1
general::
Phrase(s): blaze a trail
1. Lit. to make and mark a trail. • The scout blazed a trail through the forest. 2. Fig. to do early or pioneering work that others will follow up on. • Professor Williams blazed a trail in the study of physics.
McGrawhill's American Idioms And Phrasal Verbs
2
general::
Find a new path or method; begin a new undertaking. For example, His research blazed a trail for new kinds of gene therapy. This expression was first used literally in the 18th century for the practice of marking a forest trail by making blazes, that is, marking trees with notches or chips in the bark. [Late 1800s]
American Heritage Idioms