Hardly any of the trails of the GPT was made for hiking or especially prepared for hikers. This distinguishes this trail network from many other long distance trails. The Greater Patagonian Trail is composed out of existing routes that were mainly made by and for local settlers to serve their purposes. This makes the GPT so authentic and diverse but also inconsistent and challenging in parts.
====Horse or Hiking Trails (TL)====
When planning the Greater Patagonian Trail the first choice were the horse or hiking trails that traverse the remote valleys and mountain passes in the heart of the Andes close to the border between Chile and Argentina. Most of these trails are created and maintained by local herdsmen to drive livestock to their summer pastures and by settlers that live in the solitary of the Andes. Such trails may occasionally peter out in particular where they cross areas of open terrain where neither the landscape nor the vegetation constrain riding or walking.
When planning the Greater Patagonian Trail the first choice were the '''Horse or Hiking Trails ====Minor and Two-Track Roads (TLMR)''' that traverse the remote valleys and mountain passes in the heart of the Andes close to the border between Chile and Argentina. Most of these trails are created and maintained by local herdsmen to drive livestock to their summer pastures and by settlers that live in solitary. ====The second choice were unused or rarely traveled '''Minor minor and Twotwo-Track Roads (MR)'''track roads. Such minor roads typically provide access to isolated settlements or villages without attracting any transit traffic. Until recently some of these villages could only be reached on horse or by food. Regional governments try to improve the living conditions in these remote settlements by upgrading the traditional horse trails into minor dirt roads. This might be sad for hikers but since we are only guests we have no reason to complain. Other routes that are categorized as minor roads are simple two-track roads that were created by locals by simply driving their all terrain vehicles to their homes and outposts without building a proper road. Also forest and logging roads are put in this category of minor roads. Some of these minor roads became neglected and are not maintained anymore and became are now impassable for vehicles. But hikers can still use such deteriorated roads if they don't mind to climb over fallen trees and seek their way through washed out parts. Many hiking trails in Europe would fall in this category of minor roads since a good part of the hiking trails in Europe are occasionally used by forestry and agricultural vehicles.
