Responsible Tourism [#05] - What do the colours of hiking trails mean?

It is often mistakenly stated that the colours of the trails are related to their difficulty. Many people, hearing about a hike on a black trail, think with horror about the challenges that await on the journey. Nothing could be further from the truth! But more on that later…

The trails are marked by PTTK, which stands for the Polish Tourist and Sightseeing Society. According to their recommendations, these signs should be placed no less than every 200 m. Therefore, it's worth looking around carefully on the trails, especially those less frequented. Trails can be divided into: hiking, skiing, cycling, equestrian, and kayaking. Additionally, you may encounter signs for nature-educational paths. But today let’s focus on the colours of hiking trails.

Red – this is the main and most important trail for a given area. Examples include the well-known Main Beskid Trail or the Main Beskid Trail. Hiking along the red trail, we will pass through the most beautiful places in the region in terms of nature or landscape.

Blue – this colour designates long-distance trails, which means that it covers longer distances, but it is not the main trail.

Green – this colour will take us the shortest way to characteristic and interesting places in the area.

Yellow – this is used to mark short connecting trails.

Black – by following this trail, we choose a short access route. Sometimes this colour is also used to mark trails that connect various routes.

Let’s remember to take a look at the map and trace the route we want to follow before setting out on the trail. If we are not fans of paper maps, we can use https://mapa-turystyczna.pl/, where we can download a gpx file and upload it to any navigation device.

Author of the photos and text: Ewa Bandyk