Boardwalk
In normal wall applications, boarding usually refers to the practice of covering a surface with timber boards, usually strips laid horizontally. A ‘boardwalk’ however is a raised pathway, most often made of timber boards or planks, that are parallel to each other and laid to create a continuous and convenient surface for people to walk on. The boards can be laid either across or parallel to the direction of movement, or arranged diagonally.
A boardwalk can be an elevated structure e.g a wood framework or steel structure onto which the boards are laid (e.g. seaside piers usually have boardwalks) or they may be a simpler arrangement such as the boards laid directly onto a flat surface such as sand.
In most cases, a boardwalk is for convenience and provides people with a route across what would otherwise be a more difficult or inconvenient surface e.g wet or soggy land. Boardwalks can therefore be thought of as low-level bridges.
Another type of boardwalk is a duckboard, which is arranged in a similar way but is mainly used over muddy or wet ground.
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