If there is truly a gap in the route, as in, you’re transiting over completely open terrain and everyone makes their own unique way across the terrain, then simply don’t map anything. Don’t just connect the dots. There’s nothing there, so there’s nothing there to map.
If there is anything at all that someone could follow, be it blazes, cairns, landmarks, whatever, then tag it as a path.
Don’t create geometry when there’s nothing there. Just don’t do it. Data consumers are perfectly capable of connecting two points together with a line. I assure you this is a simple algorithm.