Tyler Philip Adams

Feb. 20, 1986 — Oct. 12, 2014 Tyler was born to Ginny and Paul Adams on Feb. 20, 1986, in Corvallis. He left us on Oct. 12, 2014, as the result of a flying accident near Yerington, Nevada. He attended Adams and Inavale elementary schools and Western View Middle School. He graduated from Corvallis High School in 2004. Although he ventured and flew far and wide, Corvallis always was his home. Tyler was a complex and amazing person — a true adventurer with the soul of a poet. His life always was focused on action and physical challenge. In his youth he was a champion swimmer and a select soccer player. In high school he added competitive mountain biking and downhill skiing to his activities. When he was 17, Tyler went on a semester-long National Outdoor Leadership School course in Patagonia. He immediately fell in love with the Chilean people and countryside, and he twice returned to work and play with his band of Chilean brothers. It was in Patagonia that he began climbing, and that quickly became an intense passion and later a vocation. As a certified rock-climbing guide and instructor, he especially enjoyed working with kids and introducing them to the wonders of the sport. Tyler’s pioneering spirit led to more than a dozen first ascents of routes at Oregon’s renowned Smith Rock State Park, and fueled a deep commitment to maintaining access to and developing climbing routes in the Menagerie Wilderness, a unique area in the Western Cascades. This past spring, he and his good friend Steve Elder made Oregon climbing history with their first ascent of a new route to the summit of Mt. Thielsen, a climb considered among the most challenging in the state. About three years ago, Tyler discovered flying, and it soon became the ultimate passion that he envisioned filling his future years. He was eagerly working towards his commercial aviation license when he was diagnosed with Type 1 Diabetes in 2012. Although that took away his hopes of becoming a backcountry commercial pilot, he found the strength to continue to inspire and amaze with his talents and adventures as a private pilot. He now is soaring with the angels. Tyler is survived by his loving family, including his parents, Ginny and Paul Adams of Corvallis; his sister, Kendall Bartholomew, and her husband, James Bartholomew, of Bend; his grandmother, Philis Gold of Greenwich, Connecticut; his dear girlfriend, Cathy Power of Corvallis; his best pug pals, Douglas Fur and Grover; and a legion of friends around the world. A celebration of Tyler’s life will take place at 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 7, at the Corvallis Airport. Memorial donations in Tyler’s name can be made to the National Outdoor Leadership School (nols.edu) or to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF.org).

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Tyler Philip Adams

February 20, 1986 - October 12, 2014