Aravaipa Hiking Club
Class Definitions
Four factors determine the difficulty of a hike:
| 1. Mileage |
| 2. Terrain |
| 3. Elevation |
| 4. Pace |
Terrain ranges from good trail
to rock scrambling, climbing, or even swimming. A short hike is not necessarily
an easy hike.
Hikes are graded in the following manner:
Class | Maximum
Miles | Maximum
Climb |
A | No
Limit | No Limit |
B | 16 | 3000 |
C | 8 | 1500 |
D | 3 | 500 |
Adding a plus (+) sign qualifies the degree of difficulty. An explanation of the reason for the plus or minus sign should be included in the write up.
| Class | Difficulty | Criteria |
| 1 | Easy | Hands used for balance |
| 2 | Moderate | Hands used for climbing |
| 3 | Difficult | Exposure, rock climbing |
| 4 | Strenuous | Exposure, large boulders to negotiate |
This will be used with our existing trail ratings, for example, B/3