Calgary Outdoor Club - Difficulty Ratings
It is challenging to quantify the difficulty rating for various events, but in keeping with our mandate of being a variety club, and not a hard-core single-activity club, our rating system/guidelines are described in detail below.
Adventure
Adventure events are rated according to required skill level and/or risk.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Easy activity that doesn't fall neatly into a regular event type | For example: Waterpark, RCMP Dog Training Demonstration |
3 | Moderate | Moderate activity that doesn't fall neatly into a regular event type | For example: Dog Sled Tour; Paintball |
Camp
Camp events are rated according to the amount of knowledge and skill required.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Front-Country car camping | For example: Dinosaur Provincial Park, Writing-on-Stone Provincial Park |
3 | Moderate | Walk-in tenting | For example: MA-WE-GA Tipi Camping, Elk Island Walk-In |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Winter Camping | For example: Mount Kidd Winter Camping, Quinzee Camping |
Cycle - MTB
Mountain biking is rated according to terrain and technical difficultyDifficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
3 | Moderate |
Easy terrain. Easy hills, hard packed trail, beginners are often welcome. Often equivalent to Eastcott's Backcountry Biking in the Canadian Rockies "easy/novice" rating. |
For example, Riverview Trail |
4 | Moderate to Difficult |
Some steep hills, tree roots, muddy sections, loose surface, narrow trail. Often equivalent to Eastcott's Backcountry Biking in the Canadian Rockies "moderate/novice" or "moderate/intermediate" rating. |
For example, Goat Creek |
5 | Difficult |
Technically challenging. Steep hills, mud, roots, rocks/scree, loose surface, narrow trail. Often equivalent to Eastcott's Backcountry Biking in the Canadian Rockies "difficult/intermediate" or "moderate/advanced" rating. |
For example, Prairie View/Jewel Pass |
Cycle - Road
Road biking is rated according to distance, pace, hills and hazards (ie. traffic)Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
3 | Moderate | Highway ride. 30k-50k | For example, road ride on Highway 66 |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Highway ride, often in the mountains. 50k-100k. May include simple self-supported overnight. | For example, Bow Valley Parkway between Banff and Lake Louise, Banff Legacy Trail overnighter. |
5 | Difficult | Highway ride, often in the mountains. 100+ km. Multi-day self-supported ride. | For example, Icefields Parkway |
Cycle - Urban
Urban biking is rated according to distanceDifficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | An urban bike ride on city trails. Less than 30k. | For example, bike around the Glenmore Reservoir |
3 | Moderate | Urban ride. 30k-50k | For example, Calgary pathways and neighborhood streets |
Gym
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Activity at official gym facility |
Hike
Hikes are rated on a grid according to distance and elevation gain. Additional considerations include:- Remoteness (access to assistance, if needed)
- Terrain, including unmaintained trails
- Route finding
- Creek crossings
- River fords
Note: Hover your mouse over the D links in the chart to see examples of which hikes fall into this category. For the examples given, elevation gains were based on actual measurements, rather than on net elevation gains provided by many guide books. They are also rated according to our "actual" end point on typical events rather than just to the end of an official trail (which is frequently all that is provided in the guide books).
|
|
Hike - Backpack
Backpack event difficulty ratings apply only to hike+camp events. Backpacking in general carries risks similar to hiking but on the more advanced trips, route finding, difficult creek crossing and sanitation skills may be required. Overnight events for other activities (e.g., snow shoeing, backcountry skiing, cross-country skiing, biking, boating) are covered under those activities.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
3 | Moderate | Maximum D2 Hike with pack to "base camp" with hub-and-spoke day hikes returning to "base camp" on well-marked, signed, maintained trails with maintained campsite. Not remote - access to roads/assistance less than one day. Suitable for beginner backpackers. |
Example: Hike to Elbow Lake campground as "base camp", hike to The Forks campground as "base camp". |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Maximum D3 Hike packing each day for a max of three days OR D3 Hike to "base camp" with hub-and-spoke day hikes on well-marked, signed, maintained trails with maintained campsite(s). May involve simple creek crossings. Easy access to water and accessible exit points. Not remote - access to roads/assistance less than one day. Suitable for beginner backpackers who are strong, experienced hikers. |
Example: Tombstone (because of creek crossings), Ribbon Lake from Buller Pass. |
5 | Difficult | Maximum D4 Hike packing each day for a max of five days. Hiking on maintained trails and camping at maintained campsite. Trip may involve a one-way route with vehicle shuttle. Not remote - access to roads/assistance less than one day. There may be challenges with access to water, lack of exit points, creek crossings. Not suitable for beginner backpackers. |
Example: Skyline one-way, Egypt Lake one-way, Whaleback, Skoki, Berg Lake, Rockwall |
Hike - Urban
Urban hikes (walks) are rated easier than mountain hikes because of the extra considerations introduced by any activity in the mountains.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
1 | Easy | Less than 8km distance and negligible elevation gain | For example, Inglewood Sanctuary |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Approx 8-12km with gentle elevation gain (100m-150m gain to 1km distance), or less than 8km with more cumulative elevation gain and steeper slopes (150m-250m gain to 1km) up to 500m total gain. | For example, Weaselhead |
3 | Moderate | More than 12km, more than 500m of cumulative gain, or hill-training events with constant steep elevation gain, regardless of total amount | For example, Glenmore Reservoir or Douglas Fir Trail |
Learn
Learn events are rated according to required skill level and/or risk.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
1 | Easy | Classroom, Seminar, no hands-on | For example: Cycle-touring presentation |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Classroom or seminar with hands-on | For example: First Aid course |
3 | Moderate | Moderate hands-on | For example: Wilderness First Aid course |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Challenging hands-on | For example: Avalanche Rescue training |
Meeting
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
1 | Easy | Meeting/discussion with no physical activity component |
Skate - Ice
The degree of difficulty in ice skating generally is affected by conditions only - each participant can, of course decide how fast/hard they want to skate. Beginners are always welcome on ice skating events.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Groomed ice | For example, Olympic Oval |
3 | Moderate | Outdoor ice | For example, Bowness Lagoon |
Ski - Cross-Country
Cross-Country Skiing is rated according to terrain, trail conditions, distance, amount and type of hills, and expected pace.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Intended for beginners. Groomed trails, green (easy) trails only. | For example, green trails at Kananaskis Village |
3 |
Moderate |
Not intended for beginners. Generally on groomed trails, green and blue trails, expectation for pace and distance posted. | For example, blue and green trails around Peter Lougheed Info Center |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Experienced skiiers only. Often trails are ungroomed, significant distance and hills. | For example, Brewster Creek |
5 | Difficult | Experienced skiiers only. Often trails are ungroomed, significant distance and hills. Greater distance and elevation gain. | For example, Chester Lake |
Ski - Downhill
When downhill skiing, it is generally up to the individual how difficult the day will be. They choose which runs to take and how many of them.Note that events involving skiing out-of-bounds are not allowed.
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs |
3 | Moderate | Beginner to blue runs, or all levels welcome. |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Mostly blue runs |
5 | Difficult | Mostly black to double-black diamond runs |
Snow Shoe
Snow Shoe events are rated on a grid according to distance and elevation gain. Although terrain is not considered in our grid, coordinators will adjust their difficulty to reflect special terrain considerations.Note: Hover your mouse over the D links in the chart to see examples of which trails fall into this category. For the examples given, elevation gains were based on actual measurements, rather than on net elevation gains provided by many guide books. They are also rated according to our "actual" end point on typical events rather than just to the end of an official trail (which is frequently all that is provided in the guide books).
|
|
Social
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
1 | Easy | Social gathering with no physical activity component | Any social event (e.g., an outdoor picnic) which involves people entering water is subject to our Sport - Swim Risk Management, per below. |
Sport - Golf
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Recreational golf outing | |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Competitive golf outing |
Sport - Miscellaneous
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Recreational sport outing which does not fall under our other Sport categories | |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Competitive sport outing which does not fall under our other Sport categories |
Sport - Racquet
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Recreational racquet sport (e.g., Pickleball, Tennis) | |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Competitive racquet sport (e.g., Pickleball, Tennis) |
Sport - Run
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Run activity - beginners allowed, no expectations of attendees | |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Run activity with expectations for distance/pace/ability |
Sport - Swim
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Swim event at supervised pool | Swim, Indoor
|
3 | Moderate | Swim, Outdoor, Flat (Class 1) |
|
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Swim, Outdoor, Moving (Class 1) |
|
Sport - Team
Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Recreational team sport activity | |
3 | Moderate | Intermediate team sport activity requiring some skill/experience | |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Competitive team sport activity requiring skill/experience |
Volunteer
Adventure events are rated according to required skill level, physical challenge and/or risk.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Specs | Notes |
2 | Easy to Moderate | Community Service with little physical challenge | For example: Garage Sale, Food Bank |
3 | Moderate | Community Service with some physical challenge and/or hazard | For example: River Clean-Up |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | Physically challenging activity | For example: Kananaskis Trail Maintenance |
Water - Flat
All Water events (Canoe, Kayak, Raft) are rated according to whether the water is flat or moving, and the class rating from Paddle Canada. This section describes the Difficulty Ratings for flat water (including sea).Difficulty (D) # | Name | Paddle Canada | Coordinator Knowledge/Skills Required | Situations Where Event is to be Canceled | |
Class | Environment | ||||
3 | Moderate | 0 | Non-challenging protected waters with limited wind effect, little or no current, easy landings, and ready access to land-based assistance. Wind and sea state is calm to rippled (<16km/h or 8 knots). For eg Glenmore reservoir, Vermillion Lakes, Two Jack Lake |
- Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD - Able to assist in a rescue |
Water conditions become Class 2 or more |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | 1 | Non-challenging waters with mild wind effect (0-22 km/h or 0-11 knots), little or no current (0-1 km/h or 0-0.5 knots), uninterrupted easy landing options, and ready access to land-based assistance. Sea state is calm to light chop. (Includes multi day long lake paddles such as Bowron Lake) |
- Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD - Able to assist in a rescue |
Water conditions become Class 2 or more |
5 | Difficult | 2 | Moderately exposed coastline with frequent easy-landing opportunities and short crossings. Moderate potential wind effects (24-40 km/h or 12-19 knots), surf of less than 1 meter and a combined sea state of less than 1 metre, gentle to moderate non-turbulent currents (< 6 km/h or < 3 knots), and light surf beaches. Short delays in access to land-based assistance should be expected (Typical of multi-day coastal trips such as to Desolation Sound) |
- Out of scope for self guided events - Engagement of external guiding companies required - Ability to Self rescue - Ability to assist in a rescue - Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD |
Water - Moving
All Water events (Canoe, Kayak, Raft) are rated according to whether the water is flat or moving, and the class rating from Paddle Canada. This section describes the Difficulty Ratings for moving water.Difficulty (D) # | Name | Paddle Canada | Coordinator Knowledge/Skills Required | Situations Where Event is to be Canceled | |
Class | Environment | ||||
3 | Moderate | A | Flowing under 3.2 km/h.
|
- Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD | Water conditions become Class 2 or B or more |
4 | Moderate to Difficult | B | Flowing 3.2 km/h to 6.4 km/h.
Parts of Bow River. For example, Harvie North Passage Bow River. Times of high river flows during spring run off.
|
- Out of scope for self guided events - Engagement of external guiding companies required - Ability to Self rescue - Ability to assist in a rescue - Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD |
|
5 | Difficult | C | Flows greater than 6.4 km/h.
Typically white water areas |
- Out of scope for self guided events - Engagement of external guiding companies required - Ability to Self rescue - Ability to assist in a rescue - Ability to swim short distances to shore wearing a PFD |
Top of page...