Backcountry Discovery Routes, the organization that has designed and shared thousands of miles of adventure riding routes across the US, is now potentially going to start doing the same in Canada.
The Backcountry Discovery Routes non-profit group was organized 15 years ago, and it has been picking up steam ever since. From a handful of GPS tracks with accompanying route information over the southwestern US, to more than a dozen routes now that run through most of the west and down the eastern seaboard, Backcountry Discovery Routes is getting people out into areas they might never have found on their own. Along with longer multi-day expeditions they call BDRs, the group also offers shorter BDR-X routes, shorter in length for getaways with less time available, or exploring regions that couldn’t fit into the larger routes. They’re also working on offering recommendations for paved backroad connectors that let you connect ADV-riding fun with minimal interstate slogging.
In other words: They’re doing a lot for riders, and all that hard work results in free maps and other information available through their website. And for years, people have been asking for BDRs in Canada. Now, it appears that might be happening soon, starting in British Columbia. As per a fundraising press release that came out yesterday:
In October of 2025, BDR will launch the Texas Hill Country BDR-X, followed by the Montana BDR in 2026, along with three new BDR-X routes: Ozarks, Arkansas; Lost Coast, California; and the Adirondacks, New York.
Looking ahead, work is already underway on the British Columbia BDR, Ohio BDR, and Michigan BDR. Additionally, efforts are being made to update the Red Desert (WY), and launch Hells Canyon (ID/OR), Grand Staircase (UT), and Driftless BDR-X routes in 2027, among more than 30 routes in various stages of development.
So they’re working on British Columbia? Makes sense, as it’s directly north of the Washington BDR, and would allow them to connect an Alaskan route at the other end.
The other provinces that would make sense are Alberta, as it borders Idaho, where there’s a BDR already, and New Brunswick and Quebec, which could easily be connected to the NEBDR route (indeed, the original NEBDR route ended almost right at the New Brunswick border, in Jackman, Maine). Most likely, we’d see some sort of effort to link into the Trans Quebec Trail at a minimum.
Over the past few years, there have been Canadian-based efforts to get these sorts of riding routes organized, with Ontario and Quebec seeing progress but not too much elsewhere, especially since the Trans Canadian Adventure Trail maps are getting outdated from their original scouting several years ago. Moto Canada is working on a project to replicate the BDR idea, but they’re starting almost from scratch. Maybe we will see some sort of collaboration between the BDR org and what existing work has already been done, over the years ahead?
Find out more about Backcountry Discovery Routes at RideBDR.com.
