I want to talk about how to name the trails in Catoctin Mountain Park, a US national park in Maryland. The available information about trail names is a bit inconsistent. This post serves as a way for me to organize my thoughts and document the conclusions I’ve reached.

Background

Catoctin Mountain Park, as I mentioned, is part of the US National Park system. It’s located in Maryland, at the northern end of the Blue Ridge Mountains and the outer perimeter of the Appalachian Mountains. It has a number of hiking trails. The trails are split between the east and west sides of the park; each side’s trails are interconnected, but the two sides don’t connect directly to each other.

I recently hiked most of the east side trails. It’s those trails I’m primarily focused on. I haven’t (yet) been to the west side, so I don’t personally know the ground truth there.

Ground Truth

On the ground, trails are designated by colored blazes on trees. The blazes use a number of different colors and several different shapes. Some distinct trails use the same colors as each other, but use different blaze shapes. There are sections where two trails overlap; those sections uses blazes that are half the color of one trail and half the color of the other trail.

There are no trail names posted, with one exception. A trail between the visitor center and the Lewis Property part of the park is both blazed with white rectangles and has regularly-placed signs saying “Gateway Trail”.

The park generally uses rectangular blazes for longer trails that form the core of the east side’s trail network. Triangular and circular blazes are used for shorter trails that either form shorter connections or have a specific purpose. For example, there’s a short nature trail with signs pointing out local plant species. That trail is blazed with triangles.

At pretty much every place where trails intersect, there are guide signs, but the signs give directions and distances to particular landmarks within the park. The signs do not give trail names, aside from the aforementioned Gateway Trail exception.

So the ground truth only reveals trails’ blaze markings and a single trail name.

Park Website

The park has a website. The trails on the east side of the park are described on a page named “East Hiking Trails”. That page links to the park’s official trail map. The trail map shows landmark names and trail blaze colors and shapes. It has a legend with names, of a sort, for several of the longer blazed trails. It does not show any text for the rest of the trails.

One trail’s blazes are labeled as “pink/purple”. That’s a fair description of the colors used. Some of the blazes along that trail could be described as either pink or purple, depending on the viewer’s inclination. (I think they’re a little more on the purple side, but if someone called them pink, I’d know what they meant.) Other, newer, blazes along the trail are magenta, which also kind of sits between pink and purple.

The east hiking trails web page also has sections labeled “Easy Hikes”, “Moderate Hikes”, and “Strenuous Hikes”. Each of those hikes is given a name of the form “Something Trail” and includes a description of the route to take for the hike and a map for that route. Many of the hikes match one or another particular set of on-the-ground blazes, but some hikes only cover subsets of particular blazed trails and a couple hikes span portions of several differently-blazed trails.

Name Determination Methodology

I think it makes sense to consider each differently-blazed portion of the trail network as the fundamental unit of naming. I will, therefore, consider each distinct blaze pattern and ask, “What is the name of the trail with this blaze pattern?”

If we, hypothetically speaking, take the name of the yellow rectangle–blazed trail to be “Trail X”, then:

• Every way corresponding to a part of the trail only blazed with yellow rectangles should have name=Trail X
• There should be a route relation with name=Trail X that includes all yellow rectangle–blazed ways
• Ways that are dual-blazed with yellow and some other color will have to be dealt with in a way that accommodates both trail names
• Any named hikes on the trail web page that use only part of Trail X should have route relations with appropriate names, but their names should not be reflected on Trail X’s ways’ tagging

White Rectangle–Blazed Trail

This trail runs more or less west-to-east, connecting the visitor center to the Lewis Property section of the park. There’s a middle section where the trail divides into north and south segments; both segments are blazed with white rectangles.

There are signs along the trail naming it the Gateway Trail. Where the trail divides, those signs are only present along the southern segment.

Part of the trail, including part of the north divided segment, overlaps with the orange rectangle–blazed trail. The overlapping section is blazed with white and orange rectangles.

Names given for this trail:

• “Gateway Trail (Visitor Center to Lewis Property)” at the top of the trails web page
• “Gateway Trail” as the name of a strenuous hike
• “White Blazed Gateway Trail” in the description of the Visitor Center to Park Headquarters Trail easy hike

The description for the Gateway Trail strenuous hike also says, “Alternatively, [from the Lewis Property Parking Area,] the Gateway Trail can lead you off park lands and into the community of Thurmont.” That implies the Gateway Trail extends beyond the white rectangle–blazed park trail onto non-park property. I did not see any Gateway Trail signs or blazes past the park property, though.

Conclusion: “Gateway Trail” is well-supported by the evidence. No name on the northern branch of the trail’s divided section.

Orange Rectangle–Blazed Trail

This trail forms a loop from the visitor center to Wolf Rock and Chimney Rock. There’s also a trail with the same blazes connecting that loop to a parking area.

This trail has overlaps, in different places, with the yellow rectangle–blazed trail, the pink/purple rectangle–blazed trail, and the white rectangle–blazed trail.

Names given for this trail:

• “Chimney Rock/Wolf Rock/Visitor Center Loop Trail” at the top of the trails web page
• “VC - Chimney Rock - Wolf Rock - VC Loop” on the East Hiking Trails map
• “Visitor Center - Chimney Rock - Wolf Rock Loop Trail” as the name of a strenuous hike
• “Chimney Rock - Wolf Rock - Visitor Center Loop Trail” as the title of the map for the above-named strenuous hike
• “Orange Blaze Trail” in the description of the Visitor Center to Park Headquarters Trail easy hike

Conclusion: All of the names are simply descriptions of the trail’s landmarks, and the names can’t even agree on the order to list those landmarks. I think that’s an argument for not putting a name on the trail’s ways and using either “Chimney Rock/Wolf Rock/Visitor Center Loop Trail” or just “Orange Trail” on the route relation.

Pink/Purple Rectangle–Blazed Trail

This is a loop from the Thurmont Vista parking lot out to Thurmont Vista. From there, it continues south along the ridge a ways before going down the side of the ridge and returning to its origin.

This trail has overlaps with the yellow rectangle–blazed trail and the orange rectangle–blazed trail.

Names given for this trail:

• “Thurmont Vista Loop from Thurmont Vista Parking Lot” at the top of the trails web page
• “Thurmont Vista Loop Trail” on the East Hiking Trails map
• “Thurmont Vista Loop Trail” as the name of a moderate hike
• “Thurmont Vista Trail” in the description of the Charcoal Trail easy hike
• “Thurmont Vista Trail” in the description of the Thurmont Vista Overlook moderate hike

Conclusion: “Thurmont Vista Loop Trail” seems like the best option here.

Yellow Rectangle–Blazed Trail

This is a larger loop from the visitor center to Cunningham Falls, Hog Rock, and the Blue Ridge Summit Vista.

This trail has overlaps, in different places, with the pink/purple rectangle–blazed trail and the red rectangle–blazed trail. The East Hiking Trail map also shows it overlapping with the yellow triangle–blazed trail. See that trail’s section below for more on that particular overlap.

Names given for this trail:

• “Cunningham Falls/Hog Rock/Blue Ridge Summit Loop” at the top of the trails web page
• “VC - Blue Ridge Summit - Hog Rock - VC Loop” on the East Hiking Trails map
• “Visitor Center - Blue Ridge Summit Vista - Hog Rock - Cunningham Falls Loop Trail” as the name of a strenuous hike
• “Hog Rock/VC/Falls Loop Trail” as the title of the map for the above-named strenuous hike
• “Hog Rock Loop Trail” in the description of the Charcoal Trail easy hike
• “Hog Rock Loop Trail” in the description of the Hog Rock Nature Trail easy hike
• “Hog Rock Loop Trail” in the description of the Blue Ridge Summit Trail easy hike
• “Hog Rock Loop Trail” in the description of the Thurmont Vista Overlook moderate hike

Conclusion: Even though the main descriptions of this trail don’t use the name, “Hog Rock Loop Trail” seems like the best fit for this one.

Yellow Triangle–Blazed Trail

This is a short loop off the yellow rectangle–blazed trail. It has signposts along its length with information about local plant species.

The map shows an overlap with part of the yellow rectangle–blazed trail. There are nature trail–like signposts on the section the map shows overlapping between the two trails. When I hiked through the area, however, I only saw yellow rectangle blazes on the overlapping section.

Names given for this trail:

• “Hog Rock Nature Trail” at the top of the trails web page
• “Hog Rock Nature Trail” as the name of an easy hike
• “Hog Rock Nature Trail Loop” as the title of the map for the above-named easy hike

Conclusion: Unambiguously, “Hog Rock Nature Trail”.

Pink/Purple Triangle–Blazed Trail

This is a short loop off the Thurmont Vista Parking Area. Along the length of the trail are signs and examples of various things relating to the production of charcoal on the property in the 1800s.

Names given for this trail:

• “Charcoal Exhibit Trail” at the top of the trails page
• “Charcoal Trail” as the name of an easy hike
• “Charcoal Exhibit Trail” as the title of the map for the above-named easy hike
• “Charcoal Exhibit Trail” in the description of the Thurmont Vista Overlook moderate hike

Conclusion: Probably “Charcoal Exhibit Trail” is the best option.

Blue Triangle–Blazed Trail

This goes from the gravel parking lot across from the visitor center past the site of an old whiskey still and connects to the pink/purple triangle–blazed trail. The trail maps only show it going as far as the old still; the rest of the trail appears to be newer than the maps.

Names given for this trail:

• Not listed at the top of the trails web page / * “Blue Blazes Whiskey Still Trail” as the name of an easy hike

Conclusion: “Blue Blazes Whiskey Still Trail”. Note that “Blue Blazes” in the name is not technically redundant with the blazes marking the trail. The trail is named after the Blue Blazes Whiskey Still, which operated there during Prohibition. The still was named after the nearby Blue Blazes Creek. I bet the park chose to make this trail’s blazes blue because of the still and creek names, though.

White Circle–Blazed Trail

This trail is not on the web page, nor on any maps. It appears to be very new. It connects a small, unnamed parking area to a section of the yellow rectangle–blazed trail.

Conclusion: No name.

Trail Overlaps

There remains the question of what name to put on the ways where two blazed trails overlap.

Some of those are easy. The orange rectangle–blazed trail doesn’t really have a name, so its overlaps can just carry the name of the other trail using the way. The yellow rectangle and triangle–blazed trails overlap, but the ground truth for the blazes seems inclined to let the rectangle trail’s name take priority; see the yellow triangle–blazed trail section above.

That just leaves the overlap for the yellow rectangle–blazed trail (Hog Rock Loop Trail) and the pink/purple rectangle–blazed trail (Thurmont Vista Loop Trail). I’m inclined to give priority to the yellow trail’s name, primarily on the basis that it’s the longer of the two trails. Also, using the yellow trail’s name leaves a contiguous set of ways for each trail’s named ways; the reverse would not.

Other Hikes

There are some additional hikes given on the trails page that don’t have a one-to-one correspondence with the blazed trails. These should exist in OSM as route relations only.

• The “Blue Ridge Summit Trail” easy hike (map title “Blue Ridge Summit Vista Trail”) uses the yellow rectangle–blazed trail between the Hog Rock Parking Area and the Blue Ridge Summit Vista.

• The “Visitor Center to Park Headquarters Trail” easy hike is described as using the orange rectangle–blazed trail between the visitor center and the park headquarters. The trail it uses is actually part of the overlap between the orange and white rectangle–blazed trails.

• The “Cunningham Falls Nature Trail” moderate hike uses part of the yellow rectangle–blazed trail to connect the parking area across from the visitor center to Cunningham Falls.

• The “Thurmont Vista Overlook” moderate hike uses the pink/purple rectangle–blazed trail to connect the Thurmont Vista Parking Area to Thurmont Vista.

• The “Visitor Center - Park Headquarters - Chimney Rock - Wolf Rock - Thurmont Vista Combined Loop Trail” strenuous hike uses parts of the orange and pink/purple rectangle–blazed trails to loop past several of the landmarks on the east ridge of the park. I’m not sure what the name for this one’s route relation should be, since the name here is pretty much just descriptive.

• The “8 Mile Loop Trail” strenuous hike uses parts of the orange, pink/purple, and yellow rectangle–blazed trails to make a large loop around most of the east side of the park.