A wireless network device includes a forwarding table and a mesh routing module. The forwarding table is configured to store direct and reverse entries, each including a destination address, a next hop address, and a metric. The metric of the direct entries corresponds to a route from the wireless network device to the destination address. The metric of the reverse entries corresponds to a route from the destination address to the wireless network device. The mesh routing module is configured to (i) wirelessly receive route discovery packets, including a first route discovery packet, and (ii) create, based on the route discovery packets, corresponding direct entries and reverse entries in the forwarding table. The mesh routing module is configured to, in response to receiving the first route discovery packet, create a corresponding direct entry in the forwarding table and create a corresponding reverse entry in the forwarding table.