The hardest hikes in New Mexico, by the numbers
Of the 44 trails in New Mexico in our dataset, 13 (30 percent) rate strenuous or very strenuous on the gain-and-distance scale we use and run 3 to 30 miles with at least 1,500 ft of climb; all 13 are listed here, highest rating first.
Guadalupe Ridge Trail (GRT): Carlsbad Segment leads with 3,771 ft of gain over 21.7 miles, 174 ft per mile, with a steepest pitch of 20 percent.
Across the 13, gain runs from 1,712 to 3,980 ft and distance from 4.6 miles to 21.7 miles; the median gain is 2,755 ft and the median distance 7.4 miles.
8 of the 13 are point-to-point routes; the rest are loop (3) or out-and-back (2).
How this list is ranked
Rating = the square root of 2 x elevation gain (ft) x distance (miles), the gain-and-distance formula Shenandoah National Park publishes for its own trails. Bands: under 50 easiest, 50 to 100 moderate, 100 to 150 moderately strenuous, 150 to 200 strenuous, 200 and over very strenuous.
This list: band strenuous (150 to 200) or very strenuous (200 and over), 3 to 30 miles, at least 1,500 ft of gain, ordered by rating desc, gain per mile desc, capped at 25. The rating column is computed from the miles and gain printed in the same row, the numbers each trail page uses, so every row can be checked from the row itself. The rating says nothing about exposure, scrambling, altitude or conditions.
Only trails with a full page count, so "New Mexico" here means the 44 trails in New Mexico in our dataset, not every trail in New Mexico.
Each trail page shows the full elevation profile behind these numbers and the same data drawn as a topographic print, made to order. Start with Guadalupe Ridge Trail (GRT): Carlsbad Segment.
Hardest hikes elsewhere.
The same ranking for other states in our dataset.