Methods and apparatus for communicating packets of information from an access terminal to a remote access node assembly by way of a serving access node assembly are described. An inter-route tunneling protocol module which interfaces with a radio link protocol module is used to tunnel route protocol packets. A first radio link protocol stream is associated with an application resident on the access terminal. A second radio link protocol stream is associated with an inter-route tunneling protocol module. Information to be communicated to a remote access node assembly by way of a serving access node assembly is subjected to two different radio link protocol processing operations. A first one of the RLP processing operations corresponds to the remote access node assembly while the second RLP processing operation corresponds to the serving access node assembly.