Trip Grading
We have grouped the expeditions and treks into three bands - Introductory, Intermediate and Advanced. Within these groups, we use a two-tiered grading system, which describes the technical difficulty (1-5) and fitness (A-E) required for each expedition. For example, Kilimanjaro - Western Breach is graded 1A but Aconcagua, which is a considerably more arduous undertaking, is graded 1C. The technically easy but strenuous Muztag Ata is graded 2D, while the short but difficult Carstensz Pyramid is 4A. Trekking trips are identified as 'T' on this website with the experience required paragraph in each trek itinerary indicating which trekking band it is in T1 - T3 (see below).A well-chosen trip maximises both your enjoyment of the experience, as well as your chances of summit success. Selection of a trip that is beyond your ability could result in the leader not taking you on the climb for example, both for your own safety and for the safety of the other team members. If you need further help, please do not hesitate to contact our experienced staff, who are happy to discuss which trips would be suitable for you.
Technical Difficulty: | Fitness: | |||
| 1 | Low angle snow or straightforward scrambling on rocks. Ropes are not usually required. Previous climbing experience is not essential. | A | Good basic fitness, as for Munro-bagging. Average rucksack weight: 6-8 kg. | |
| 2 | Ropes are used principally for glacier travel and low angle snow or ice slopes. Ice axe and crampon experience necessary. | B | Good cardio-vascular fitness which for most people requires some training, by running, hiking and perhaps some gym work. Average rucksack weight: 8-12 kg. | |
| 3 | Short, steep sections of snow or ice up to about 50 degrees. Previous snow and ice climbing experience of Scottish III/Alpine PD is essential. | C | High level of fitness coupled with physical toughness and the ability to carry a heavy rucksack for long periods. Average rucksack weight: 12-18 kg. | |
| 4 | Long, steep snow and ice slopes with short steps of very steep ice or low grade rock climbing. Good all-round climbing ability required to Scottish III/Alpine AD. | D | As for 'C', but tougher. Climbs of this grade are exceptionally strenuous and some weight loss is inevitable. Train hard, but take along some spare calories! | |
| 5 | Very steep ice (Scottish III/IV or harder) or rock (Hard Severe or harder). Suitable for competent mountaineers who have climbed consistently at these standards. | E | Hard physical effort at extreme altitude which requires thorough preparation based on your experience of previous trips. Comments for 'D' also apply. May cause long-term fatigue after the trip. | |
Please note that the rucksack weights given above may be exceeded on some expeditions.
Graded list
Advanced Level
| Expedition name | Region | Grade | Altitude | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ama Dablam | Nepal | 5D | 6,856m / 22,494ft | 31 |
| Everest North Ridge | Tibet | 4E | 8,850m / 29,036ft | 65 |
| Everest South Col | Nepal | 4E | 8,850m / 29,036ft | 72 |
| Cho Oyu | Tibet | 4E | 8,201m / 26,906ft | 44 |
| Gasherbrum II | Karakoram | 4E | 8,035m / 26,361ft | 51 |
| Shishapangma | Tibet | 4E | 8,027m / 26,335ft | 44 |
| Denali West Rib | North America | 4D | 6,194m / 20,320ft | 25 |
| Alpamayo | South America | 4B | 5,947m / 19,511ft | 23 |
| Denali Traverse | North America | 3D | 6,194m / 20,320ft | 31 |
| Greenland Icecap Crossing | The Cold Regions | 2D | 2,499m / 8,200ft | 35 |
| The South Pole - The Last Degree | The Cold Regions | 1D | n/a | 20 |
Intermediate Level
| Expedition name | Region | Grade | Altitude | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Carstensz Pyramid | Australasia | 4A | 4,884m / 16,023ft | 20 |
| Denali (McKinley) | North America | 3C | 6,194m / 20,320ft | 25 |
| Huascaran | South America | 3B | 6,769m / 22,208ft | 26 |
| Mera & Island Peak | Nepal | 3B | 6,476m / 21,246ft | 30 |
| Bolivian Climber | South America | 3B | 6,462m / 21,200ft | 22 |
| Khumbu Climber | Nepal | 3B | 6,279m / 20,601ft | 28 |
| Cathedral Peak | Karakoram | 3B | 6,247m / 20,497ft | 23 |
| Arctic Trilogy | The Cold Regions | 3B | 3,692m / 12,113ft | 20 |
| Greenland Explorer | The Cold Regions | 3B | n/a | 20 |
| Muztag Ata | Chinese Pamir | 2D | 7,546m / 24,757ft | 30 |
| Spantik | Karakoram | 2D | 7,030m / 23,064ft | 30 |
| Lhakpa Ri & The North Col | Tibet | 2C | 7,043m / 23,107ft | 29 |
| Vinson | The Cold Regions | 2C | 4,897m / 16,067ft | 20 |
| South Georgia Traverse | The Cold Regions | 2C | n/a | 25 |
| Everest Base Camp & Island Peak | Nepal | 2B | 6,189m / 20,305ft | 25 |
| Antisana | South America | 2B | 5,703m / 18,709ft | 15 |
| Rwenzori Mountains | Africa | 2B | 5,109m / 16,761ft | 16 |
| Altai Climber | Mongolia | 2B | 4,374m / 14,350ft | 16 |
Introductory Level
| Expedition name | Region | Grade | Altitude | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nubra Summits | India | 2B | 6,078m / 19,940ft | 23 |
| Mera Peak | Nepal | 2A | 6,476m / 21,246ft | 24 |
| Ecuador Volcanoes | South America | 2A | 5,897m / 19,346ft | 20 |
| Mexican Volcanoes | Central America | 2A | 5,700m / 18,700ft | 16 |
| Elbrus | Europe | 2A | 5,642m / 18,510ft | 16 |
| Aconcagua | South America | 1C | 6,959m / 22,830ft | 25 |
| Stok Kangri | India | 1A | 6,121m / 20,082ft | 22 |
| Kilimanjaro - Western Breach | Africa | 1A | 5,895m / 19,340ft | 13 |
| Antarctic Climber | The Cold Regions | 1A | n/a | 17 |
Trek Grading
T1 - No previous trekking experience is necessary, but you need to be an active hillwalker. You should consider training prior to your trek, as typically you will be walking between 4 - 6 hours over several consecutive days and usually at high altitude. Be prepared for rough and rocky trails and the occasional snow patch.T2 - Previous trekking experience is necessary. There will be lots of consecutive days of tough trekking, and/or longer days for crossing high passes, for example. There will be glacier crossings on snow/ice, which do not require the use of ice axe and crampons. Overall, trails may be vague in places, with some sections of very rough and rocky ground.
T3 - Previous trekking and ice axe and crampon experience required. Tough multi-day trekking at high altitude, often over glaciated terrain. Crossings of glaciated passes which require the use of ice axe and crampons. You may consider joining one of our Introductory Long Weekend Scottish Winter Courses, or our Alpine Introduction.
Graded list of Treks
Introductory Level
| Trek name | Region | Grade | Altitude | Days |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| K2 Base Camp & Ghondokoro La | Karakoram | T3 | 5,585m / 18,322ft | 23 |
| Everest, Gokyo & the Cho La | Nepal | T2 | 5,544m / 18,188ft | 23 |
| High Passes to Everest | Nepal | T2 | 5,544m / 18,188ft | 24 |
| Rush Peak & The Hunza Valley | Karakoram | T2 | 5,098m / 16,725ft | 16 |
| Everest Base Camp Trek | Nepal | T1 | 5,544m / 18,188ft | 20 |
| Everest Team Trek | Nepal | T1 | 5,544m / 18,188ft | 23 |
| Annapurna Circuit | Nepal | T1 | 5,416m / 17,769ft | 23 |
| Annapurna Sanctuary Trek | Nepal | T1 | 5,416m / 17,769ft | 17 |
| Kilimanjaro - Lemosho Glades | Africa | T1 | n/a | 10 |
Fitness
To get the most out of your expedition or trek, you will need to be fit and healthy. You do not need to be an athlete, but a good level of overall fitness is important. As an indication, you should be able to walk 8km/5 miles with a height gain of 600m/2,000ft with a 10kg rucksack in 21/2 hours or less. This assumes a reasonable trail is followed at low altitude, such as in the UK or below 3,000m. An example would be an ascent of Snowdon by the Pyg Track from Pen-y-Pass (730m/2,400ft of ascent over 5km/3 miles) with a 10kg rucksack in 2 hours 15 minutes. For any expedition or trek, you should be able to better this, and be able to repeat it over several consecutive days.
Alpine Grades
The French Alpine grading system encompasses the technical difficulty, length and level of committment required for the climb. If you are preparing for an expedition overseas of grade 2A and above, you should become familiar with this grading system, as it will help you assess your experience in relation to the requirements for each trip:
'F' (Facile/easy) - easy angled snow and ice / glaciated terrain. Ice axe and crampons are normally required, but the ground should not be steeper than approximately 35°.
'PD' (Peu difficile/not very difficult) - longer routes, often with more complex glaciated terrain, with scrambling on mixed ground (snow, ice and rock). Snow slopes are not normally steeper than 45°. Short sections of grade 1 and 2 scrambling, though poentially in exposed situations.
'AD' (Assez difficile/fairly difficult) - more committing routes with steeper snow and ice up to 55°, though normally just one axe and crampons will be required. Rock sections can be sustained with lots of grade 2 scrambling and short sections of British VDiff or Severe which may be pitched.
'D' (Difficile/difficult) - snow and ice up to 75°, requiring the use of an ice axe and hammer. Rock climbing up to British grade Very Severe. Lots of pitching with confidence required moving together on grade 3 scrambling ground in exposed situations.
'TD' (Tres difficile/very difficult) - routes of a much more serious undertaking, with sustained sections of ice climbing and difficult rock climbing, possibly including aid climbing.
Scottish Winter Grades
British mountaineers are also familiar with the Scottish Winter grading system. We frequently use Scottish Winter grades to describe the necessary technical experience required for a particular expedition.
I - Snow gullies and easy ridges. Not normally steeper than 45° and often used as descent routes. One axe required to ascend these routes.
II - Steeper snow with short sections of ice or 'mixed' ground (rock/ice). Ridge climbs would normally be grade I and II scrambles in summer. One axe is normally adequate, but two may be necessary on some routes or where cornices are likely.
III - More sustained and steeper routes, generally following gullies or buttress (ridge) lines. Two axes required to overcome short, steep technical sections of ice or rock.
IV - Snow and ice routes will have longer sections of steep climbing (60-70°) or short, very steep sections. 'Mixed' or buttress climbs on snowed-up rock will require more advanced techniques, such as torquing the axes into cracks.
V - Sustained steep ice of 80°, or climbing on snowed up rock routes, which would warrant rock climbing grades of Severe - Very Severe in summer.
VI - Long vertical ice, often serious and snowed up rock routes of Very Severe and above.
Rock Grades
An understanding of scrambling and rock climbing grades is useful when deciding the level of Alpine Mountaineering course (where rock climbing is often required) or on expeditions where rock climbing ability is essential (for example, Carstensz Pyramid or Ama Dablam).
Scrambling grades
Grade 1 - short steps of rock, where you need to use your hands to make upward progress. Ropes not normally used.
Grade 2 - more frequent sections of rock, with longer sections requiring the use of hands to climb upwards. A rope might be used to safeguard difficult sections.
Grades 3 and 3s - exposed, often with rock climbing 'moves' such as those encountered on routes of British grade Diff - VDiff (see below). Lots of moving together using a shortened rope and short pitches of more difficult sections.
Rock Climbing grades
The British rock climbing grading system ranges from 'Moderate' to 'Extreme' (with Extreme as an open-ended scale from E1 to, currently, E11). Below is a brief outline of the overall adjective grades to describe the difficulty. Numerical grades accompany routes of Severe and above to describe the hardest single 'move' (these are not included below).
Moderate - a similar standard to grade 3 and 4 scrambles.
Diff (Difficult)
VDiff (Very Difficult)
S (Severe)
VS (Very Severe)
HVS (Hard Very Severe)
Extreme (E1 - E11)
If you are used to a different rock climbing grading system, check out the grade conversion page on the ROCKFAX website.