Ryan Thims grew up in Maine, landed in Southern Oregon at 19, and has spent the decades since building adventures in some of the most remote places on earth.

His path runs through river guiding on the Rogue, managing a boutique rainforest resort in Honduras for over a decade, leading SOU's Outdoor Program, and launching Rogue Heli Tours in 2020 — a company that combines helicopter access with rafting, fishing, remote lodge stays, and backcountry experiences most people never knew were possible. He lives in Eagle Point with his wife and their dog Dante, still chasing the next thing.

We talk about helicopters — how they work, what they unlock, and how to charter one — rafting through the Honduran jungle, what New Zealand did to his sense of what's possible, running rivers year-round around the world, drones, building businesses around passions, subsistence hunting, how volunteering opens doors into the arenas you want to be in, and the line that says it all: "every good thing that I've ever had has been from rafting."

Links
Rogue Heli Tours: roguehelitours.com
Las Cascadas Lodge: lascascadaslodge.com
Rogue Rafting Co: rogueraftingco.com
SOU Outdoor Program: sou.edu/outdoor-program

Active Listener Offers
Las Cascadas Lodge — Code GOWILDLY for a complimentary in-house experience on new bookings: https://www.lascascadaslodge.com/go-wildly-las-cascadas
Arrowhead River Adventures — Code GOWILDLY for 10% off any half-day rafting trip in 2026 or 2027: arrowheadriveradventures.com
Kula Cloth — Shop through our link to support the show: kulacloth.com/?avad=436689_e4cf2ef3d
SOMA — 2-Week Free Trial + 6-month membership: southernoregonmartialarts.com
ROW Adventures — Code GOWILDLY, $100 off any multi-day trip 2026-2027: rowadventures.com/multi-day-rafting-trips
Lean In Breathwork — Code GOWILDLY, 20% off sauna sessions: calvinlivingston.com

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Hosted & Produced by Emily Berlant & Heather White / Go Wildly Podcast
Theme Music: "Rainmaker" by Jared Masters — used with permission

Keywords
Go Wildly Podcast, Go Wildly, Southern Oregon podcast, outdoor podcast, Emily Berlant, Heather White, Ryan Thims, Rogue Heli Tours, helicopter tours Southern Oregon, helicopter rafting Oregon, backcountry helicopter Oregon, Las Cascadas Lodge, Honduras rainforest lodge, eco resort Honduras, Rogue River rafting, river guiding Oregon, SOU Outdoor Program, Southern Oregon University, New Zealand adventure, Honduras jungle rafting, subsistence hunting Oregon, drones outdoors, adventure entrepreneur, outdoor business Southern Oregon, Eagle Point Oregon, Rogue Valley, whitewater year round, volunteering outdoors, place-based podcast, outdoor lifestyle, whimsy, Kula Cloth