Tourism, Recreation and Trail Impacts - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 160

significant outcome of trail tourism. The existence of old trails or the cre-
ation of new trails stimulates investments in related services, including bed
and breakfasts, campgrounds, catering facilities, bicycle repair shops and rec-
reation corridor-related rental enterprises (e.g. skates, skis, snowshoes,
canoes) (Bowers, 2000; Cope et al. , 1998; Hedberg, 1989; Hill, 1997; Kelemen,
1994; Mills, 1990; Spencer et al. , 1999). Bjønness (1982) illustrated how trail
trekking in the Himalayas caused local people to conceive of ways to earn a
living from the burgeoning tourism industry in Nepal in the 1980s, including
selling firewood, food and guiding services.
With augmented entrepreneurial activity and increased visitor spending
comes employment growth. In a Canadian study, Bowick (2003: 25) found
that the Bruce Trail was responsible for generating 1150 jobs directly in the
province of Ontario. Some trails were created specifically to generate jobs
for local residents. Put together in the late 1980s, the ecotourism trail around
Punta Gorda, Belize, was a planned mechanism to create jobs as guides,
rangers, artisans and service providers for the indigenous Mayas, who had
long been on the economic margins of Belize (Boucher, 1990; Timothy &
White, 1999).
Indirect economic effects
Aside from the direct effects of trail user expenditures noted above, there
are several economics-related benefits that can accrue to a destination in the
long term as well. For instance, water trails, hiking trails, nature footpaths,
wine routes, bridleways, scenic byways and other linear resources can help
diversify local and regional economies by providing additional tourism
resources and attractions (Lemberg, 2004) and by enlivening regional images,
creating tourism brands and creating marketable networks.
Routes and trails link similar sites together into networks of attractions
whose collective strength and visibility are larger than the sum of each busi-
ness location functioning on its own. Brunori and Rossi (2000: 413) call this
the synergy effect, wherein businesses 'simply benefit from the general
growth of competitiveness in the area that comes with the creation of the. . .
route'. The benefits are particularly unmistakable in the realm of themed
cultural and food routes. Wine routes, ale and whiskey trails, food trails and
architectural routes require a critical mass of operations to be successful. The
linear 'clustering' of wineries, museums, food shops, markets and farms into
wine circuits strengthens each component enterprise, creating a corpus of
sites that appeal to food and wine enthusiasts and which can be marketed
together for more impactful promotions (Plummer et al. , 2005).
At a micro scale, purposive trails help individual businesses diversify
their bottom line by increasing profitability on existing operations and
unlocking new opportunities for growth as they bring new consumers
into a region and increase awareness of customer needs (Brunori & Rossi,
2000: 413).