Nature Trail Glossary

Introduction

This glossary lists and defines terms that we use at Nature Trail.  For each we include how we choose to prescribe their definitions for our own tour operations.

We do this to clarify understanding to our Trip Applicants and Trip Participants as well as to third parties whom we engage from time to time as part of our tour operations.

We have gone to some effort to identify, list, research, define and explain each term.  This is in order to be transparent and so we hopefully avoid possible misunderstandings and misinterpretations, and to be clear about what we offer and what to expect on a Nature Trail trip, else contractual agreement/business arrangement.

Whilst many terms may seem common parlance, especially in the touring craft, in our experience the paying public can misunderstand what some terms precisely mean leading to a difference between what customers expect and what they get.  This can be especially experienced by the travelling public who may not have English as a first language.  

Our glossary forms part of our Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures as we continually seek to achieve best practice in tour delivery – the best safety, best welfare, best enjoyment, tour expectations met and that we all return together cohesively.

We list these terms below in alphabetical order.  Each term cross-referenced in bold font has its own definition provided within this list.  As Nature Trail evolves, we update this content.

2-Day Trek

This is a Nature Trail trek that extends for two days in duration.  It necessitates an overnight Rucksack Freedom Camp and Transport Transfers generally to and from Katoomba.

Each Trip Applicant is required to be a Self-Sufficient Trekker and to be very healthy, with top fitness and recently multi-day trek experienced, as well as completely independent and self sufficient in clothing, trekking gear, camping gear, food, drinking water for the particular trip.

In order to ensure the safety, reliability and success of delivering our Treks, these requirements must be pre-met before a Tour Guest is accepted by Nature Trail to participate.  We ensure this by requiring each Trip Applicant to have first successfully met the eligibility criteria and registration with Nature Trail’s Trekking Alumni.

This ensures we uphold the safety of the group of Tour Guests by ensuring we don’t allow unproven, problematic unknowns.

Accommodated Stay

This is a temporary stay in a room, group of rooms, or building set up for a traveller, holiday maker and trekker, who are Tour Guests on a Nature Trail 2-Day Trip or Multi-Day Trip.  It may also be a Vehicle Camping option.

Typically, Nature Trail will suggest and facilitate each Tour Guest makes separate direct booking arrangements with a selected accommodated stay provider, rather than Nature Trail getting involved as a defacto travel agent on a Tour Guest‘s behalf.  This avoids us having to spend additional time discussing with trip applicants accommodation preferences and budgets, us then researching available options which would take time and reasonable apply a time-based fee to a Tour Guest.

Having sad that, our website list a range of Blue Mountains accommodation referrals located in the Blue Mountains Region that we consider worth investigating.  [Read More]

Nature Trail does not seek to act as a travel agency for accommodation booking arrangements, preferring instead to sticking to tour operating.  In this way, everyone  involved saves and avoids complications – the Tour Guest, the Accommodated Stay provider/owner, and us at Nature Trail.

Nature Trail recommends all accommodated stays be more reliably arranged directly with the owner, NOT via foreign multinational online platform brokers such as Airbnb, Booking.com, Stayz, Expedia, RentbyOwner, HometoGo, Wotif, and TripAdvisor.  So keep your money funding locals direct and help contribute to the viability of our local small business communities.

Backpacking

Young ‘backpackers’ carrying ‘backpacks’ (a typically urban setting)

Benighted

Is when a hiker(s) become unexpectedly overtaken by nightfall and so is caught out in the darkness in a natural environment, away from urban areas.

Becoming benighted often necessitates the hiker(s) having to rough camp overnight typically with inadequate camp kit and sustenance kit.  This predicament can be most unpleasant to being quite dangerous depending upon the season and severity of the environment conditions.

The Blue Mountains Region in the winter season typically gets to overnight freezing temperatures, so heightening the risk of hypothermia without adequate thermal clothing and shelter.  Such freezing temperatures can also unseasonally occur at other times of the year.

The Blue Mountains Region has few watercourses with safe drinking water readily accessible by track.  So dehydration is a heightened risk, but worse if contaminated water is drunk.  Trying to hike at night is impossible in remote bushland in pitch black darkness,  even with a full moon on a clear night sky, so attempting night hiking heightens injury from tripping and slipping, and becoming not just benighted, but lost and exposed to the elements.

Blue Mountains Region

This is a natural raised sandstone plateaued region of New South Wales in Australia situated from 50km west of Sydney’s CBD and covering an area of 10,000 km².  Most notably the area of greatest visitation is the Upper Blue Mountains section of the Central Blue Mountains, which contains a string of town and villages (not suburbs) along the westerly Great Western Highway and less so along the parallel Bells Line of Road.

Bushbash

(verb) – other Australian vernacular slang term meaning to hike off a defined hiking track, requiring beating through thick bush, tramping over pristine ecology, perhaps by using a stick or machete to slash vegetation in order to gain virgin access.

It is a damaging trailblazing approach to hiking that deliberately disrespects and damages ecology.  It is unethically applied by many ‘clubbers’ who ignore the ‘Leave No Trace’ outdoors principle.  It is akin to horse riders on a fox hunt fence jumping through urban backyards leaving carnage and horse manure as if the property owners had no rights.  If clubbers (typically of the ‘baby boomer’ demographic) persist in bush-bashing through wilderness, there will be no wilderness left to speak of.

Nature Trail does not bushbash.  We point out that there are other more colourful terms used by more adventurous outdoor types that are an extension of hiking – ‘bushbashing’, bushwhacking’, and ‘thru-hiking’.  We don’t do these activities either.

Bushwalk

(A verb and noun) – an Australian vernacular term for ‘hike’ but also for a ‘hiking track’. So it’s ambiguous and slang, therefore we don’t use this term to avoid potential misunderstandings by foreign visitors to Australia – being Nature Trail’s main target market.

Commercial Tour

This is a Nature trail Tour that is offered commercially, requiring each Trip Participant’s full pre-payment.

A Commercial Tour is only offered after a detailed Tour Design process has been finalised, a Scouting Trip has been reconnoitered, followed by a design review and then a Practice Trip undertaken by thee Trip Leader with the Friends of Nature Trail participating and providing feedback, and a further design review.

The respective Scouting Trip and follow-up Practice Trip are each meticulously planned for the given days and environmental conditions.  A Practice Trip is delivered pro-bono to invited Friends of Nature Trail to the standard of our proposed Commercial Tour offering.

Nature Trail’s Tour Director, Steve, on a Scouting Trip with his Trip Leader Day Pack Kit, making journal notes for a planned day hiking tour into the Jamison Valley.

Craft of Touring

This is our term for commercial touring being a ‘craft’.

We consider this umbrella naming to be more appropriate than ‘profession’ or ‘trade’.

The ‘Craft’ of Touring is about the design, planning and delivery of commercial tours; which to be of a professional standard, necessitates acquiring a number of umbrella skill-sets, extensive training, research and experience.

As a commercial tour operator, Nature Trail seeks to achieve this to contemporary best practice standards.

The Craft of Touring incorporates the services of the tour guide, the tour planner, tour  manager, tour director, tour operator, coach captain, extended tour leader.  This includes those working as employees and the self-employed.

We posit that The Craft’ of Touring to be of a professional standard necessitates the following formal and field training, umbrella skill-sets and commercial experience:

• A passion for sharing touring with visitors
• Personal Maturity
• Interpersonal Communications
• People Management
• Personal Presentation and Grooming
• Hospitality and Food Service
• Customer Service
• Tourism
• Tour Guiding
• Adventure Tourism
• Tour Design
• Trip Planning
• Group Field Leadership
• Interpretative Commentary – Research and Selective Delivery
• Public Speaking – Safety Briefings, Leadership Directives
• Commentary – research, presentation, story telling and acting skills
• Remote Navigation (Map, Compass and GPS)
• Remote Area Survival
• Group Hiking
• Group Trekking
• Group Camping
• Remote Catering
• Camp Cooking & Nutrition
• Hiking Clothing and Equipment Knowledge & Use
• Remote Emergency Protocols & Co-ordination
• Hiking/Trekking Search and Rescue Response
• Remote Hygiene and Food Safety
• Group and Convoy Four Wheel Driving
• Basic Vehicle (petrol and diesel) Maintenance and Mechanics – Car, 4×4, Bus
• 4×4 Recovery Safety Techniques
• Vehicle Detailing
• Touring Equipment Options and Usage
• Small Business Management
• Bookkeeping
• Tour Risk Management
• Tour Logistics
• Travel Agency booking functions
• (this list is not finite)

Day Pack Kit Hire

This is a supplementary offering that Nature Trail provides to our Hiking Tour Guests for a nominal fee.  It is to add value to a hiking tour for our guests who do not have the basic kit for a hike.

Nature Trail’s Day Pack Kit Hire features a quality 30 litre day pack loaded up with sustenance (snack and  fresh drinking water) for an individual for a day’s hike, wet weather gear, a hiking emergency kit (including head-torch, personal first aid kit, space blanket, woollen beanie, etc), as well as a whistle, GPS tracking device, sun protection, thermal jacket, hiking pole,  amongst safety gear for hiking.

[Read More]

Environmental Conditions

1. Bushfire activity in the national park or geographical area of the trip
2. Land access closed to a given Hiking Tour‘s Foot Route – such as National Park track closure
3. Road closure preventing Transport Route access to the trip area
4. Actual or forecast temperature of 30 degrees Celsius or higher in the tour area
5. Actual or forecast temperature of zero degrees Celsius or lower in the tour area
6. Actual or forecast thunderstorm (lightning risk) in the tour area
7. Actual or forecast torrential rain in the tour area
8. Actual or forecast wind gusts of 30kph (16 knots) or higher in the tour area
9. Actual or forecast hail/sleet/snow in the tour area
10. Other actual or forecast ‘force majeure’ event which that the Trip Leader at his/her absolute discretion, deems to be cause to cancel a trip for the safety of Trip Applicants/Trip Participants.

Foot Route

This is the topographic foot Track route component of a Trip and applies to each Hiking Tour and Trek.

Foot Route Plan

This is our internal topographic plan of the Foot Route component of a Trip.  It includes a tabulated plan using a template and printed in A4 landscape format as well as a Mud Map of A4 size.  Both are included in the respective Tour Plan folders for each Tour Design.

On Trip Delivery, the Trip Leader navigates with the appropriate topographic map(s) protected with contact adhesive (both sides) from rain, as well as a water-resistant electronic satnav device having the route plan with the series of Hiking Route Legs and Waypoints all pre-entered.

Friends of Nature Trail

Friends of Nature Trail are just that, local friends and close neighbours we have know for years who have an interest in exploring the Blue Mountains Region and beyond.

They are happy to accompany us on each Practice Trip on a pro-bono basis to provide us with genuine feedback in how we may improve a given tour, before we deem a tour to be of sufficient quality to be listed commercially.

We value our Friends feedback and ongoing support.

Group Field Leadership

This is a Nature Trail term. It is an application of leadership philosophy applicable to an outdoors environment, typically the various scenarios associated with leading a group of adult participants on a trip for a day or more in an unfamiliar area and route, and often under challenging environmental conditions.  In some scenarios group member may be strangers to one another and to the Trip Leader.

From our experience, such scenarios present particular management and leadership challenges for a Trip Leader, requiring contextual leadership skill-sets, styles and mature approaches to handle a group for the trip’s duration successfully.

Hike

(as a verb) – involves rough walking along a foot track in an outdoor natural landscape (often remote) on usually an uneven surface within the duration of one full day.

Hiking, for safety, requires wearing purpose-made ankle-high hiking boots, a suitably kitted hiking day pack to enhance a hiker’s welfare and enjoyment in the great outdoors.

In our definition we choose not to include off-track Bushbash.

We emphasise that Hikes are undertaken by any individuals/groups with or without experience or planning at their leisure as they see fit to no standards and so often at high risk.

Hikes are wholly different to Hiking Tours which are what Nature Trail offers, after extensive design, research, trip planning, scouting, practicing, and delivering commercially to a best practice standards.

Hike Route

(Also Trek Route)

This is the complete route of a Hiking Tour or Trek that comprises the foot track component. It does not include the Transport Route(s).

A Hike Route is represented on both a completed tabulated list template (in A4 landscape layout) and is supported by a photocopy of a topographic map(s), the route shown by yellow highlighting (shows as grey in black and white). Both are internal Nature Trail documents under the control of the trip Leader.

The tabulated list template comprises a row for each Hiking Route Leg, with distances  totalled below.  Each column of the table lists the following details by leg:

1. Leg # (in delivery sequence)
2. Straight line distance (in metres) (i.e. as the crow flies)
3. Estimated hiking distance (in metres)
4. Estimated hiking duration (@3kph)
5. Map Grid Bearing
6. Magnetic Bearing
7. Total ascent for the leg
8. Total descent for the leg
9. Description of the landscape
10. Description of any obstacles

Hiking Route Leg

This is one of a number of portioned segments of a hiking route along a foot track between a starting waypoint, intermediate enroute waypoints and a destination.

Nature Trail in its design of hiking tours includes a route plan (transport and hiking) which then is apportioned into sequential Hiking Route Legs for the purposed of itinerary scheduling, navigation, rest breaks, time buffers and commentary drafting.

Selection and mapping of Hiking Route Legs is a useful tour design technique as part of route design.  It enables the Trip Leader to monitor actual progress against design during the scouting and practice phased offerings for a given Hiking Tour so the itinerary can be finetuned to achieve better quality assurance in commercial delivery.

Hiking Tour

Is a Tour designed and delivered by Nature Trail along a foot track(s) route that passes through a natural area typically on uneven ground and involving multiple steps up and down.  The Tour Duration varies by Tour, extending from choices of 1 hour to a maximum full day (up to 8 hours), depending on the Tour Design.

All Nature Trail hiking tours take place in daylight, which means that during the winter season due to the shorter daylight, a full day will be much mess than 8 hours.

Hiking Tours are offered by Nature Trail mainly throughout the Blue Mountains Region, and sometimes beyond into other rural regions of New South Wales including the NSW Central Tablelands Region and the NSW Southern Highlands Region.

Nature Trail does not offer Commercial Trips outside New South Wales.

Katoomba

Local Experts

From time to time, Nature Trail has need to engage and subcontract trusted local experts in the Blue Mountains to support or lead one of our trips.  The reason may be due to our inadvertent unavailability at a trip’s booked date for instance.

By ‘Local Experts’ we mean local Blue Mountains based tour operators and tour guides who we know and trust with a proven record of delivering quality Blue Mountains tours, who can fill in for us, including driving our Tour Vehicle.

When a Tour Guest has booked and paid for a Trip of our tours, the last thing we want is to let them down by cancelling and providing a refund, so this strategy is our backup measure to ensure we deliver on time with quality and to expectations as we promise.

Mud Map

This is traditionally a map drawn on the ground with a stick, or any other roughly drawn map  (SOURCE: Collins English Dictionary)

At Nature Trail it is our internal two page (A4 sized) simplistic map set of a given tour drawn by hand by our Trip Leader.  It has two components: (1) a Foot Route Mud Map, and (2) a Transport Route Mud Map.

Our Mud Map is included in each Tour Plan folder.

Multi-Day Trek

This is a Nature Trail Trek that extends for more than two days in duration.  It necessitates overnight Rucksack Freedom Camp and Transport Transfers generally to and from Katoomba.

Each Trip Applicant is required to be a Self-Sufficient Trekker. They must be very healthy, with top fitness and recently multi-day trek experienced, as well as completely independent and self sufficient in clothing, trekking gear, camping gear, food, drinking water for the particular trip.

In order to ensure the safety, reliability and success of delivering our Treks, these requirements must be pre-met before a Trip Applicant is accepted by Nature Trail to participate.

In addition, each Trip Applicant for a Multi-Day Trek is required to first have recently completed two 2-Day Treks with Nature Trail to the satisfaction of our Trip Leader.

We ensure this by requiring each Trip Applicant to have first successfully met the eligibility criteria and registration with Nature Trail’s Trekking Alumni.  This ensures we uphold the safety of the group of Trip Participants by ensuring we avoid the risk of including unvetted participants who may prove problematic and undermine the success of the Trek.

Nature Trail

(noun) Meaning a path through a forest, wildlife preserve, the countryside, especially one designed to provide opportunities for observing and learning about interesting flora, fauna natural features along the way.

Well this is what we are about.  We are about environmental interpretation – informal touring including aspects of education by first hand experience to gain insights into the natural environment and heritage we pass through for fun, outdoor recreation and wonder. 

And so Nature Trail was the chosen trading business name of our tour operation.  Nature Trail was established back on 10th December 2013, by its Tour Director Steve with its home-office base in the township of Katoomba in the heart of the Blue Mountains World Heritage Area.   Since 2014, Nature Trail has continued to be owned under a company-trust structure of Wistmans Wood Holdings Pty Limited.  Steve is the Managing Director.  [Read More]

Nature Workshop

This is a special category of hiking tour offered by Nature Trail that instead of hiking per se, we deliver an educational workshop in the field/wild focusing  on a specialised topic relevant to either hiking skills or ecology.  Each Nature Workshop is delivered by nature Trails Tour Director and each workshop has a duration of a full-day.  [Read More]

NSW Central Tablelands Region

This is a countryside region in the inland central part of the Australian state of New South Wales covering an area of about 31,000 km².  This compares with the smaller Blue Mountains Region covering 10,000 km².

It is situated adjacent and west of the Blue Mountains Region and is characterised as a mixture of pastoral land, townships and villages (not suburbs) and remnant Eucalypt forests (in state forests and NPWS national parks).

NSW Southern Highlands Region

This is a countryside and coastal region on the east coast of the Australian state of New South Wales.  It is a combination of two main shires: Wingeecarribee covering 1,124 km², and Illawarra covering (2,689 km²) so about 3,800 km².  This compares with the Blue Mountains Region covering 10,000 km².

The NSW Southern Highlands Region is situated adjacent and east of the Blue Mountains Region and is characterised as a mixture of pastoral land, a South Pacific coastline, townships (not suburbs) and hilly forested ranges including remnant Eucalypt forests (national parks and state forests).

Practice Trip

As part of Nature Trail’s Tour Design policy and process methodology, once a Scouting Trip has been reconnoitered and re-evaluated for commercial viability, Nature Trail undertakes a Practice Trip of the route/itinerary in the actual wild/field on a pro-bono basis supported by Friends of Nature Trail.

A Practice Trip follows an initial Scouting Trip once Tour Design has been drafted.  It is useful for each Tour’s evaluation prior to being approved for commercial delivery.

Practice Trips form a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures for each of its Tours.

Private Charter Trip

Each Nature Trail Hiking Tour and Road Tour trip is offered as a Private Charter.  This means that each trip includes exclusively one single booked group of Tour Guests, not available to anyone else, such as members of the public.

When Nature Trail first offered such tours commercially in 2019, we trialed the offering of scheduled public trips for selected commercial tours.  However, demand proved poor, so after the two years of governmental lockdowns (Nov 2019 – March 2022) we abandoned this Public Trip type marketing strategy for a Private Charter Trip ONLY marketing strategy.

Please note that our offerings of Nature Trail Treks are decidedly different again.

Public Trip 

This is a commercial trip that is publicly advertised for delivery at a scheduled date, which invites members of the public to book and participate on the trip.  It is not exclusively offered nor delivered to a private group of participants who invariably know each other.

Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures

Remote Location

We use this term consistent with a scenario of a trip emergency in which contacting  emergency services will deem the location of the group to be a ‘remote location’.

Basically, this translates to the location being:

1. Remote from the nearest urban settlement
2. Directly inaccessible by road
3. At least two hours hiking distance to/from the nearest road access point
4. Likely outside mobile phone receptivity (Telstra)
5. In wild natural landscape (with terrain characterised possibly by rugged and steep terrain access)
6. That a hiking/trekking group emergency call would require activation of an electronic battery-operated Personal Locator Beacon
7. With the expectation that emergency rescue would be initially by helicopter with some hours delay in response time.

Road Tour

Is a Tour designed and delivered by Nature Trail that does NOT involve hiking or trekking.  It includes one or more of the following focuses of visitation interest:

• Blue Mountains Village Tours
• Country Backroads & Heritage Tours
• Art & Craft Trails
• Slow Food & Growers Tours
• Gardens & Nurseries Tours
• Tours to Country Fairs Events
• 2-Day Countryside Indulgences
• Multi-Day Deep Country Escapes

Rucksack

A ‘rucksack’ is a traditional term for a large, rugged backpack designed for trekking including remote camping, i.e. ‘Rucksack Freedom Camping‘ (see defined below).

In military parlance, a backpack used to be called any of the following: snapsack, knapsack and (later) haversack.  Nature Trail’s Tour Director is ex-Army, so may be some bias here.  ‘Rucksack’ is derived from the German ‘der rücken’ translating to ‘one’s back’ and ‘sack’ meaning, well ‘sack’ from Anglo-Saxon origins.

At Nature Trail, a Rucksack is an essential part of each Trip Participant’s own personal gear to be carried on each Trek undertaken.  It must be of hard-wearing and serviceable and of sufficient capacity to contain the necessary gear required for a given trek duration, such as minimum 65 to 80 litres.

Macpac Torre AzTec® – a serious 80L Hiking Rusksack. It resembles our Tour Directors 80L Macpac Rucksack from the 1980s, but this one looks much better.

Rucksack Freedom Camping

This involves overnight camping in a remote natural location, in the ‘wilds’ or ‘backcountry’, generally on public land (e.g. national park), but other than at a managed campsite, established campground or commercial holiday park.

The camp site will typically have no facilities (weather shelters, huts, toilets, ablutions, picnic tables, campfire pits, etc.) – rather just bushland.  As such there are no additional fees involved, except in NSW for national park access.

Rucksack Freedom Camping necessitates sleeping in a sleeping bag (or similar) in a small tent, remote camp cooking, and remote camp toileting.  Hence one has to be self-sufficient for such activities.

Nature Trail offers this type of ‘stay’ mode with its Treks which typically hike through remote areas and in wilderness country over either as a 2-Day Trek or as a Multi-Day Trek.  Nature Trail does NOT offer this type of ‘stay’ mode on its Hiking Tours nor Road Tours.

Nature Trail’s treks are only available to those individuals registered with Nature Trail’s Trekking Alumni (which has prescribed eligibility criteria).  Each trip participant is required to be self-sufficient including carrying his/her own kitted-up rucksack (typical capacity between 60L and 80L) packed with trekking clothing kit to suit the forecast environmental conditions and trek duration, a complete personal tent kit, sustenance kit (food and drinking water), remote camp cooking kit, and remote toileting and hygiene kit.

Nature Trail strictly provides no such kits, except to its Trip Leader.

Safety Briefing

For each Trip during Trip Delivery, our Trip Leader delivers short safety briefings to an assembled Trip Group; each Safety Briefing is purposely timed and located in context of relevant approaching safety concerns.

Usual locations for our safety briefings:

• Trip Start Location (Trip Group Meetup/pre-transportation)
• Hike Route start location
• Hike Route pre-Obstacle/Hazard
• Campsite arrival (Treks only)
• Campsite pre-latrine setup (Treks only)
• Campsite pre-cooking (Treks only)
• Campsite pre-nightfall (Treks only)
• Campsite ‘break-camp’ pre-departure (Treks only)
• Hike Route finish location (pre-transportation)
• Trip Finish Location  (Trip Group debrief)

Safety Briefings do not include Interpretative Commentary presentations delivered on  Hiking Tour and Road Tours.

Safety Briefings form a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures relating to Trip Planning and Trip Delivery.

Scouting Trip

For every tour and trek commercially offered by Nature Trail, as part of Tour Design, an initial field/wild Scouting Trip is undertaken by our Trip Leader supported by a qualified and experienced hiking assistant.

As with each and every trip undertaken by Nature Trail irrespective of version (Scouting, Practice, Commercial) a Trip Plan is first prepared by the Trip Leader. (See Trip Planning)

On a Scouting Trip both a Trip Log and Trip Journal are notated in the field recording actual observations, tack conditions, lookouts evaluated, navigational guidance, safety issues, mobile phone receptivity, and any hazards and obstacles identified, etc.  This field information is added to the Tour Plan followed by a risk analysis.

Once a Scouting Trip has been completed, the collected documentation is reviewed by Nature Trail, added to the Tour Design, if the tour is still deemed to be commercial viable, a Practice Trip is arranged. (See Practice Trip)

A Scouting Trip is undertaken by the Trip Leader within a month of the delivery of each Commercial Trip to ensure that field/wild information is current.  Scouting Trips form a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures relating to Trip Planning.

Self-Sufficient Trekker

This is an independent trekker responsible for carrying a rucksack containing all trekking gear, camping gear and sustenance supplies for a given trek over multiple days.  On a Nature Trail Trek, each Trip Participant is required to be healthy, strong and very fit such that he/she is well able to carry a large rucksack that has sufficient volume capacity to contain all such gear and supplies over the given trek’s scheduled distance and duration.

Two litres of drinking water per day is required to be carried by each Trip Participant on a Nature Trail Trek, as well as a sufficient supply of water purification tablets.

As a vital safety part of the Trek Plan, collection of additional drinking water is always scheduled enroute by the planned route chosen and recently verified by a prior Scouting Trip reconnoitre.

Support Vehicle

This is a second or third vehicle to accompany the Tour Vehicle, when Tour Guest numbers exceed the carrying capacity of 4.  A Support Vehicle is wholly the  responsibility and liability of the additional Tour Participant(s) concerned.  The type of vehicle for a given trip is advised to each Tour Participant well in advance in the Trip Applicant Guidance document.

Time Buffer

This is the extra minutes added to a particular Hiking Route Leg, or Transport Route Segment, or Tour Dwell when designing a Nature Trail tour.  It is added (not embedded) into the planned schedule in order to transparently allow for the usual delays associated with a group of people enjoying their experiences enroute and at waypoints and attractions.  During initial Tour Design and also with Scouting, such delays are not readily evident.

It is a very useful itinerary planning technique in Tour Design so that actual the delivery itinerary has sufficient in-built time flexibility to ensure that the Trip Leader can maintain schedule without being perceived by the group to be rushing the trip.

Another justification for factor in Time Buffers into Tour Design is to allow for inadvertent incidents during Trip Delivery that may delay the schedule of a Trip, as well as the duration of appropriate incident response by the Trip Leader, as well as the duration of appropriate recording of the incident (and response) by the Trip Leader.

Such recording delays a trip.  This is another justification for Tour Design to factor in Time Buffers into each tour’s itinerary.

From experience, Nature Trail has learned that a successful trip relies upon a number of promised deliverables to Tour Guest being met.  This particularly applies to the Trip Leader and his Trip Group arriving on time at the designated deadlines enroute such as at each Transport Rendezvous between the Tour Vehicle and Support Vehicle, at pre-booked catered lunch at a café, and particularly at the scheduled/promised Trip Finish Time at the Trip Finish Location.

On this latter deadline, Tour Guests may well have pre-arranged subsequent bookings after the trip.  Typical examples include a pre-booked dinner engagement, a pre-booked tourist ride, or a pre-booked train ride timed to an airline check-in notice deadline – all of which do not wait for late arrivals.

Trip Design factoring in Time Buffers forms a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures.

Tour

Guided travel on a specific journey for pleasure in which several different places are visited, such as a sightseeing tour.  The purpose of the tour may also be for instructive interest, such as a history tour.

A Nature Trail Tour is delivered in many iterations as trips. (see Trips)

Tour Design

The process of creation the concept and details for a specific tour through a specific geographic area starting before physical scouting, practice and commercial delivery.  With Nature Trail, tour design includes deciding upon the tour purpose, what is in scope and out of scope, the geographic area of choice, facilities and attractions, catering, the tour type, tour mode of travel, the route plan, legs and waypoints (hiking mode),  the transport plan (road segments and vehicle logistics), tour duration, itinerary, target market, tour equipment, accommodated stay(s) if more than one day duration, touring budget and pricing, compliances, safety briefings, context commentaries, tour webpage brochure.

Each Nature Trail tour before it is assessed as being ready for commercial delivery, has all this preparatory information documented in a paper-based indexed Tour Plan in a 2-ring bound folder.  Also, then a Scouting Trip is fully planned and undertaken by the Trip Leader with an assistant.  See Scouting Trip).

If after an evaluation of the Scouting Trip, Nature Trail is satisfied that the tour design is of an acceptable standard to be offered commercially, a non-commercial/pro-bono Practice Trip is then scheduled and members of the Friends of Nature Trail invited to participate and provide feedback.  Modifications to the tour design are then made as appropriate.

On then, if the Trip Leader is satisfied that the tour design is of an acceptable standard to be offered commercially, is it advertised on Nature Trail’s website as a Commercial Tour on a webpage brochure.  This rigorous design process forms a key part of Nature Trail’s  quality assurance policy. (see also Trip Planning)

Tour Dwell

The duration spent at a specified location on a tour, such as at a lookout vista, a rest stop, toilet stop, meal break, etc.  During the tour design, Nature Trail adds an estimated Tour Dwell duration to the itinerary.  It varies between 5 minutes and 20 minutes usually according to the characteristic attraction rating of the specific location and number of participants.  A lookout vista with a ‘wow’ factor for instance will have a longer Tour Dwell added to the itinerary to allow for vista photos, impromptu experiencing, discussion, and Q&A.

A case in point, Echo Point requires a visitor dwell time of more than 5 minutes , more like 20 minutes, plus there are public toilets.

Tour Flyer

This is Nature Trails online promotional flyer for a given commercial Tour.  It takes the form of a webpage on Nature Trail’s website, with all the look and feel of a leaflet flier.

Rather than following the traditional print format of a flyer, which imposes extra business costs, delay and distribution time and so more costs, our website medium for flyers is cost effective, omnipresent, available 24/7, updatable and perennial.

It’s a ‘no-brainer’ decision that we publish our tour flyers on Nature Trail’s website, and not in print format.

Tour Guest

This is a Trip Participant on a Trip of Hiking Tour or Road Tour or combination of both. It does not relate to a Trip Participant on a Trek, since Nature Trail Treks are not delivered in the form of a Tour. (See Trek)

Tour Plan

This is our paper-based documentation folder for each Tour Design and subsequent Trip Planning records (Trip Logs and Trip Journals) by the Trip Leader for each delivered trip of the tour.

On the delivery of every trip, the Trip Leader includes copies of selected  parts of the respective Tour Plan in a field folder in the Tour Vehicle as part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures.

The folder contents are enriched as more trips are undertaken and notes made and finetuning of the tour design evolves.

A digital folder is also maintained by Nature Trail as required.

This is the contents list of our Tour Plans:

• TP01 Tour Scope
• TP02 Trip Logs
• TP03 Hike Plans
• TP04 Transport Plans
• TP05 Tour Risk Mitigation
• TP06 Attractions, Catering, Facilities
• TP07 Equipment Kits
• TP08 Safety Briefings, Commentaries
• TP09 Tour Guest Manifests
• TP010 Conditions Forecast
• TP011 Trip Applicant Guidance
• TP012 Trip Notifications
• TP013 Trip Prep Checklist
• TP014 Trip Journals & Recordings
• TP015 Post Trip Chores
• TP016 Tour Budget
• TP017 Tour Governance Review
• TP018 Tour Yarns
• TP019 Tour Flyers
• TP020 Applied Research

Tour Type

Nature Trail tour types include:

1. Hiking Tours
2. Road Tours

A trip can be a combination of both a Hiking Tour and Road Tour

Nature Trail Treks are not tours.  Treks are not available to members of the general public, do not include interpretative commentary, and each Trip Participant on a Trek is required to be self-sufficient.

Tour Vehicle

This is Nature Trail’s dedicated 4×4 commercial tour vehicle, which is a 1995 luxury and well-equipped 4.6L V8 P38 Range Rover with capacity for 4 Trip Participants and their gear, including for Treks.

Tour Yarn

This is our foray into travel writing.  The focus is on our own tours recently delivered and feeding back to readers what our tour guests have experienced with their photos and ours included.

Periodically we publish a tour yarn on our website.

Track

(noun) – a defined (and usually named) pathway through a natural landscape (eg. National Park) typically narrowly accessible only by foot and usually across uneven ground.

Wider tracks may facilitate vehicular access and hiked by  foot.  A track is not a street, nor a road, nor ‘bush-bashing’, nor ‘boulder scrambling’, nor ‘watercourse walking’, nor any vertical pursuit.

Track Conditions

We term Track Conditions to mean the relative physical state or standard of a hiking track.  These conditions are not a factor of Track Grade, but serve to be a complementary description about a track’s safety, definition, relative maintenance, or neglect, its serviceability, hazards, obstacles, degree of muddiness, and so provide an accurate expectation for Trip Applicants.

[Read More] about the features of Track Conditions.

Nature Trail includes a summary review of Track Conditions in its Trip Applicant Guidance document emailed to each Booked Tour Guest ahead of each Trip, once booking has been fully pre-paid and accepted by Nature Trail.

Track Grade

A universal rating of physical difficulty of a hiking track comparative to other hiking tracks.  The grading is based on criteria of gradient, overall ascent and descent, track length, surface roughness/unevenness and navigational markings. 

Nature Trail recognises and adheres to Australia’s best practice Australian Walking Track Grading System (‘AWTS’) in referencing the track grade ratings of our hiking tours that we offer commercially.  [Read More]

Track Junction

This is any junction in a foot track or vehicular track enroute of a Hiking Tour.  It can mean a junction of two or more tracks, a watercourse crossing, an obstacle crossing, a road crossing, or the like.

Nature Trail notates every track junction in its Tour Design for each Hiking Tour and Trek as a reference point in the route for navigational purposes for the purposes of calculating distance and duration.

Nature Trail’s also utilises every track junction to ensure that during Trip Delivery, the Trip Leader pauses to verify that all member of the Trip Group are counted and together so to regularly ensure that no Trip Participant may have taken a wrong turn.  This protocol forms part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures to avoid group separation and a lost hiker incident.

Trail

(noun) – A specific journey route that usually includes multiple tracks and interconnecting road transport.

Our naming of Nature Trail’s business is for this reason – we typically custom design our Hiking Tours, Road Tours and Treks with this comprehensive trail approach in mind according to the purpose(s) of the experiences we seek to provide our Trip Participants.

Transport Route

This is the road transport route component of a trip, specifying the Road Segments and Transport Rendezvous locations and times.  It applies to the outbound route from Katoomba and the return inbound route back to Katoomba.

Transport Route Plans

This is Nature Trail’s internal document purposely drafted as a vital navigational aid for its Trip Leader on a given tour.

It includes Mud Maps for the Transport Route(s) associated with a given Tour and typically consists of the following:

1. Our primary outbound Transport Route from Katoomba (our tour base) to the track start Location
2. Our primary return Transport Route from from the hiking track finish location back to Katoomba
3. Alternative Transport Routes in case of road closures or emergency evacuation needs.

Transport Route Plans are included in the Trip Plan folder for each Nature Trail Tour.

Transport Route Segment

A portion of a route consisting of a starting (from) waypoint and a destination (to) waypoint. A route that is comprised of waypoints A, B, C, and D would contain three legs. The route legs would be from A to B, from B to C, and from C to D.

Transport Rendezvous

The Trip Leader’s specified meetup location and time for the Tour Vehicle and Support  Vehicle(s) during a road transport segment of a trip. (See Support Vehicle)

Transport Transfer

This is Nature Trail’s road transport transfer service of Trip Applicant(s) to/from an agreed address.   This time period is before a trip to the Trip Start Location and after a trip from Trip Finish Location respectively).  The pickup drop off locations may be different, and can be for instance to/from Katoomba Railway Station, an Accommodated Stay or else some agreed address.

Nature Trail’s Transport Transfer range limit is the Upper Blue Mountains (between Wentworth Falls and Mount Victoria).

Passenger capacity is limited to 4 Trip Applicants on Nature Trail’s Tour Vehicle.

This service must be pre-arranged by a Trip Applicant with Nature Trail at the time of booking a Trip, however we will try to be flexible where possible.

Currently, Nature Trail does not charge an extra fee for this service because we do not currently have a NSW Booking Service Provider authority.

Trek

(as a noun) – usually advanced rough walking along a track/tracks within the duration of two days or more, requiring self-sufficiency by experienced trekkers.

A Nature Trail Trek is a hike over multiple days, hiking during daylight hours, and rucksack freedom camping overnight enroute.  It requires each Trek Participant in the group to be first registered with Nature Trail’s Trekking Alumni and also required to individually self-sufficient in prescribed personal kits.

As such, Nature Trail’s Treks are priced considerably cheaper per Trek Participant than for its Tours.

A Nature Trail Trek can be either a 2-Day Trek or a Multi-Day Trek, both durations of which typically traverse more difficulty graded tracks and cover longer distances than  on Nature Trail’s day Hiking Tours.

A Nature Trail Trek is quite different in offering to a Nature Trail Tour, in that on a Trek little if any emphasis is placed on interpretative commentary; nor is a Trek offered or available to the general public to participate on.

Trekking Alumni

This is the name given to Nature Trail’s internal eligibility and registration programme for those Trip Participants permitted by Nature Trail’s Trip Leader to partake on a Nature Trail Trek.

This is to ensure the safety of the group, the capacity of each participant to perform and complete a given trek – safely, reliably on schedule, uninjured, in good health, adequately fed, in good spirits and in a cohesive group.  This programme forms a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures.  [Read More]

Trip

A trip delivered by Nature Trail based upon a Hiking Tour, Road Tour or Trek designed by Nature Trail.  Each Tour offered is delivered as multiple iterations (Trips).  Whilst every Nature Trail Commercial Tour first undergoes a rigorous internal Tour Design process for quality assurance, each Trip iteration delivered first undergoes a rigorous internal Trip Planning process.  (see Trip Planning).

Trip Agreement

A legal agreement between Nature Trail as the service provider and each Trip Applicant applying to each trip of Nature Trail’s designed Hiking Tours, Road Tours and Treks.

Trip Applicant

An individual participant enquiring or booked on a Nature Trail Trip of a Hiking Tour, Road Tour or Trek.

Trip Applicant Guidance

This is Nature Trail‘s guidance document for Trip Applicants about what to expect, wear and bring on a particular Trip.  It is sent (usually by email as an attached PDF document)  to each Trip Applicant about a week before the Trip Start Time, in order to provide sufficient preparatory time for each Trip Applicant to gather or acquire the mandatory an recommended items for a given Trip.

Any Trip Applicant that does not have the mandatory items is not permitted on the given Trip.

The information provided on a Trip Applicant Guidance document includes:

• Document title: our ‘Tour Guest Guidance‘ (this is more inviting that ‘Trip Applicant’)
• ‘Your Booked Tour Arrangements’
• ‘Important Tour Preparation by Tour Guests
• ‘Conditions Forecast’
• ‘Tour Director’s Guidance’
• ‘Transport Guide Map’
• ‘Tour Start’

Trip Cancellation

Pre-Trip Cancellation

Is a cancellation of a Nature Trail trip before the trip starts.  This can be done by either Nature Trail or a Trip Applicant.  (There may be incumbent cost penalties. For details see Nature Trail’s current Terms and Conditions webpage).

Mid-Trip Cancellation

Is a cancellation of a Nature trail trip whilst Trip Delivery is underway.  This can be done by either Nature Trail or by a Trip Participant.  (There may be incumbent cost penalties. For details see Nature Trail’s current Terms and Conditions webpage).

Trip Concern

This is an internal administrative term applicable to Nature Trail’s Trip Leader during the delivery of a Trip in which he/she observes an action/behaviour/event by a Trip Participant that causes concern about safety, risk, hazard, group cohesion or other occurrence or matter that could lead to an incident or emergency (but didn’t).

A Trip Concern warrants notating by the Trip Leader’s in the Trip Journal.  This notating is considered by Nature Trail to be importantly proactive to improve quality control, risk management, trip scenario contingency planning, Group Field Leadership, our terms and conditions finetuning and for insurance purposes.

Trip Delivery

Is our actual service delivery of a Tour in the field/wild.  We deliver many trips (or iterations) of the same Tour.  The version can be Scouting, Practice or Commercial.

Trip Duration

This is the timeframe from Trip Start Time to Trip Finish Time.  It Includes the duration of each Transport Route Segment.  In Nature Trail’s Tour Design, details of Hike Plans and Transport Plans are separated in detail, including the durations.

Trip Duration does NOT include the duration of any Transport Transfer of Tour Guests between the Trip Start Location and say their Accommodated Stay, nor from and Trip Finish Location back to their Accommodated Stay.

Trip Emergency

This is any scenario during Trip Delivery that actually, or is likely to, adversely affect the safety or welfare of any member of the Trip Group (Trip Participant and/or the Trip Leader).

A Trip Emergency is declared at the discretion of the Trip Leader.  Under Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures, declaration of Trip Emergency triggers the following emergency management responses:

1. An immediate Mid-Trip Cancellation of the Trip (within 30 seconds of awareness to enable quick realisation).
2. Immediate First Aid response(s), as appropriate
3. Prompt call to Emergency Services (by mobile phone, else by Nature Trail’s sat-phone when situated outside cell-phone reception coverage)
4. Trip Group stays together – preferably in a safe and sheltered location
5. In case of Trip Group Separation:  the response procedure is known to the Trip Leader and detailed in Nature Trail’s Operations Manual as it relates to Trip Emergency  (See Trip Group Separation)

The appropriate emergency response is the decision of the Trip Leader and pragmatically depends upon the nature of the emergency scenario and in-the-field circumstances – such as its degree of life threatening severity, the walking capacity of an injured Trip Participant, the relative location on the route, the time of day, etc.

A Trip Emergency can also be declared by Trip Participant in the case of the Trip Leader‘s safety or welfare being adversely affected.

Examples of Emergency Scenarios:

• An injury or illness that is acute and poses an immediate risk to a person’s life or long-term health.
• Foot/Leg injury causing the patient to be unable to walk
• Snake bite
• Any Medical emergency
• Group Separation of one or more Trip Participants
• Any actual or threatened violence
• Any actual/suspected intoxication/substance abuse or being under the influence of drugs
• Any serious risk to safety
• An unsafe obstacle or hazard posing an unacceptable risk of injury or death
• A slip, fall, rockfall, tree fall (or other fall) causing serious injury
• A mental health episode
• A death

Other emergencies can of course occur at anytime outside Trip Delivery, such as during Transport Transfer and before or after a tour and can impact upon a Trip Participant.

A Trip Group may also expose to an emergency scenario outside the Trip Group such as to another hiker or member of the public.  In such scenarios, emergency response is at the discretion of the Trip Leader and each Trip Participant as what a ‘Good Samaritan’ would do, with due regard for the safety and welfare of others.

Good Samaritan Law

Nature Trail and its employees (Trip Leader) and subcontractors are subject to the laws of the state of New South Wales (NSW).

‘What is the Good Samaritan Law in NSW?

 

In NSW Good Samaritan laws offer legal protection to people who give reasonable emergency assistance to those who are injured, ill or in danger.  These laws are intended to reduce bystanders’ hesitation to assist those in need, by providing protection to those who act in good faith.

 

 

NSW Good Samaritan Laws & Civil Liability Act 2002 Explained

 

In NSW Good Samaritan laws offer legal protection to people who give reasonable emergency assistance to those who are injured, ill or in danger. These laws are intended to reduce bystanders’ hesitation to assist those in need, by providing protection to those who act in good faith.  

Under the Civil Liability Act 2002 (NSW) a Good Samaritan does not incur any personal civil liability in respect of an act or omission done or made in an emergency when assisting a person who is apparently injured or at risk of being injured (s57(1)).

 

 

How does the law define a Good Samaritan?

 

Section 56 defines a Good Samaritan as “a person who, in good faith and without expectation of payment or other rewards, comes to the assistance of a person who is apparently injured or at risk of being injured”.

The definition does not make reference to a Good Samaritan having any specific qualifications in relation to emergency or medical assistance. Therefore these laws extend to all members of the community.’

[SOURCE:  ‘What is the Good Samaritan Law in NSW?’,Emma Mead, Accredited Specialist in Personal Injury Law, BourkeMead solicitors, Newcastle NSW, (website), ^https://www.burkemeadlawyers.com.au/legal-duty-good-samaritan/#:~:text=In%20NSW%20Good%20Samaritan%20laws,who%20act%20in%20good%20faith., accessed 2022-12-03].

Trip Finish Location

This is the exact location that a Nature Trail Trip is planned to finish.

Similar to the Trip Start Location information, this is pre-notified in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance document to each booked tour guest by email attachment.

Where possible, this information includes a printed Google street map plus a printed Google street-level photo of the exact location, both marked with a yellow ‘X’.

It is at this Trip Finish Location that Nature Trail departs by transport returning back to Katoomba.  The transport means may be by Tour Vehicle and/or Support Vehicle(s).

Trip Finish Time

This is the planned finish time for a given Trip.

It is pre-notified in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance document to each booked Trip Applicant usually by email attachment.

The time is in local Sydney time using the 12-hour clock (AM/PM), instead of the 24-hour clock method.  This is to suit the understanding of most member of the travelling public.

Since delays may occur in the Trip Delivery, a number of Time Buffers are factored into the planning of the itinerary of a Tour.  This means that a given Trip Finish Time

Trip Group

For a given Nature Trail Trip, this includes each Trip Participant and the Trip Leader, as well as any subcontractors and any Local Experts engaged by Nature Trail.

Trip Group Manifest

This is a tabulated list of each Trip Participants (and Trip Leader) and their particulars relevant to a given trip.  Each manifest uses a Nature Trail template in an A4 landscape layout.

All information obtained from each Trip Applicant is treated in strict  confidence and kept  securely with the Trip Leader.

The following information is sought and recorded on a Trip Group Manifest:

• Trip Group ID
• Tour Guest Name
• Gender (M/F)
• Age
• Hiking Fitness/5
• Injuries/Illnesses
• Mobile Number
• Any Additional Info

Trip Group Meetup

This is the exact meetup spot for a scheduled trip for the whole Trip Group and with the Trip Leader at the specified Trip Start Location at the specified Trip Start Time.

The specifications are detailed in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance document sent to each booked Trip Applicant usually by email attachment.  Where possible, it includes a printed Google street map plus a printed Google street-level photo of the exact location, both marked with a yellow ‘X’.

For quality control, it is at this place and time that the Trip Leader makes a final evaluation whether to accept or reject an Trip Applicant on a trip due to any safety concerns or ‘no show’.

Trip Group Separation

Nature Trail recognises that an inherent risk of a trip in a group is a group separation scenario.  This is when one or more Trip Participants for whatever reason become(s) separated from the Trip Leader and the rest of the Trip Group, and so risks becoming lost, which can resulting in becoming benighted, and worse.

Nature Trail treats this risk very seriously and so has compiled a comprehensive yet straight forward set of protocols to mitigate this risk and also to appropriately respond to such a scenario.  Read Nature Trails Trip >Group Separation Procedure on this website.

Trip Governance

This is Nature Trail’s governance framework concerning the quality compliance of Trip Delivery.  It is a review process that prescribes best practice standards in the delivery of each trip and hold to account the Trip Leader’s performance.

The best practice standards concern a number of governance matters including:

• Professionalism (prepared, punctual, presentation, well kitted, unhurried)
• Compliance with Tour Design
• Compliance with Trip Planning (particularly route and schedule)
• Compliance with Trip Agreement (particularly Tour Specifications delivered)
• Risk Management
• Group Field Management (particularly respect, virtue ethics, group cohesion)
• Trip Participant Expectations  – (safety, welfare, expectations, contentment)
• Handling of Concerns, Incident or Emergency (triage, control, follow-through)
• Safety Briefings and Commentary (quality, timing, brevity, fitting)
• Hygiene & Food Safety

Trip Incident

This is any scenario during Trip Delivery that impacts the normal delivery of a trip, that requires management intervention by the Trip Leader to mitigate risks to ensure the safety and welfare of the Trip Group.   The degree of impact and consequence is NOT sufficiently serious as to trigger a declaration of a Trip Emergency.

However, a Trip Incident may very quickly escalate to a Trip Emergency, so the Trip Leader will respond to a Trip Incident accordingly so as to mitigate such risk.

Examples of Trip Incident scenarios:

• Foot/Leg injury that requires assessment and possible first aid, but the patient is able to walk out to the Trip Finish Location unassisted
• Insect bite sting which may require first aid
• Any minor medical incident that requires first aid, but not professional medical attention
• Trip Group becoming lost
• An instance of Verbal conflict within the Trip Group
• A Trip Applicant that requires and takes his/her personal medication
• Any minor risk to safety
• An unsafe obstacle or hazard posing a heightened risk to normal hiking safety
• A slip, fall, rockfall, tree fall (or other fall) causing minor injury
• A minor mental health episode

Any Trip Incident is journalised by the Trip Leader during the trip immediately after effecting appropriate incident response measures.  The journal includes any incident response measures taken as well as recommendations for future avoidance, mitigation and improvements.

Such recording delays a trip.  This is another justification for Tour Design to factor in Time Buffers into each tour’s itinerary.

Trip Journal

This is a Nature Trail internal document used by the Trip Leader on each trip, irrespective of the Trip Type or Trip Version.  It is a paper template (in A4 portrait layout) that is used to record various details about a trip useful to the Trip Leader for future Trips of the same Tour.

Recorded details include:

• Transport Route descriptions, key junctions, key features, attractions, facilities (eg: public toilets – rated/5), café locations, etc), road works, hazards, road conditions, etc.
• Transport Rendezvous locations  – that are appropriated sited for the tour, safe and easy to find
• Hike Route descriptions,environmental conditions, track conditions/closures, hazards, obstacles, side track deviations, staircase locations & estimated length, features, prominent features, lookout/vistas rated/5 + specs (fencing, vertigo risk/5, vista compass degrees), facilities (information shelters, seating, rain shelters, storm refuges, wind exposure, direct sun/shade ratio (i.e. UV exposure), cliff exposure without fencing, wildlife, interpretative commentary subject matter, mobile phone receptivity at periodic locations (rated 0 to 4), any concerns, incidents, emergencies, group cohesion issues, kit issues, evacuation routes, potential emergency helicopter landing areas (level, clear, solid ground minimum dimensions 100m x 100m).
• Other observations and comments.

A Trip Journal is completed, reviewed and filed in the Tour Plan folder for the benefit of Nature Trail’s quality control, risk management, future trip scenarios contingency planning, group field leadership, terms and conditions finetuning and for insurance purposes.

A Trip Journal is a qualitative record and does not record the (quantitative) distance or timings, which are instead recorded in a Trip Log enroute, also by the Trip Leader.

Trip Leader

Is Nature Trail’s employed leader on a given Trip.

This includes leading a trip of our Hiking Tours, Road Tours, a combination of both and our Treks.

Nature Trail’s Trip Leader is appropriately qualified and experienced in the delivery of our trips.  He/she is delegated by Nature Trail with authority, responsibility and accountability for the prescribed tasks of Tour Design, Trip Planning, Trip Delivery and Group Field Leadership and Trip Governance on a given Trip.

This also includes driving the Tour Vehicle management (driving, equipment usage, recovery), Trip Group first aid management and Trip Emergency management should it be warranted.

Trip Log

This is Nature Trail’s internal administrative document required to be completed by our Trip Leader on the same day after each Trip Finish Time and any Transport Transfer.

The Trip Log specifically notes only distance and times, including:

• Odometer readings for each Transport Route Segment (start and finish)
• Timings at start of Transport Route Segments and at key junctions
• Timings at start of each Hike Leg and at each track junction.

A Trip Log is completed, reviewed and filed in the Tour Plan folder for the benefit of Nature Trail’s quality control, risk management, future trip scenarios contingency planning, group field leadership, terms and conditions finetuning and insurance purposes.

A Trip Log is a quantitative record and does not record the (qualitative) descriptive information, which is instead recorded in a Trip Journal enroute, also by the Trip Leader.

Trip Notification

This is the document that summarises the specifications of a given Trip, which the Trip Leader prepares in as part of the Trip Planning process.

This Trip Notification is sent to the following relevant parties:

1. The relevant authorities (AMSA*/Parks Service/Local Government) to a registration website or by email
2. Each Trip Applicant’s nominated emergency contact, by email
3. A printed copy is retained at Nature Trail Base
4. A printed copy is included in the Tour Plan folder that accompanies the trip in the Tour Vehicle.

The purpose of a Trip Notification is to be a backup record of a given Trip’s specifications (route, itinerary, equipment, vehicles, Trip Sustenance, Trip Group Manifest) in the event of an Trip Emergency.

*Australian Maritime Safety Authority 

Trip Participant

Is a Trip Participant on a Nature Trail delivered trip either as a Hiking Tour, Road Tour or Trek offered by Nature Trail.  A Trip Applicant is deemed to be a Trip Participant between Trip Start Time and Trip Finish Time, but also during any requested Transport Transfer.  A Trip Participant on Hiking Tour or Road Tour or combination of both is also referred to as a Tour Guest.

Not all Trip Applicants become Trip Participants for a variety of reasons, usually either due to safety concerns by the Trip Leader or due to lack of prepayment in full.

Trip Planning

Whereas at Nature Trail Tour Design covers the template for the layout for a proposed tour offering (purpose, scope, type mode, route, itinerary, duration, and the like) to form a tour Plan, each iteration of a tour undertaking in the field/wild requires distinct Trip Planning.

This is because each trip of a tour, whether the trip version be Scouting, Practice or Commercial, poses new and distinct scenarios:

1. Timing Scenario (Month,/Public Holiday/Day of Week) – eg: less daylight in winter, peak traffic on Sundays and Public Holidays, many local cafes closed on Mondays and Tuesdays
2. Environmental Conditions Scenario – eg: forecast weather problematic, access to area problematic
3. Trip Participants Scenario – limited availability date, limited availability duration, numbers, preferences, limitations (eg. disability, food type restrictions), extra duration requested
4. Trip Equipment Scenario  – requiring a Support Vehicle, UHF Coms, Day Pack Hires
5. Trip Features Scenario – availability of listed attractions, lookout vistas not cloud bound, caterers open, extra features requested.

Our Trip Planning is quite extensive and over time from commercial tour experience, we have evolved the planning process out to number twenty distinct planning tasks, some of which overlap our Tour Design tasks.   This includes Tour Risk Mitigation, Conditions Forecasts, Prep Checklist, Post-Trip Chores, and Governance Review.

As the planning is refined, each tour design documented in a Tour Plan improves in quality of  information, and underpins reliability in tour delivery for every trip.  Nature Trail’s Tour Plans set are an asset base to our tour operation.

Nature Trail’s internal Quality Assurance Policy prescribes that the principles of delivering within Tour Design scope; ensuring tour guest safety, welfare, cohesion; and earning an acceptable trip profit margin are paramount.

Pragmatically, Nature Trail, as a commercial tour operator in a competitive and struggling Blue Mountains market, recognises that it also needs to be adaptable to customer requests without compromising the above principles.  So such scenarios require prior negotiation and possible variations to be made to a tour so that a given trip of that tour is delivered to meet tour guest expectations.

Trip Start Location

This is the exact meetup spot for a scheduled trip which is pre-notified in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance document to each booked Trip Applicant usually by email attachment.  Where possible, it includes a printed Google street map plus a printed Google street-level photo of the exact location, both marked with a yellow ‘X’.

It is at this Trip Start Location that Nature Trail departs usually by transport to its Hiking Tour track start location, else where Nature Trail starts its Road Tour.

It is at this Trip Start Location where Nature Trail’s booked Tour Guests are required to meetup with the Trip Leader.

Trip Start Time

This is the planned start time for a given Trip.  It is which is pre-notified in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance document to each booked Trip Applicant usually by email attachment.

Each booked Trip Applicant on a given trip is required to be promptly present and ready to undertake the trip at Trip Start Time and the Trip Start Location.  Trip Applicants are advise to arrive before this time to allow for inadvertent delays.

The time is in local Sydney time using the 12-hour clock (AM/PM), instead of the 24-hour clock method.  This is to suit the understanding of most member of the travelling public.

The Trip Start Time includes a time buffer 10 minutes before the scheduled Trip Start Time. This is for safety assurance and protocol reasons to allow the Trip Leader to make a final face-to-face evaluation of the preparedness of each booked Trip Applicant to undertake the tour, as prescribed in Nature Trail’s Trip Agreement terms and conditions.

For quality control, it is at this place and time that the Trip Leader makes a final evaluation whether to accept or reject an Trip Applicant on a trip due to any safety concerns or ‘no show’.

Trip Sustenance

This is the complete supply of food and drinking water required for a given trip.  It needs to be appropriately sufficient for a trip’s Track Grade, distance, Environmental Conditions, , Track Conditions and Trip Duration as specified in Nature Trail’s Trip Applicant Guidance for each given trip.

This sustenance supply includes adequate hydration, nourishment, energy and dietary balance (minerals, vitamins, carbohydrates, salts, sugars and protein, etc.) to suit the body’s physical demands.

On each Nature Trail Trek, each Trip Applicant is required to be self-sufficient in his/her own Trip Sustenance supplies.

Alcohol, narcotics or smoking is prohibited on any Nature Trail trip.  Any discovery of such of any Trip Participant by the Trip Leader automatically triggers an immediate Trip Cancellation by the Trip Leader.

Trip Version

Nature Trail’s trip versions are:

1. Scouting Trip
2. Practice Trip
3. Commercial Trip

From time to time, Nature Trail repeats a Scouting Trip for a particular Tour, when a Practice Trip or Commercial Trip has not been undertaken for some time.  This ensures we remain familiar with the Tour Design of each of our tours.

This approach forms a vital part of Nature Trail’s Quality Assurance Policy and Procedures as it applies to our Tours.

Vehicle Camping

This is a style of overnight camping in which a vehicle(s) is parked alongside a drive-accessible campsite with one’s pitched tent.

Vehicle camping is very different from Rucksack Freedom Camping.  With a vehicle alongside, many more camp comforts and supplies are facilitated, since for obvious reasons a vehicle(s) has an exponentially larger carrying capacity by weight and volume than rucksack(s).  Since one’s tent site is so close to one’s vehicle, there’s no reason to skimp on “luxury” items that make a camping experience enjoyable.

And the vehicle(s) can vary from a 2-wheel drive standard car, to a large SUV, 4X4, recreational vehicle, caravan, bus, truck camper, motorhome combos, plus trailer options added to each.  Multiple vehicles provide further capacity to enhance a campsite’s comforts.  Nature Trail does not provide for vehicle camping, by tour guests on our extended road tours a free to take up this Accommodated Stay option themselves.

Car Camping. SOURCE: ^https://www.self.com/story/best-car-camping-gear

Vehicle Tag-Along

This is our Trip Participants‘ own private vehicle, else a hire vehicle, that we invite to accompany Nature Trail’s Tour Vehicle on a Trip.  This is when Trip Participant numbers exceed four (4), since this is our Tour Vehicle‘s maximum seating capacity, besides our Trip Leader (driver) any Trip.

This means that when Trip Participant numbers are to exceed 4, that at least one additional Support Vehicle needs to be arranged in order to transport the extra Trip Participants and their gear.

On a Hiking Tour, the maximum number of Trip Participants is 6 due to our best practice standard of small groups for ecological respect.  On a Road Tour (involving no hiking) the maximum number of Trip Participants increases to 10.

This means that for a Road Tour for Trip Participants numbering between 5 and 10, that one or two Support Vehicles need to be arranged.

A Trip Delivery that includes multiple vehicles operates in a close convoy arrangement  that is referred to in the 4×4  fraternity as a Vehicle Tag-Along.  Nature Trail’s Tour Vehicle leads from the front, and in order to maintain regular reliable communications between the vehicles in remote areas, Nature Trail loans a UHF/CB handheld radio (with shoulder harness) to the front passenger of each Support Vehicle.  Brief technical usage training is provided.

Walk

(as a verb) – To proceed on foot at a moderate pace on a even footpath or road in an urban landscape.  For clarity, Nature Trail distinguishes the term ‘walk’ from ‘hike’ and ‘trek’ to avoid misunderstandings by our usually foreign participants, in which sometimes English is not their native language.

Waypoint

We use waypoints as navigationally planned specific point-to-point locations along a hiking/trekking track route.

A ‘waypoint’ is derived from ancient military and nautical navigation origins, but more recently from aviation navigation practice relied upon by aviation pilots particularly around high traffic zones like airports.  Each waypoint is a nominal fixed reference point in mid-air in a three-dimensional GPS mapped specification by geographic coordinates, (latitude and longitude) and altitude above sea level.  This is vital under Instrument Flight Rules (IFR) such as when in cloud or at night.

A waypoint is normally positioned where there is a change of flight path course or altitude.  Each flight waypoint is uniquely named by a unique five-letter capitalised word shown on a flight chart, such as ‘WHALE’ (see image of Sydney Airport approach below). It is pronounceably distinct to pilots and air traffic controllers alike, irrespective of their native language.  Commercial airlines globally, fly from one waypoint to the next, along a pre-determined ground path flight route.

Sydney Airport waypoints for aircraft

Anyway, while this flight chart excerpt looks complicated, it is the aviation industry where the navigational aid concept of the Waypoint was derived for land navigational purposes.  Usefully, the waypoint concept has been borrowed and applied to land navigation such as hiking and four wheel driving.

As part of our Tour Design we compile a Foot Route Plan using a topographical map(s) for each  Hiking Tour and Trek.  Each Waypoint lies between each Track Leg and includes the intermediate points as well as the start and finish points on the Track part of Hiking Tour or Trek.

Each Waypoint is identified by feature description on our Foot Route Plan (which includes a Mud Map Overview of the route) and its 6-figure grid co-ordinates.

For clarity, we distinguish Waypoint from a road Transport Rendezvous. (See Transport Rendezvous) in order to avoid confusion about the mode of travel.

A Waypoint is only by foot, whereas a Transport Rendezvous is by only vehicular transport.  Almost all our Hiking Tours and Treks involve both for logistical delivery reasons.

This is a vital distinction between navigational terms, since each Trip typically involves Trip Participant(s) having little or no experience with our given and customised Foot Route Plan nor Transport Plan.

On a risk mitigation basis, it is important that we mitigate the chance of misinterpretation  about our navigational directives by any Trip Participant.

At Nature Trail, we choose Australia’s home-grown sat-nav mapping technology of Hema Maps HX-1 to plot and follow our set waypoints for a given trip route.  This applies to our road transport component and our hiking/ component.

Hema Maps HX-1 sat-nav. ^https://hemamaps.com/

Wilderness

Wilderness in our view is pristine Nature – pre-Human, not damaged, not changed, disturbed, spoiled, corrupted, burned, polluted, deforested or otherwise destroyed by Human impact.  Yes, Wilderness still exists to contradict cynics, but only just, and sadly as islands of decreasing number, size and stature.

At Nature Trail we respect and value Wilderness to the extent that we are in awe of it when we experience it.  We undertake selected Wilderness Experiences tour options by hiking, in which we do not enter the pristine Nature of Wilderness per se, but to observe it from the fringes and along existing tracks made by Humans.  We take a glass-half full approach to respecting what Wilderness there is still left.

We don’t know how close we pass by threatened and endangered flora and fauna.  We pass through Wilderness respectfully, quietly, touch nothing and leave no trace.

So, this is one raison d’être why Nature Trail was established.  It is to share our respect for the wonder of Wilderness in the Blue Mountains World Heritage Wilderness with like-minded visitors.

Before our Tour Director established nature Trail in 2013, Steve established The Habitat Advocate in 2001 and later in 2007 as an environmental activist website and then as a conservation consultancy firm.  Visit our sister website: ^The Habitat Advocate.

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This webpage updated 5^th December 2022.