Track, Trail or Walk

I would use walk to describe something suitable for regular (non-tramping) folk, whereas track implies tramping track. I know DOC has the "Great Walks" which they probably chose in order to point out that you can't bike or drve them (Track is not so clear). However, I feel the implication is that these are safe routes, which is not necessarily so. I think the whole "Great Walks" label causes a lot of confusion as people don't realise it is a brand rather than an evaluation. I would rename them. I note trail is being used for very long tracks as well as routes along old roads and railways such as Te Araroa and the Rail Trail. It also get used for historic trails that link historic points, and it gets used for car journeys e.g. wine trails, gold trails. I feel trail implies that the route is relatively unchallenging (e.g. the Rail Trail). I guess it was used for Te Araroa as there simply isn't a track in some places. I would suggest trail should be used for these purposes, but should not be used if it is the route itself is historic but has always been tramping-grade (e.g. Harper Pass). So by this logic, the Wharfedale Track (surveyed as a road into the Lees Valley, so very evenly graded) could be a trail. Just thoughts off the top of my head. I would suggest generally that the default choice should be track for the reasons you suggest -- it's our culture. Other words (trail, walk, route) should only be used for specific reasons.

I have always considered a 'Trail' to be a tramp through the bush following 'makers' but without a formed track to walk along. Maybe I am confusing the word "trial' with 'route'. I probably would not give this issue much more thought.

My understanding of terminology would be this: "walk" - As a noun as in "It is a walk to the next hut". I would presume this to be easy going, no scrambling, climbing over windfalls etc. You can walk upright the whole way. "track" - Markers marking the route plus some sort of formed pad on the ground. "trail" - what Americans call a track. "route" - More basic, maybe markers but probably no reliable pad on the ground. Could be just a description. ie. Up a ridge, down a creek. "tramping" - What New Zealanders and people from the the Czech Republic call hiking. "hiking" - what the rest of the world except for New Zealanders and people from the Czech Republic call Tramping. Then you get terms used in a name. eg The Milford Track (which is a track). The Routeburn Walk (which is also a track). Hongis Track (which is a State Highway), The Pig Route (which is also a State Highway), The Central Otago Rail Trail (which is a cycle track I guess but it was a railway track). The Te Araroa Trail (which is partly track, partly road and I guess a fair bit is route). Yes it all gets confusing. But a name is important. DOC are trying to change the name of the "Tongariro Crossing" to the "Tongariro Alpine Crossing" so that people will realise that it is a track, and an alpine track and not just a walk. "

Much of the confusion comes from a lack of experience at the top and a desire to market NZ in a way that visitors will recognise. Ive walked all over the world and what most call a track or a trail overseas look more like a country road with a corner dairy convieniently placed for refreshments. We should continue to be different and emphasise the difference for safety sake

I've just been browsing old threads in boredom this morning. I notice the new Macpac now refers to 'Trekking' packs rather than 'Tramping' packs, much more internationally marketable but also saddening. A few weeks ago I was off-track and someone yelled out they'd found a blaze. I thought they were getting very American on me for a moment, but then realised they actually meant a *real* blaze. And I can't stand the term "trail-head". Somehow it implies there's always supposed to be defined starting and ending points and a specific well-walked route between them. At least "road-end" is a term that's defined externally. :) Anyway, a couple of notable Google searches... "trail site:doc.govt.nz" (About 1,820 results) * Rimutaka Rail Trail: Wairarapa tracks and walks * Kauaeranga Kauri Trail * Otago Central Rail Trail: Central Otago tracks and walks * Grey River Nature Trail: Waimakariri tracks and walks * An exciting turn for the Tarawera Trail: Media Release 7 January 2010 * Nga Haerenga – New Zealand Cycle Trail Project « Conservation blog * Hatupatu Trail: Rotorua Lakes * Kaimai Heritage Trail: Tauranga Area * ... etc ... "track site:doc.govt.nz" (about 7620 results) * Milford Track: Te Anau area great walk * Routeburn Track: Southland Great Walk * Heaphy Track: Nelson Marlborough Great Walk - Golden Bay area * Abel Tasman Coast Track: Golden Bay area Great Walk * Kepler Track: Southland Great Walks * Rakiura Track: Southern Islands Great Walk * Queen Charlotte Track: Sounds area Tracks and walks * Copland Track: South Westland, West Coast * ... etc ... A similar search restricted to all NZ websites shows: "trail site:nz" (About 554,000 results) "track site:nz" (About 2,350,000 results) DoC is about 19.3% 'trail', whereas all of NZ is about 19.1%, so at the very least there's a correlation. Maybe this means that people in NZ who write on the web typically re-use whatever terminology they see DOC using... or vice-versa, or a bit of both? It's not a very scientific study, obviously, and no doubt there's plenty of overseas literature and language from overseas people that's produced or reproduced on NZ websites. In related news, DoC is about 18.1% 'hiking' rather than tramping, whereas the rest of NZ is about 18.3%.

Dear God you where bored!

Come on, it was 7am.

The Americans call day-walks hikes. If it's an overnighter, it's called backpacking...however they also refer to thru-hikes such as the AT etc. They will also talk about day-hikes sometimes. Intrigued about the Czechs using the word tramping. I've noticed this too in hutbooks. I assumed they were copying the local lingo as English isn't their mother tongue.

I've never heard of the Czechs being involved. The word probably has a German relation, though. We had a discussion about this over on Markus Baumann's Skylark Productions blog. http://www.skylark.co.nz/wp/what-is-a-tramper/ (scroll down to the comments)