While it’s common to hear terms like “mountain climber” in mainstream circles, it fails to cover the massive scope that term covers. There are many different ways to summit a mountain. Different terminology is important because each style has it’s own challenges, risks, appeals and communities. People spend lifetimes developing just one style. Here are the ways in which people summit mountains.
Hiking/ Hikers - Some walking steeper terrain, mostly in undulating terrain. Requires excursion. Basic route finding helpful. There is normally a path to follow and hardly anything more technical then steps. This is by far the most popular way that people get to the top. Popular hikes include Ben Nevis main route, Grouse Grind, Plain if Six Glaciers, etc. Often, as is the case with Ben Nevis, the trails winds it’s way up the gentlest flanks of the mountain to the summit. More people summit mountains hiking then any other form. It’s part of what makes Mountain Climber such an ambiguous term. One can easily climb to the top of a mountain with no real technical know how.
Trekking - Trekking takes places on well established routes that tend to have support structures in place, like porters, huts or similar shelters that offer services. Gear doesn't need to be carried, nor is it in true wilderness setting though altitudes are often higher. Popular treks include El Camino, Everest Base Camp, Machu Pichu West Highland Way, etc. Treks rarely go to the summit of peaks, but many have convenient access to nearby peaks. Machu Pichu and Wana Pichu being one great example.
Backpackers - Overnight Hiking. Requires camping skills and basic routefinding. It involves hiking with all your food and gear great distances, often to the tops of mountains, or over them. Popular backpacking routes include the West Coast Trail, Rainer Circuit, Algonquin Park etc.
Mountaineering
This is both a series of skills and an activity. Really anything that requires moving across terrain in the alpine that requires one to have above average route finding and technical movement skills would qualify. This is by the Freedom of the Hills guide lines
Scrambling / Scramblers- This term isn’t very common outside of the UK, and Canada, and some parts of the US. It refers to very challenging hikes that involve some minor climbing but with significant exposure, so sharp ridges, steep terrain requiring the use of hands. Most scrambles have their halfway point at the summit of a distinctive peak. After hiking this is the second most popular way in which people achieve summits.
Mountaineering/ Mountaineers - The activity is really the same as scrambling except with glaciers, snow, and other challenging features that require unique skills, and equipment to overcome. This is the most well known form of achieving summits.
Learning Beginner Mountaineering Skills with Cloud Nine Guides
Ski Mountaineering
Ascending mountains up steep terrain with the intent to ski down them, or traversing a glacier on skis. These require advanced alpine skills and techniques as well as familiarity with many types of gear and terrain.
"Mountain Climbing"/ Commercial Expedition/ High Altitude
High Altitude climbing is the pursuit of peaks higher than 6000m (some say has to be higher than 7000 or even 8000m). They are incredibly involved trips, often requiring months of acclimatization, staging and setup. While they are done both alpine style ( in one push) and siege (placing multiple camps, ropes and supplies), the second is more popular.
While there are many high altitude ascents every year, generally most fall under the commercial category. This tends to be maligned by the wider climbing community as it as seen as at a waste of time, or at worst vanity project that endangers many for wealthy clients. The reality is many hardworking, but generally inexperienced individuals do these types of climbs.
One valid argument for this elitist attitude is the disparity between the porters and their employers. Sherpa people do nearly all of the actual climbing on the mountain, setting up ropes, carrying all the loads (in some cases tvs, coffee machines, and other pointless comfort items), and creating the tracks for the clients to walk in.
All this to make the climb as easy as possible, to increase the chances of success. They do this for little pay, and since they spend the most time on the routes, are the most exposed to danger suffering incredibly high casualty rates, all so wealthy clients can shirk the duties that are normally expected by climber on an expedition.
Within climbing culture this is considered cheating, and bad form, hence why many climbers feel that those who ascend the Seven Summits aren’t climbers. They don’t even know about these deep traditions, so how can they possibly label themselves part of this culture. It’s like someone running 1okm races, who swims and bikes casually calling themselves a triathlete. While technically true, they’ve missed the point entirely.
Climbers don't use the term Mountain Climbing as it is a vague and ambiguous term that fails to fails to define the type of climbing one engages in. In my experience this term is most popular in non-climbing media, and as a consequence amongst people not familiar with climbing traditions, cultural and practices.
Free Climbing
Generally falls under mountaineering as it uses the same skills though most climbers wouldn't call themselves mountaineers. Anything that requires your hands, and feet for upward movement on technical rock or ice. With the exception of Aid, this is called Free Climbing, meaning climbing without assistance of gear to aid upward ascent i.e. using a piece of gear to create artificial foot or hand holds. In free climbing gear is used to arrest the climber in the event of a fall. Almost all climbers climb in this style. Free Soloing is climbing without the active use of ropes, though climbers may carry them to use on the descent, or to get out of trouble. Rock Climbers generally refers to people who climb exclusively on trad and sport and never bother with alpine, or the like.
Bouldering/ Boulderers - Climbing short, extremely technical, portions of rock unroped, normally with padded mats for protection. You aren't really summiting anything more then 20ft, but a big part of climbing. Larger boulders are called High Balls, and tend to become “No Fall” routes higher up.
Sport Climbing/ Sport Climbers - Climbing up to permenant bolts in the rock, clipping a quickdraw to them, then the rope to the quickdraw. In the event of a fall, the weight is held by the quickdraw. The climber will normally fall past the quickdraw before the rope becomes tight and arrests his fall. Generally Sport routes don't top out on summits, though there are a few in the Dolomites to my knowledge.
If you look carefully you can see the bolts
Traditional Climbing , or "Trad Climbers"- Placing passive (nuts, and hexes) and active protection (caming devices, i.e. camalots, dragons, friends) to arrest the fall in the place of bolts. These devices slide into cracks in the rock, or over protrusions. Trad climbing requires a lot more technical skill and focus then sport climbing, as the placements have to be done properly to catch a falling climbing. Placing . When people refer to trad climbing they generally mean cragging or multi-pitches less than 10 pitches. While these rarely get to any significant summits, these techniques are essential for climbing many of the more challenging mountains.
Ice Climbing - Using "Ice Tools"(aggressive ice axes designed for vertical use) and Crampons to ascend the ice. Protection from falls is provided by "Ice Screws" small stainless steel tubes that are screwed by hand into the ice.
Mixed climbing- Using Ice tools and crampons to climb rock and ice. Normally bolts, trad gear, and screws are used for protection. Advanced techniques are required along with excellent balance.
Deep Water Soloing
Less popular, except in a few spots like Thailand. The routes are short to regular length rock routes that use the water to cushion falls. They resemble rockfalls with the sole exception being the method of falling.
Non-Free Climbing
Top-Roping - Setting up Anchors that allow a rope to go from the climber, to the anchor and back down to the belayer so that in the event of a fall, or exhaustion the climber is immediately caught and does not actually fall downwards any sizeable distance.
Big Wall and Aid Climbing/ Big Wall Climbers - When a peak seems so vertical and featureless it would appear impossible, that's where Aid and Big Wall climbers come in. Aid climbing is the technique, and Big Walls are considered the more remote, and involved projects that require spending many days on the face moving slowly and methodically. Climber use rope etiers (nylon tape ladders) immense amounts of gear, hooks, pitons and cams, aid climbers use any and all means to work their way up otherwise impossible climbs. It takes a great deal of courage, skill, time, and money.
Alpine Climbing/ Alpinists -
This is where people are called alpinists in English. This is using a mix of skills to climb very technically demanding routes on Mountains. Good example of routes and areas are North Face of the Eiger, or Greenwood Locke Mount Temple, the Bugaboos (the Beckey Chouinard Route) . Below is an excellent video of two climbers ascending the Slovak Direct. Alpine climbs generally speaking involve achieving the summit a mountain, though many routes are on sub summits, or other features.