Hikers Wool Blog

Hikers wool or Trampers wool?  Two names for the same thing?

There could be others, e.g. we sold our product for many years using our great Granny Judds name of ‘Footstuff’ before we discarded it.

Then before choosing a new name we wondered whether there could be an important difference in peoples’ minds between Hikers wool and Trampers wool.

‘Tramping” has more common usage in New Zealand, Australia in the UK where Trampers usually tramp on ‘tracks’.

“Hiking” is in more common usage in Africa, Asia and the Americas, north and south, where Hikers usually hike on ‘trails’.

So what’s the difference between tracks and trails?

It seems that ‘tracks’ are more common in dense bush and valleys as found in New Zealand and ‘trails’ are more common in relatively open landscapes more often found in North America.  But they both usually lead one from A to B.

It is interesting that in East Africa at least, people Hike on ‘trails’, often on open elephant trails in the National parks they but ‘track’ animals.  When our good friend and Matabele tracker Obert Sibanda ‘tracks’ animals, he follows a ‘trail’ of signs, not only the ground.

What about ‘Trailblazers’ events which often follow unfamiliar territory but the name‘Trailblazers wool’ didn’t sit well with our product. In earlier times the pioneers used to chip marks or “Blazes” on trees for others to follow an unfamiliar “track’ or ’trail’. And apparently when they got fed up with each others' company one might say to the other, “go to blazes’.

But our pure New Zealand Fleece Wool product is also used by runners, orienteers, trekkers, walkers, golfers and dancers and many others, helping with foot comfort.

So what’s in a name?

Hikerswool or Trampers wool ?. We tossed a coin and  Hikerswool came up heads.