About Tyler Williams
Adventurer/Writer/Photographer/Speaker

Tyler Williams knows adventure. Williams has rappelled slot canyons, bushwhacked rain forests, trudged deserts, paddled rivers, and spent as many nights under the stars as under a roof. He was featured as one of Backpacker magazine's "tough dayhikers," but his true calling lies in multi-day wilderness trips.

The son of a professional football player and coach, Tyler's youth was dominated by team sports. By his teens his athleticism morphed into an obsession with outdoor activities: backpacking, canyoneering, whitewater kayaking, backcountry skiing; whatever it took to explore in the wilderness.

Tyler studied geography at Northern Arizona University before becoming a river guide, an occupation he still practices today. He got his start on Idaho’s Payette River, and was soon working rapids across the country. It was Texas’ Rio Grande in the springtime, Idaho’s Lochsa and Salmon in the summer, and West Virginia’s Gauley in the Fall. Tyler also guided on the “Deliverance” river, the Chattooga, and Arizona’s Salt. Today, he works primarily on the Colorado River in Grand Canyon, rowing boats for scientific researchers as well as commercial guests.

Between river work, Tyler found time to pursue his own whitewater goals. He has completed over a dozen first descents, and paddled over two hundred rivers throughout North America; everything from creeks in Appalachia, to waterfalls in Mexico, to big water in Alaska, where he once made a ten-day solo journey down the glacial-fed, grizzly-rich Alsek River. He is most renowned, however, for river explorations in his native Arizona. The culmination of his efforts there produced Paddling Arizona, one of his five books.

Tyler began his writing career with Canyoneering Arizona, a Southwestern classic packed with information on the state’s many gorges. The idea for the book came during college, after Williams read a Jon Krakauer article about the new sport of canyoneering. “I knew right then that someone would do a guidebook for Arizona, so I figured it ought to be me,” Tyler recalls. Every spare moment for the next several years was spent in a map room at the university library, and in the canyons. His debut title was a huge success, encouraging him to produce another guidebook—Grand Canyon River Hikes—three years later. Research for this book required Tyler to complete extended hiking routes in Grand Canyon, a natural wonder that anchors Williams to his Flagstaff, Arizona home. “Whenever I need to get blown away by a huge landscape, the Canyon is right there. It’s always inspiring,” he says.

Tyler will be climbing several buttes within the Canyon for his latest project, Arizona Summits, a two part guide series for the northern and southern regions of the state. All of Tyler’s books are published through Funhog Press, a company that he operates with his wife, Lisa, from their home office in Flagstaff, Arizona. Lisa, a biologist who Tyler accompanies on many field surveys, brings a scientific edge that adds depth to Tyler’s writing, both in his books and magazine stories.

When American Forests magazine needed someone to find and re-measure the world’s biggest whitebark pine, Williams was the man. He also sought the world champion subalpine fir for the magazine, found at a remote location in Washington’s Olympic Mountains. Tyler also writes and photographs for Backpacker and Canoe & Kayak magazines, among others. He is a regular contributor to Kayak Session - the international whitewater magazine, where his in-depth profiles of whitewater luminaries have helped shape the historical context of paddle sports. Tyler earned his biographical chops with Whitewater Classics—Fifty North American Rivers Picked by the Continent’s Leading Paddlers, a book that he produced in 2004.

Currently, Tyler is combining his many wilderness skills in the Source to Sea Project—Exploring Pacific Waterways from Headwater to Salt Water. For the project, Tyler will descend all four of North America’s major Pacific waterways—Fraser, Columbia, Yukon, and Colorado—from source to sea. In 2006, he became the first to paddle all 800 miles of British Columbia’s Fraser River. In 2008, he started on Idaho’s Salmon River before following the Snake and Columbia Rivers to the ocean, a trip of 970 miles. During a season “off” from the project, he paddled the entirety of Oregon and California’s 350-mile-long Klamath River. He plans to write a book about his source to sea trips once the project is completed. Thus far, his source to sea stories have been featured in Paddler and Paddle World magazines.

Source to sea explorer, whitewater pioneer, canyoneering leader, Grand Canyon hiker, big tree hunter, outdoor writer; Williams wears too many hats to be pinned down to any one discipline, and that’s just how he likes it. “I just love getting into spectacular places however I can,” he explains. There is one slot, however, that he will always be ready to fill—adventure.

 

Tyler Williams' slide shows.

Funhog: One who possesses, holds, acquires, or hogs an inordinate amount of fun.
When author Tyler Williams chose Funhog Press as the name for his publishing company, it was more than just a catchy phrase. Tyler is the embodiment of "Funhog." Williams has made a career out of his passions, and his presentations reflect this. His slide shows are journeys of adventure, visually stimulating, entertaining, thought provoking, and informative. Tyler weaves stories together seamlessly in a rich dynamic display, finding a comfort level with his audience that makes even the largest venue seem intimate. His natural and honest approach creates a fun atmosphere that communicates well, and inspires thoroughly.

Rivers are perfect metaphors for life. Tyler's source to sea presentations trace the life of the rivers he travels, and the lessons he learned while following their course. His presentations illustrate how to adapt to changes, the necessity of planning, and the rewards of persistence.

These slide shows are suitable for any organization or event seeking an adventure speaker. They can also be tailored to educational venues, focusing on the geography of watersheds, and the cultural and physical characteristics of each region featured.

— Shows —

Fraser River—Source to Sea
In 2006, Tyler became the first to run British Columbia's Fraser River from its very source to its mouth in the Pacific Ocean. Join Tyler as he: bushwhacks in the Canadian Rockies, paddles the remote Fraser headwaters in a miniature pack raft, follows in the footsteps of mountain man Simon Fraser, breaks up fist-fighting indigents during a town stop, and runs 70,000 cfs of whitewater through infamous Hells Gate in his quest for salt water.

Klamath River—Source to Sea
"Klamath—The Broken River" is the story of a troubled waterway, and one man's journey down it. The Klamath is a 300-mile-long waterway traveling from Oregon's Cascade Mountains to the Pacific Ocean in northern California. It was once the third most productive salmon fishing river in North America. Today, Klamath River salmon are approaching extinction. Farmers demand water for irrigation. Indians fight for their share of the dwindling salmon. We all flip light switches from the dam-supported power grid. The Klamath embodies all that is at stake regarding water issues in the West.

 

Salmon/Columbia River—Source to Sea
Tyler launched at the source of Idaho’s Salmon, traveling over 400 miles by pack raft and whitewater kayak to the confluence with the Snake River. On the Snake, he loaded into a 15-foot motorized canoe, and continued through the first of eight major dams along his route. He battled treacherous wind waves on the mile-wide Columbia River before transferring into a sea kayak for the final push to the Pacific Ocean. The infamous Columbia River Bar at the mouth of the river—The Graveyard of the Pacific— was his final hurdle in reaching the sea.

 

Whitewater Classics
Talk about the ultimate paddling safari! Williams criss-crossed North America while conducting research for his book Whitewater Classics - Fifty North American Rivers Picked by the Continent's Leading Paddlers. Tyler visited whitewater rivers from southern Mexico to California's Sierras to the Appalachians. Highlighted in the show is a solo trip retracing the route of legendary Walt Blackadar. Tyler's 10-day journey down Alaska's Alsek River included close encounters with rolling icebergs and grizzly bears. Williams' presentation features the best whitewater destinations on the continent, places like Skookumchuck tidal rapids in British Columbia, and "the Deliverance river," Georgia's Chattooga.

 

 

 

Latest Funhog Adventure News

Source to Sea Quest Continues
In 2006, Tyler Williams became the first to paddle the entire length of British Columbia’s 800-mile-long Fraser River. The trip proved to be the first of several river journeys comprising the Source to Sea Project—Exploring Pacific Waterways from Headwater to Salt Water. Williams’ quest will descend the Fraser, Columbia, Yukon, and Colorado Rivers from source to sea.

A source to sea trip provides unique insight to a region, its people, and the interdependence of man and environment. Williams' journeys link wild mountains with rural communities, while riding the lifeblood of the continent. From the seat of his boat, Tyler sees our purest waters, and our most exploited. He gains a first hand view of dams that produce energy but kill salmon, reservoirs that are revered by some and reviled by others, agricultural diversions that help grow food but pollute our environment. He comes face to face with issues that we as a culture must confront.

Please click on the rivers located on the map to the right to learn more about Tyler’s source to sea trips.

The Yukon River is next in line for the Source to Sea Project. Tyler will locate the source of this great northern river before traveling downstream by pack raft and kayak. In the town of Whitehorse, Yukon, he will build a large live-aboard river boat in the spirit of the gold miners who flocked to this waterway over a century ago. Nearly two-thousand miles later, Tyler hopes to reach native villages that are on the front lines of climate change near the river mouth. Finally, Tyler will touch salt water on the warming Bering Sea.

For information about Yukon Source to Sea sponsorship opportunities, please email tyler@funhogpress.com

New Guidebook
Arizona Summits—South is now available, which means that T Will is now researching the companion title: Arizona Summits—North. Due out in 2011.

Kayak Session
Look for Tyler’s in-depth profiles of whitewater luminaries to continue with Kayak Session magazine.

Tyler is now on Facebook!
Click here to visit our page, and become a fan.