Vol. 14 No. 2 (2023):
Research Article

Reconsidering the basics of mountain trail categorisation: case study in Slovenia

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Marko Krevs
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography, Slovenia
Blaž Repe
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography, Slovenia
Tinkara Mazej
University of Ljubljana, Faculty of Arts, Department of Geography, Slovenia
Experimental categorisation (ETC) of mountain trails in the high mountain central area of the Kamnik-Savinja Alps
DOI: https://doi.org/10.48088/ejg.m.kre.14.2.044.063
Categories

Published 2023-06-19

Keywords

  • GIS-based evaluation support,
  • hiking,
  • mountaineering,
  • objective categorisation,
  • mountain trails,
  • international standardisation
    • ...More
    Less

How to Cite

Krevs, Marko, Blaž Repe, and Tinkara Mazej. 2023. “Reconsidering the Basics of Mountain Trail Categorisation: Case Study in Slovenia”. European Journal of Geography 14 (2):44-63. https://doi.org/10.48088/ejg.m.kre.14.2.044.063.

Copyright (c) 2023 Marko Krevs, Blaž Repe, Tinkara Mazej

Creative Commons License

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.

Received 2022-12-29
Accepted 2023-06-19
Published 2023-06-19

Abstract

Mountain trail categorisation remains an important piece of information for hikers when selecting a trail and preparing for a hike, despite new developments in trail difficulty assessment and trail recommendation systems and tools. National or regional trail categorisations should maintain a simple, mainly descriptive form to remain a useful guide for the majority of hikers. However, they are often still based on subjective expert assessments of trail difficulty. In this paper, we combine findings from our own empirical research and from the literature to support two arguments: available or obtainable geographical information and GIS -based methods can contribute to the objectivity of mountain trail categorisation, and improved categorisation contributes to increased hiking safety. An experimental GIS-based categorisation of mountain trails in two areas in Slovenia is conducted to support the above arguments. The comparison of the experimental categorisation with the existing official categorisation and the identification of potentially dangerous trail sections support perhaps the most important of the two arguments, namely the potential to improve hiking safety. However, it also stimulates further discussion on the establishment and implementation of an international standardisation of trail categorisation.

Highlights:

  • Unused potential of available geographic information and methods for trail categorisations.
  • Experimental objective categorisation based on inclination and exposure of the trail.
  • Systematic GIS-based detection of potentially dangerous trail sections.
  • Objectifying categorisation can provide information that can potentially improve hiking safety.
  • Transferable, upgradable method as a prerequisite for international standardization.
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