diff --git a/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/ObstacleDecisionPanel.tsx b/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/ObstacleDecisionPanel.tsx
index f2cfa6281..96195e51a 100644
--- a/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/ObstacleDecisionPanel.tsx
+++ b/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/ObstacleDecisionPanel.tsx
@@ -18,7 +18,7 @@ import {
   Unlink,
   X,
 } from 'lucide-react';
-import { useLayoutEffect, useRef, useState, type KeyboardEvent, type ReactNode } from 'react';
+import { useEffect, useLayoutEffect, useRef, useState, type KeyboardEvent, type ReactNode } from 'react';
 import { useTranslation } from '../../../i18n';
 import { fs } from '../../shared/DialogShell';
 import { Tooltip } from '../../shared/Tooltip';
@@ -197,6 +197,11 @@ function NoteEditor({
   onCancel: () => void;
 }) {
   const { t } = useTranslation();
+  const box = useRef<HTMLTextAreaElement>(null);
+  // The note opens for writing, so it takes the focus once, when it opens.
+  useEffect(() => {
+    box.current?.focus();
+  }, []);
   const onKeyDown = (event: KeyboardEvent<HTMLTextAreaElement>) => {
     if (event.key !== 'Escape') return;
     // The map card and the dialog close on Escape; inside the note it only ends the edit.
@@ -209,8 +214,8 @@ function NoteEditor({
       <textarea
         rows={2}
         maxLength={NOTE_MAX}
+        ref={box}
         value={draft}
-        autoFocus
         aria-label={t('tours.paddle.check.note')}
         onChange={(event) => onChange(event.target.value)}
         onKeyDown={onKeyDown}
diff --git a/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/PaddleObstacleNotice.tsx b/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/PaddleObstacleNotice.tsx
index 96e335636..983dbff8d 100644
--- a/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/PaddleObstacleNotice.tsx
+++ b/client/src/components/Tours/paddle/PaddleObstacleNotice.tsx
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { compareCodeUnits } from '@trek/shared';
 import { AlertTriangle, Info, Loader2, WifiOff } from 'lucide-react';
 import { useShallow } from 'zustand/react/shallow';
 import { useTranslation } from '../../../i18n';
@@ -9,7 +10,7 @@ function dataDate(regions: readonly { source_timestamp?: string | null }[], lang
   const times = regions
     .map((region) => region.source_timestamp)
     .filter((time): time is string => !!time)
-    .sort();
+    .sort(compareCodeUnits);
   return times[0] ? new Date(times[0]).toLocaleDateString(language, { dateStyle: 'medium' }) : null;
 }
 
diff --git a/server/src/nest/paddle-obstacles/paddle-extract.ts b/server/src/nest/paddle-obstacles/paddle-extract.ts
index 42dacadbc..aa191349d 100644
--- a/server/src/nest/paddle-obstacles/paddle-extract.ts
+++ b/server/src/nest/paddle-obstacles/paddle-extract.ts
@@ -1,6 +1,6 @@
 import { readPbfFile, type OsmWay } from './osm-pbf.reader';
 import { keptTags, paddleKindOf, paddleNameOf } from './paddle-tags';
-import type { PaddleGeometry, PaddleObstacleKind } from '@trek/shared';
+import { compareCodeUnits, type PaddleGeometry, type PaddleObstacleKind } from '@trek/shared';
 
 import { createHash } from 'node:crypto';
 import { stat } from 'node:fs/promises';
@@ -38,7 +38,7 @@ interface PendingWay {
 
 function hashOf(tags: Record<string, string>, geometry: PaddleGeometry): string {
   const sorted = Object.keys(tags)
-    .sort()
+    .sort(compareCodeUnits)
     .map((key) => [key, tags[key]]);
   const rounded = JSON.stringify(geometry, (_key, value: unknown) =>
     typeof value === 'number' ? Math.round(value * 1e6) / 1e6 : value,
@@ -147,7 +147,7 @@ export function groupLockParts(features: ExtractedFeature[]): void {
   for (const part of parts) groups.set(root(part), [...(groups.get(root(part)) ?? []), part]);
   for (const members of groups.values()) {
     if (members.length < 2) continue;
-    const key = `lock:${members.map((member) => member.osm_ref).sort()[0]}`;
+    const key = `lock:${members.map((member) => member.osm_ref).sort(compareCodeUnits)[0]}`;
     for (const member of members) member.group_key = key;
   }
 }
diff --git a/server/src/nest/tours/tour-paddle-check.service.ts b/server/src/nest/tours/tour-paddle-check.service.ts
index 5003cfb35..50a2c4a9d 100644
--- a/server/src/nest/tours/tour-paddle-check.service.ts
+++ b/server/src/nest/tours/tour-paddle-check.service.ts
@@ -17,6 +17,7 @@ import { parseRouteGeometry, shortHash } from './tours.helpers';
 import { InjectRepository } from '@mikro-orm/nestjs';
 import { Injectable } from '@nestjs/common';
 import {
+  compareCodeUnits,
   obstacleCandidatesOf,
   obstacleEntriesOf,
   ownEntriesOf,
@@ -66,7 +67,7 @@ export function storedReviewOf(row: TourObstacleReviewRow): StoredObstacleReview
 }
 
 function oldest(values: ReadonlyArray<string | null>): string | null {
-  return values.filter((value): value is string => !!value).sort()[0] ?? null;
+  return values.filter((value): value is string => !!value).sort(compareCodeUnits)[0] ?? null;
 }
 
 const UNAVAILABLE = { data: 'unavailable', data_as_of: null, read_at: null } as const;
@@ -126,7 +127,7 @@ export class TourPaddleCheckService {
         line,
         candidates,
         own,
-        dataKeys: new Set(along.features.map(paddleObstacleKeyOf)),
+        dataKeys: new Set(along.features.map((feature) => paddleObstacleKeyOf(feature))),
         complete: along.coverage === 'covered' && !limited,
         data: {
           data: along.coverage === 'none' ? 'none' : limited ? 'limited' : along.coverage,
diff --git a/server/src/nest/tours/tours.service.ts b/server/src/nest/tours/tours.service.ts
index 3779540b3..9669e483b 100644
--- a/server/src/nest/tours/tours.service.ts
+++ b/server/src/nest/tours/tours.service.ts
@@ -62,6 +62,9 @@ export interface ImportGpxAsTourResult {
  * PlacesService.importPreparedGpx. Places and facet rows are persisted in one transaction,
  * with tour metrics derived from each place's route_geometry.
  */
+/** A GPX file imported without a type is a hike. */
+const HIKE_IMPORT: TourGpxImportFields = { tour_type: 'hike' };
+
 @Injectable()
 export class ToursService {
   private readonly logger = new Logger(ToursService.name);
@@ -522,7 +525,7 @@ export class ToursService {
     fileBuffer: Buffer,
     fileName?: string,
     socketId?: string,
-    fields: TourGpxImportFields = { tour_type: 'hike' },
+    fields: TourGpxImportFields = HIKE_IMPORT,
   ): Promise<ImportGpxAsTourResult | null> {
     const rows = this.readGpxTracks(fileBuffer, fileName);
     if (rows.length === 0) return null;
diff --git a/shared/src/common/compare.spec.ts b/shared/src/common/compare.spec.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..d163b797b
--- /dev/null
+++ b/shared/src/common/compare.spec.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,13 @@
+import { compareCodeUnits } from './compare';
+
+import { describe, expect, it } from 'vitest';
+
+describe('compareCodeUnits', () => {
+  it('orders as a bare sort does, whatever the locale', () => {
+    const texts = ['way/3', 'node/10', 'node/2', 'Node/1', 'check_date', 'canoe', '2026-09-30', '2026-10-01'];
+    expect([...texts].sort(compareCodeUnits)).toEqual([...texts].sort());
+    expect(compareCodeUnits('a', 'a')).toBe(0);
+    expect(compareCodeUnits('a', 'b')).toBe(-1);
+    expect(compareCodeUnits('b', 'a')).toBe(1);
+  });
+});
diff --git a/shared/src/common/compare.ts b/shared/src/common/compare.ts
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..ce81ffbcc
--- /dev/null
+++ b/shared/src/common/compare.ts
@@ -0,0 +1,9 @@
+/**
+ * Two texts by their UTF-16 code units: the order a bare `sort()` gives, and
+ * the same on every machine. A hash or a key built over the order must not
+ * depend on the locale the code runs in, as `localeCompare` does.
+ */
+export function compareCodeUnits(a: string, b: string): number {
+  if (a === b) return 0;
+  return a < b ? -1 : 1;
+}
diff --git a/shared/src/index.ts b/shared/src/index.ts
index 99bb99e23..9b39c9cc0 100644
--- a/shared/src/index.ts
+++ b/shared/src/index.ts
@@ -10,6 +10,7 @@
  */
 export * from './common/primitives.schema';
 export * from './common/pagination.schema';
+export * from './common/compare';
 
 // Domain contracts
 export * from './weather/weather.schema';
diff --git a/shared/src/tours/paddle-check-basis.ts b/shared/src/tours/paddle-check-basis.ts
index 63d05bb88..5b94a6add 100644
--- a/shared/src/tours/paddle-check-basis.ts
+++ b/shared/src/tours/paddle-check-basis.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { compareCodeUnits } from '../common/compare';
 import { haversineMetres } from '../geo/haversine';
 import type { PaddleFeature } from '../paddle/paddle-obstacles.schema';
 import { paddleLayoutOfPoints, paddleLayoutOfTrack, type PaddlePlanPoint } from './paddle-plan';
@@ -214,14 +215,14 @@ const isCosmetic = (key: string) => COSMETIC.has(key) || key.startsWith('check_d
 /** The material data of an obstacle's members, as text to hash: what they are and the tags that bear on passing. */
 export function materialOf(members: readonly PaddleFeature[]): string {
   const rows = [...members]
-    .sort((a, b) => a.ref.localeCompare(b.ref))
+    .sort((a, b) => compareCodeUnits(a.ref, b.ref))
     .map((member) => [
       member.ref,
       member.kind,
       member.geometry.type,
       Object.keys(member.tags)
         .filter((key) => !isCosmetic(key))
-        .sort()
+        .sort(compareCodeUnits)
         .map((key) => [key, member.tags[key]]),
     ]);
   return JSON.stringify(rows);
diff --git a/shared/src/tours/paddle-check.ts b/shared/src/tours/paddle-check.ts
index 9f41e3c22..acac3c3c7 100644
--- a/shared/src/tours/paddle-check.ts
+++ b/shared/src/tours/paddle-check.ts
@@ -1,3 +1,4 @@
+import { compareCodeUnits } from '../common/compare';
 import {
   PADDLE_BLOCKING_KINDS,
   paddleAccessOf,
@@ -166,7 +167,7 @@ function localCheckOf(members: readonly PaddleFeature[]): string | null {
       )
       .map(([, value]) => value),
   );
-  const sorted = dates.sort();
+  const sorted = dates.sort(compareCodeUnits);
   return sorted[sorted.length - 1] ?? null;
 }
 
@@ -239,7 +240,7 @@ export function obstacleCandidatesOf(input: {
         ...members
           .map((member) => member.ref)
           .filter((ref) => ref !== anchor.feature.ref)
-          .sort(),
+          .sort(compareCodeUnits),
       ].slice(0, OBSTACLE_REFS_MAX),
       kind,
       name: anchor.feature.name ?? members.find((member) => member.name)?.name ?? null,