing trail ratings. The trail ratings are classified as either Easy, Intermediate, or Difficult. The easiest trail is marked with a green circle and is considered flat with no obstacles. The intermediate trail is marked with a blue square and includes uneven terrain with a slight incline with no more than a 10% grade. The difficult trail is marked with a black diamond and includes tricky terrain, a steep grade of no more than 15%. The system also uses combination marks if the difficulty falls in between two ratings. The easy/intermediate is marked with a green circle in a blue square and includes some sections of uneven terrain but is mostly flat. The intermediate/difficult is marked with a black diamond in a blue square and includes some terrain barriers and moderate steepness but does not include a grade percentage. The extremely difficult is marked with a double black diamond and include very steep, potentially hazardous terrain. The reason why they use this system is because of the online aspect for planning a trip using their digital map. The symbols are easier to process and create a better experience for the user. If a user has an account with Hiking Project they are able to create user generated content by submitting a trail and rating it by using the predetermined system on the website. Hiking Project currently uses it for any hiking trail logged in their system despite geographic location. This system could be the most successful if the determination of trail difficulty rating was easy to follow and implement in every park across the United States.
The Swiss Hiking Scale was designed by the Swiss Alpine Club and is used in Alpine countries. The scale is a 6-part system that uses a combination of mountain and alpine hiking. T1 is the easiest grade and is used to grade a typical hiking trail with well-marked trails and flat terrain with a slight incline. T2 is the next grade for a hiking trail with trails that may or may not be marked and includes steeper terrain than see on a T1 trail. T3 is used to grade mountain hiking with trails that are not always visible, exposed areas secured with ropes or chains and could include sections where hikers need to use their hands. T4 is used to grade alpine hiking with steep rocky terrain, snow passages and difficult sections. T5 is used to grade alpine hiking and includes pathless trails, exposed/difficult terrain with sections of scrambling that would require hikers to use their hands. T6 is the most difficult and is used to grade alpine hiking. The trails are not marked, the terrain is extremely difficult and should only be used by very experienced hikers and climbers. The Swiss Hiking Scale provides hikers with a broad continuum for rating hiking trail difficulty. The system includes detailed descriptions of each rating, however, trial distance does not seem to be a factor. This system provides useful terminology and a good scope for terrain difficulty for alpine hikers and is a good resource for a newly designed hiking rating system.
Each system that has been outlined can be used as inspiration for a hiking rating system design. The Shenandoah National Park numerical equation can be used as a baseline for determining trail difficulty but should not be solely used because it does not account for natural barriers. The system used by the Willamette National Forest is easy to understand but the size of the trail does not seem to affect the difficulty and instead increases the risk of trail erosion or injury or death depending on the location of the trail. There are more factors that need to be included in order for that system to be effective. The YDS takes natural barriers into account and adjusts the rating according to the most difficult part of the trail. This approach could be combined with the numerical equation to fully determine the level of difficulty. The system used by Hiking Project could then be applied to a combination system comprised of the Shenandoah National Park formula and YDS system. The ratings would have the determined difficulty rating and would be communicated using simple shapes and color to reduce confusion for hikers. Finally, the system should be as thorough as the Swiss Hiking Scale to ensure all basis are covered. A newly designed system is necessary and with effective implementation could be a system that communicates efficiently with hikers on any trail found within the United States.