Kade? Tade! Stories of the people who mark and maintain our hiking trails
They're so common that we take them for granted.
We're talking about Slovakia's hiking trail markings, which rank among the world's unique systems. A dense network of almost 16,000 kilometres of trails is looked after voluntarily by only around 400 people. You don't see them, but the results of their work can bring you joy or help you find the right way at any moment. But where do those markings come from? Who are the people we have to thank for them?
Set off with us to discover something Slovakia can rightly be proud of.
"A brilliant book in every way. Deep and funny writing about the unknown heroes of our forests and mountains." — Marek Kopanický
1st edition, printed November 2024
Delivery by courier or to a pick-up point within 48 hours
Kade? Tade! Stories of the people who mark and maintain our hiking trails
Sale price55 €
Choose options
Everything you need to know about the trail-marking community and trail marking.
We'll tell you why fresh retirees are considered the most promising trail markers, and how complicated it is to calculate the time needed to complete each hiking trail. You'll also learn when and where the markings came about, how aspiring markers get on board and how new trails are created today – and we have no shortage of them.
But don't expect a chronicle or an encyclopaedia of trail marking
Although the 150th anniversary of the first marked trail in our country might well deserve such a book. This book is above all about the people we owe those markings to. They're volunteers who love nature and quietly make sure the rest of us don't get lost in it. Exceptional people devoted to nature.
Behind every arrow, waymark or signpost, there's always one of them. Someone painted it there, someone made sure it didn't disappear, and someone carried that heavy metal pole up there too.
They're real people, the people in this book. And they don't do it because they have to, but first and foremost because they want to. This book is about them, but it's also for them.
Because we've always been fascinated by how easy it is to discover beautiful places in our countryside without navigation or guides
All thanks to the coloured "shapes" on trees and rocks. Regardless of the region, area or altitude. Perhaps that's why, together with the Czech Republic, we're considered a world power when it comes to trail marking.
This book wouldn't exist without your help
Thanks to 541 passionate hikers who ordered the book in advance, we were able to publish it in the print run we planned. Thank you
Did you know that...
Tam Hore, Na Chrbte and, most recently, Kade? Tade! form a trilogy of mountain reportage books in which we capture rare stories worth preserving.
All three books come with a premium cloth cover. So even with frequent leafing, they won't get worn and will stand out even more in your library, on your coffee table, or wherever you display them.
More than 6,000 happy customers and Na Chrbte's place among the 20 most beautiful books in Slovakia are hopefully enough of a guarantee that they'll please the eye inside and out.
We have nothing to hide
Radical transparency is one of our values. So here is exactly what it is made of and where the money you pay goes.
Where your 55 € goes
Healthy margin
-
Production6,61 € · 12 %
Printing, paper and binding of the whole book.
-
Author team9,80 € · 18 %
Texts, photos, illustrations, design and royalties per copy.
-
Marketing7,86 € · 14 %
Advertising. We count 15 % of the price excl. VAT.
-
Logistics3,00 € · 5 %
Warehousing in Orava, packing and a shipping subsidy.
-
VAT 5%2,62 € · 5 %
The tax we pay to the state.
-
Running the company25,11 € · 46 %
Salaries, support, new products and profit.
Specs and materials
Packed content in 10 chapters, plus plenty of curiosities, historical facts, photo stories and an illustrated lexicon, make sure this will once again be more of a collector's piece than a practical guide. At 280×215 mm, it will stand out on any shelf.
Carbon footprint
Even a paper book has a footprint. We calculated it for the whole of 2025 and divided it per item: DEFRA 2025 emission factors, transport by parcels, services and marketing by spend (GHG Protocol). We keep refining the method together with our suppliers.
≈ 1.9 kg CO₂e per book. Roughly like driving 11 km by car.
Production1.23 kg · 64 %
Materials, printing, binding and cover.
Running the company and marketing0.43 kg · 22 %
People, software, ads and energy, divided per item.
Transport to us0.19 kg · 10 %
Materials to production and finished products to the warehouse.
Transport to you and packaging0.07 kg · 4 %
Parcel and box.
What we do about it
- We print in Slovakia and Czechia. No air freight. Our warehouse sits next to the printer in Orava, so finished products do not travel for nothing.
- We do not shrink-wrap diaries one by one. We use bulk packaging to cut down on plastic.
- We ship in recycled cardboard and, when we can, in boxes our suppliers sent us goods in.
- For trips and small transfers we book shared transport and BlaBlaCar.
- We print to pre-orders. If something does not sell, it does not end up in the bin but in our outlet or in schools.
What you can do
- Order more things at once. One parcel instead of three.
- Choose a pickup point or locker instead of home delivery. So the courier does not drive out for a single parcel.
- Buy second quality and sale items. We also work with production seconds. Everything usable is cheaper in our second quality section. You save money and rescue something that would not get a chance elsewhere.
- Buy only what you will really use. The smallest footprint belongs to the diary that never had to be made.
What Žurnál fans say
5.00 out of 5 · 4 reviews
Super kniha!„Odporúčam, každému nadšencovi prírody.“
Vyhrotené!„Skvelá kniha po všetkých stránkach, ako vždy v tejto sérii. Kvalitné fotografie a vizuálnu zložku dopĺňajú hlboké a vtipné texty a rozhovory s neznámymi hrdinami našich lesov a hôr.“
Zaujímavá„Kniha približuje súčasnosť a históriu značenia prostredníctvom príbehov konkrétnych ľudí, čo ju robí autentickou, osobnou a vďaka mnohým fotografiám aj veľmi pestrou. Človek, ktorý vie o značkách toľko čo bežný turista, sa z knihy dozvie veľa zaujímavých vecí.“
Odporúčam„Rozhodne odporúčam, každemu nadšencovi prírody a rozhodne milovníkom našej prírody na chodníkoch a spätym s tradíciou značkovania na Slovensku, kde mame najhustejšiu a najkvalitnešiu sieť značkovanych trás na svete. Jedno z mála veci, ktoré tvoríme dobrovoľne pre všetkých.“
Why not add these too?
Bookmark set
5 €
