When I first started my commute - for two months I had to walk the hills - they were brutal. Steep and rock and gravel. If you didn't balance just right, the tires spun out - if you started spinning - you really felt it.
Then one day, I made the hill - both of them in the same day. It was more technique than anything. (and perhaps conditioning)
But, walking a hill doesn't bother me - I am too old to have anything left to prove.
