About
Hello! My name is Tyler Karow. I live in Truckee, California and I spend much of my time climbing, skiing, and building things. I created this website to share some of my thoughts and adventures relating to these endeavors.
I grew up in a town called Mammaroneck in the Suburbs of New York City and was introduced to skiing by my parents at a young age. Skiing became a passion growing up, and that passion grew even deeper after moving out west for college. I began backcountry skiing and upon moving to San Francisco after graduation, I began climbing at a gym called Mission Cliffs with the intention to gain skills to supplement my ski mountaineering. After a few years of weekend warrior trips to the Sierras I gained a love for climbing that far surpassed my interest in romping through snow. That combined with an existential crisis that necessitated a break from the corporate world, influenced me to quit my job in the construction/engineering world to pursue climbing full time. Over the summer of 2019, I built a van and lived in it for nearly 3 years while traveling the world with friends in pursuit of adventure, quality rock, and good food.
My travels and interest in big walls and adventure climbing have taken me to places as far as Kyrgyzstan, Jordan, Patagonia, and Alaska among others but my favorite place to climb is Yosemite. I have climbed El Capitan via 16 unique routes, snagged 3 El Cap speed records, and a ground up free ascent of Golden Gate (5.13a, 3000ft). I also completed an ascent of the Yosemite Triple Crown which is a link up of El Capitan, Half Dome, and Mt. Watkins in less than 24 hours. My dreams in climbing mostly relate to long challenging, technical, adventure routes in beautiful places. Some of my proudest accomplishments are in Patagonia where I have managed to climb all seven summits of the Cerro Chalten (Fitz Roy) Skyline and team free climb the South African Route (5.12c, 4000ft) in Torres del Paine over 12 days.
I climb for the love of climbing and have found no other pursuit in life that provides as much mental and physical stimulation, simultaneously. I enjoy pushing my limits on walls and in the mountains but have never been motivated by climbing difficult grades. Climbing hard is certainly rewarding for me but it is the externalities of this activity that keep me so continually obsessed. The climbing community, partnerships, travel experiences, and minimalistic lifestyle have captivated me. I am very fortunate to be supported by Patagonia and La Sportiva. To find out more about my climbing background, check out this podcast:
In addition to playing in the mountains, I am also a licensed civil engineer and general contractor. I’ve worked in several construction and engineering positions for large companies but more recently I have started a number of my own businesses in this realm. Find out more about my building interests and my life as a civil engineer/builder/developer here:
In addition, I am quite passionate about food and have made a point of eating well in absurd places on climbing trips. I am on the board of Farm to Crag and volunteer as the Treasurer for this non-profit that educates and connects climbers to local and sustainable food sources. Find out more about F2C here:
