The hardest hikes in Tennessee, by the numbers
Of the 211 trails in Tennessee in our dataset, 53 (25 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; these are the 25 with the highest rating.
Porters Creek Trail leads with 8,397 ft of gain over 29.6 miles, 284 ft per mile, with a steepest pitch of 36 percent.
Across the 25, gain runs from 2,848 to 9,649 ft and distance from 7.3 miles to 29.7 miles; the median gain is 4,611 ft and the median distance 15.9 miles.
12 of the 25 are point-to-point routes; the rest are loop (4) 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 "Tennessee" here means the 211 trails in Tennessee in our dataset, not every trail in Tennessee.
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 Porters Creek Trail.
Hardest hikes elsewhere.
The same ranking for other states in our dataset.