John Connelly

John Connelly authored Dying Out Here Is Not An Option, an adventure memoir about PaddleQuest 1500- A 1500 Mile, 75 day, Solo Canoe & Kayak Odyssey.

He co-authored a river guidebook, Appalachian Whitewater: The Northern States. He is a contributing author for National Geographic Online, Cooking LightMagazine, and in-flight magazines. He has had articles published about outdoor adventures, the health and wellness benefits of paddling, and the direct relationship between adventures in the wild and resource conservation and stewardship.

John has worked in the adventure tourism industry since the 1970s and has founded whitewater rafting operations in the northeastern and mid-Atlantic states of the US and in Europe, including sea kayaking operations in Maine, North Carolina and Florida. As an athlete member of the United States Canoe and Kayak Team, John competed in the whitewater world cup and world championships.

After a decade of developing outdoor retailer L.L.Bean, Inc.'s outdoor adventure, education and experiential retail business, he has been consulting the outdoors space, primarily in the areas of safety, risk management, customer experience, and operations.

Internationally, John has been working extensively throughout Japan to develop sustainable adventure tourism by educating guides, outfitters and tour operators on best practices.

John has been a keynote speaker at conventions and events providing entertaining insights about his expeditions and and the lessons learned.

If We're Going to Die, It's Probably Here- Circumnavigating the Everglades, A 174 Mile, 8 Day Tandem Canoe Exploit, is the title of John's adventure memoir set deep in the South Florida Everglades.

After more than five decades, John continues to guide commercial whitewater rafting trips, sharing his passion, and the thrills and rewards with his guests. John says, "I have tried to quite guiding, but have apparently failed miserably."

John is working on his next book and resides lakeside in Rome, Maine with his incredible wife, Nicole. Check out wwww.connellyoutdoors.com for information about his books, speaking engagements and getting in touch with John.