Highest Difficulty Level For Rock Climbing

Rock climbing is a way to stay fit and continually challenge yourself. Since the 1990s, climbing has grown in popularity, and participants now have a variety of climbing options. Climbers of all levels can practice indoors on well-designed walls, such as Adventure Rock, and depending on skill level, participate in different types of outdoor climbs, including bouldering, sport climbing and traditional climbing. Some climbs are made safer with preplaced bolts, making even higher-difficulty rated climbs more accessible.

Climbing Ratings

Most climbs in the U.S. are rated based on the Yosemite Decimal Rating System and categorized according to the most difficult move on the route, according to REI. Basic climbing route classifications include five categories -- Class 1 to Class 5 -- with the highest rating signifying the most difficult climb. Class 1- and Class 2-rated climbs include walking on a flat, well-established trail and hiking or scrambling up an incline. Class 3- and Class 4-rated routes include climbing up a steep, moderately exposed hillside and having to use your hands to move up the route. Class 4 climbs are even steeper, usually exposed and typically require rope equipment for assistance. The fall potential is intensified. Class 5 climbs are the highest-difficulty rated rock climbing level and require professional equipment and expert skill. A Class 5 climb fall can be fatal. Class 5 includes subcategories to further indicate difficulty level.

Easy-to-Intermediate Class 5

Within the Class 5 level climbs, a number following a decimal point denotes climb difficulty incrementally. Class 5 subcategories 5.1 to 5.4 are considered easier climbs and include climbing a steep segment with large footholds and handholds. Climbs rated between 5.5 and 5.8 are intermediate within the Class 5 highest-difficulty level and require strength, endurance and expert climbing skills. Climbs are low to vertical and include small footholds and handholds.

Hard-to-Very-Difficult Class 5

Any Class 5 highest-difficulty level subcategory between 5.9 and 5.14 demands professional know-how and is not for novices, according to REI. Subcategories 5.9 to 5.10 are considered hard and technical. The terrain is typically vertical and can include overhangs. You must wear rock shoes at this level. Climbs rated 5.11 to 5.12 are hard to difficult, vertical and technical, and can also include overhangs. Climb ratings 5.13 to 5.15 are the most difficult and technical. The terrain is extreme and vertical with overhangs. More intense Class 5 climbs require professional rock climbing gear and expert usage skills.

Class 5.9 Subclassifications

Within the Class 5 subcategory of 5.9, further classifications are employed to further characterize route difficulty. The 5.9 subclassification system is made up of letters a, b, c and d, which denote even more difficulty in the route, such as extreme rock angles and overhangs. Subclass "a" climbs are less extreme and "d" climbs are the most extreme. Climbing books sometimes use a subclassification system of plus and minus signs instead, according to REI. Climbing groups and organizations often use their own climbing level descriptions and categories, such as basic rock or very strenuous, according to The Mountaineers.