Recreational Map-users in New Zealand: The Haves and the Have-nots Research Completed

Title

Recreational Map-users in New Zealand: The Haves and the Have-nots

Lead Author

McDonald, P.

Publication Year

2006

Publisher

Pete McDonald

Contacts

The author’s: website and publications.

Abstract

On 4–6 September 2006, GeoCart’2006, the national cartographic conference, will take place at the University of Auckland. Two of the papers to be presented will deal specifically with the design of topographic maps that meet the needs of walkers, trampers and other nonmotorised outdoor recreators. Another paper will discuss New Zealand’s planned new national map series, NZTopo50.

Other papers or deliberations may touch upon these areas and developments. Meanwhile, while New Zealand’s cartographic aristocracy chews over convergence, data attributes, interoperability and the geospatial cyber world, the government’s Walking Access Consultation Panel will continue its work looking at, among other things, walkers’ cadastral and topographic mapping needs. Before the Panel began its recent consultations, it proposed several principles covering five main areas. One of these principles dealt with mapping:

Information and Maps

The public and landholders should be able to access information, including maps, about land that is open to recreational use by the public. This information should be easy to obtain and useful. Land open to the public includes esplanade and other reserves administered by local authorities, Crown land in respect of which the Crown has no reason to exclude the public, and unformed legal roads (paper roads).

Many unformed legal roads are not, of course, physically evident. So we need both cadastral information and information on physically evident tracks and waymarked tramping routes. This paper concentrates mainly on the issue of mapping physically evident tracks and waymarked tramping routes. Other papers, submissions and writings during the walking-access debate have discussed the need for easily available cadastral information. The Panel will report it findings to the Minister for Rural Affairs in late 2006. The Panel’s suggestions or recommendations will be important for walkers, trampers, mountain-bikers, hunters, anglers, kayakers and even ordinary family beach-goers. The Panel’s report is likely to contain a substantial section on mapping. It will probably discuss what information should be included in a mapping database, whether to provide maps on paper or online, and what map scale is necessary. It is in some ways unfortunate that the Panel will not be reporting before

GeoCart’2006. We may need a mini cartographic conference after the government decides what to do about walkers’ mapping needs. In the meantime I offer the following fact-sheet and comments on New Zealand’s present recreational topographic mapping, followed by a proposal on its future. 

Keywords:

Walk, Track, Trail, Map, Tramp, Outdoors, Mountain Bike, MTB, Safety, Cartography, National map series

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Added

July 11, 2012

Last Modified

July 11, 2012