Grading

All of these hikes would be regarded as easy for the hiking fit. This grading system is for regular hikers who are comfortable hiking for 3–4 hrs but are not necessarily very fit.

All hikes have been categorised into three grades, namely Easy, Moderate and Moderately Strenuous. There are no difficult hikes.

The grading system is based on the Shenandoah Hiking Difficulty Equation

Formula
(Elevation Gain in meters × 3.281) × 2 × (Distance in kilometers ÷ 1.609)

The Shenandoah Hiking Scale (Shen) provides the following categories:

Easy

Numerical Rating: less than 50
Generally suitable for anyone who enjoys walking. Mostly level terrain or a slight incline. 

Note: In this site, we have classified hikes with a Shenandoeh Hiking Scale of less than 70 as Easy.

Moderate

Numerical Rating: 50–100
Suitable for novice hikers wanting a bit of a challenge.

Moderately Strenuous

Numerical Rating: 100–150
Challenging for an unconditioned person with steady and often steep inclines.

Some hikes involve easy scrambling. Only Camel Rock has very mild and brief exposure.

Four routes are best not attempted for the first time without a guide: Camel Rock; Elsies Peak Climbing Traverse; Cave Peak Loop and Klein Tuinkop via Dassieskasteel Traverse.

Easy Hikes

Moderate Hikes

Moderately Strenuous Hikes

See route maps for all these hikes on the AllTrails App at Hiking in the South.

Hiking Grade System

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