Written by Aljan Scholtens on 13 March 2025

Every route starts with an idea. The story, the points of interest, the rough path, and finally, the exact route over specific trails and roads.

With Wolf Maps’ new drawing tool, we can now help you perfectly with this. Draw and edit routes over existing roads and paths in no time. Depending on the type of route, we select the right paths.

You can already choose between cycling, hiking, and driving routes. We’re working on routes for boating, paddleboarding, and canoeing.

From GPX to Direct Drawing

It was already possible to upload GPX routes, and now we’ve added the drawing tool. The advantage? Faster creation, quicker adjustments, and precise placement on roads. Wolf Maps knows exactly where the paths are open, ensuring the route is placed in the right spot.

Still have a GPX file? No problem. You can ‘sync’ a GPX with existing paths so it perfectly aligns with the roads. After that, you can use the Wolf Maps drawing tool to adjust the route as needed.

Maintaining Routes

Routes constantly change due to road closures, events, nesting seasons, wet conditions, and other seasonal restrictions.

Here’s how to handle it: open the route in Wolf Maps and start the drawing tool. Drag the route over the paths you want to use for the detour. Save the route, and your visitors will see the update instantly. Adjusting a route is that simple.

Steps for Designing a Route

We’ve analyzed existing route tools and learned what truly matters.

• Smart drawing: Routes automatically ‘snap’ to paths and roads on the map to make drawing easier.
• Free drawing: Want to go off the beaten path? Draw over fields, beaches, or water with a single click.
• Uploading: We’ve improved the uploading of GPX files for routes.
• External data sources: Edit routes from external sources like Plaece directly in Wolf Maps.
• Keep the original route: If you’ve modified an uploaded route, you’ll still see the original underneath for reference.
• Download as GPX: Use your created routes outside of Wolf Maps.

All set? Walk or cycle the route yourself and then publish it!

In short, a must-have for route planners, route agencies, DMOs, city marketers, and sports event organizers.

Watch the Video

Curious to see how it works? Check out the video (Dutch) below and see for yourself how easy it is. Or visit our routes page. Questions? Email aljan@wolfmaps.com.