Hiking Time Calculator and How To Estimate Hiking Time
Everyone wants an easy hiking time calculator and to know how to estimate hiking time. Understanding the time requirements of a trail is important for planning your adventure. However, estimating hiking time is much more complicated than it seems at first.
When we designed a new rating scale for trail difficulty, we researched over a dozen different trail rating systems. Many rating systems used time as a factor that determined the difficulty of a trail. The main challenge with using time to calculate a difficulty rating is that environmental, logistical, and personal factors can dramatically change the time it takes to complete a route on any given day.
The Adventure Nerds Backpacking and Hiking Trail Difficulty Ratings use mileage, elevation change, slope (average grade and max grade), navigational requirements, and the terrain to calculate the difficulty of a trail. We created a new system that is objective and universal. But it still doesn’t answer the question, “how long will it take me?”
To estimate hiking time, we need a hiking time calculator. Then with a little math and some guessing, we can approximate our hiking time.
Hiking Time Calculator
One of the most simple and well-known ways to calculate hiking time is Naismith’s Rule.
Every 3 miles (5 km) = 1 hour
Every 2,000 feet (600 m) ascent = +1 hour
Naismith’s Rule is Hiking Time = Horizontal Distance (miles)/3 + Ascent (feet) /2000
So a 6-mile hike with 2,000 feet in elevation gain should take 3 hours (2hrs + 1 hr).
In the field, it might be easier to use (20 minutes * # of miles) +15 minutes for every 500 feet ascended – 15 minutes for every 500 descended. Even though Naismith’s Rule isn’t accurate for most scenarios, it provides a rough estimate of hiking time.
Wikipedia has an overview of the many assumptions and challenges with Naismith’s Rule, including subsequent research and modifications to Naismith’s formula. Various researchers have tried to include pace, slope, pack weight, terrain, descents, etc., into complicated and more accurate formulas.
Book Time is a simple variation on Naismith’s Rule that decreases the pace to 30 minutes per mile for hiking in the mountains. (30 minutes * # of miles) + 30 minutes for every 1,000 feet ascended.
Munter Method
The Munter method is a mix of art and science. Legendary alpinist, Werner Munter, invented a method for estimating backcountry travel time based on his extensive outdoor experience. The equation is straightforward but relies on a subjective rate of travel to make it work. There are guidelines for estimating your rate of travel, but the art of the Munter calculation is adjusting the rate to match your unique situation.
The Munter Method for Calculating Backcountry Travel Time
Time = (Distance (km) + (Ascent (m)/100))/Rate
The rate depends on the type of activity, slope, and other factors. The art of the Munter Method is determining how to adjust the base rate based on all the other factors that might impact your speed.
Rate = 2. Off-trail travel (Bushwhacking)
Rate = 4. Walking or skiing uphill
Rate = 6. Walking downhill
Rate = 10. Skiing downhill
We use Caltopo to plan many of our backcountry adventures. Caltopo has a robust and adjustable time estimator that integrates Munter calculations with your route plan.
Other Ways To Estimate Hiking Time
There are many ways to estimate hiking time, and none are perfect. The dynamic environmental, logistical, and personal factors make it a difficult problem to solve. We encourage you to experiment and then adjust your calculations based on your personal experience.
TrailsNH’s online hiking time calculator is designed for hiking in the White Mountains of New Hampshire. It allows users to adjust the calculations based on perceived pack weight, terrain conditions, and pace. It also compares the TrailsNH estimate to Naismith’s Rule and Book Time.
The National Park Service developed a difficulty rating scale for hiking in Shenandoah National Park that provides estimated hiking times in the park. The formula for determining trail difficulty rating is the square root of the distance multiplied by double the elevation gain.
Rating = √((Ascent (feet) * 2) * Distance (miles))
With the rating, you can determine an approximate time for your trip using the NPS estimated pace calculations for the terrain.
| Rating | Description | Distance | Pace |
| < 50 | Easiest | < 3 miles | 1.5 mph |
| 50-100 | Moderate | 3-5 miles | 1.4 mph |
| 100-150 | Moderately Strenuous | 5-8 miles | 1.3 mph |
| 150-200 | Strenuous | 7-10 miles | 1.2 mph |
| > 200 | Very Strenuous | > 10 miles | 1.2 mph |