Like any long-distance hiking trail, the John Muir trail has its sections of easy hikes and extremely hard hikes. Overall, the trail is listed as an intermediate trail. If you are hiking in the winter, expect to be doing some ice hiking. Notoriously, the hardest part of the trail is Glen Pass. Glen Pass is a long winding section near the end of the trail, with rapid elevation gain (reaching about 11,000 feet).