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Celebrate America’s 250 with Us
In 2026, we celebrate the outdoors and 250 years of American history with the American Discovery 250 Relay.
This 6,800-mile relay from California to Delaware will carry a copy of the Declaration of Independence from coast to coast, crossing the Golden Gate Bridge on the 4th of July and ending on Thanksgiving at the Atlantic Ocean. Join the celebration by participating for a day or more in a relay, attending some of the locally-hosted events, or sharing your story of personal growth and adventure. Together, we commemorate America’s past and shape our future.
There are many ways to learn about America. We welcome you as a participant, sponsor, or simply an enthusiast who follows the relay from your couch at home! On any given day, there may be between 5 and 50 participants carrying the baton, and you are welcome to recruit your friends and neighbors.
The relay is a celebration of America and a celebration of the American Discovery Trail — educating people about American history, culture, and nature. This is not a sports or athletic contest, exhibition, festival, parade, or fundraiser. The American Discovery Trail goes past numerous historic sites, through dozens of ecosystems, and it is hosted by hundreds of communities.
The 35-year-old route passes through lands and trails overseen by numerous state and local agencies and organizations in fifteen states, the National Park Service, U.S. Forest Service, Bureau of Land Management, as well as near the homes of more than 40 million people. Relayers and participants will be from around the country and also abroad, with opportunities for businesses, families, students, older residents, and communities of all types to be involved.
For more information, contact us at relay@discoverytrail.org
Wish to zoom in and see the route? www.discoverytrail.org/adtroute
How To Participate
People have been walking, biking, running, and riding the American Discovery Trail for years - the initial route was laid out in the early 1990s. This historic journey will be about 145 days, starting in July in California and ending on Thanksgiving Day in Delaware.
We are looking for individual relayers or teams of relayers in 15 states!
We cross the western states in the summer - after the winter snows in the Rocky Mountains have melted. In the late summer we are in the middle of the country, often on bicycles. The relay will reach the eastern states in fall, with visits in our nation’s capitol in mid-November and a plunge in the Atlantic on Thanksgiving Day. (see below for approximate dates)
Relayers who contribute $30 or more will become members of the American Discovery Trail Society, and many are making a donation to support the relay.
For additional information about the Relay:
FAQs: Frequently Asked Questions page
Support This Celebration
Your support will help us create a unique program. Institutional sponsors and partners are listed below and we also have generous individuals or families from Florida, Indiana, Maryland, Missouri, New Hampshire, and Texas at the $250-$1000 level, and many contributors at the $100 level.
Generous individuals, families, businesses, public agencies and foundations are supporting milestone events and providing the resources needed to honor America’s past and future and inspire the next generation of outdoor enthusiasts — be they students, veterans, retirees, urbanites, rural residents, and all sorts of others.
Our trail is 6,800 miles, so our giving levels include national trail sponsors ($6,800), sponsors for the four regions ($1,700), local sponsors ($600), as well as gold and silver sponsors ($25,000 and $10,000)
Click “Be a Sponsor” or call Eric Howard at 800-663-2387 for details on the benefits of being a sponsor.
Partners and Sponsors Include
Cedar Valley Trails Partnership in Iowa
East Bay Regional Park District
North Bend Rails-to-Trails Foundation in West Virginia
Starline Brass Trails End/Missouri State Fair Foundation
Below are some of the many entities that have expressed an interest in being a sponsor or hosting an event. If you lead a local, regional, state or national business, agency, or organization, please contact us about your desired involvement in this historic relay.
