Retired professional whitewater kayaker, freestyle champion, and world record holder Tao Berman is a legend in his sport. Having been called “the world’s most extreme paddler” by Rolling Stone and “the best-known kayaker on the planet” by Sports Illustrated, few have achieved what he has in the world of extreme sports.

While Tao’s accomplishments have contributed to and define the person that he is today, Tao believes his childhood and upbringing define the man that he is today. Raised by a single mother in the mountains of Eastern Washington, Tao spent his earliest years living off the grid without running water or indoor plumbing in a makeshift underground hut. “We didn’t even own a car until I was around nine years old,” says Berman.

After graduating from high school, Tao spent the next 15 years pursuing his kayaking career with a focused goal of turning what he loved most into a sustainable and lucrative career. With that in mind, Tao pioneered over 50 first descents around the world and broke three world records – including the highest waterfall descent with a dizzying seven story vertical drop (98-feet).

Once he accomplished the ambitious goals he had set out for himself, Tao retired at the age of 31 with a new goal to push himself intellectually while prioritizing his family – Jamie, Violet, and Cole.

Towards this goal, Tao pursued an interest in real estate investment, purchasing everything from multi-unit apartment buildings, storage facilities, mixed-use commercial properties, duplexes, and even a mobile home park. “I enjoyed the analytical process of determining how to create more value from each of my investments while filling a need in each niche,” says Berman.

For the last several years, Tao has pursued development primarily in his hometown of White Salmon, Washington, where his family has built a custom ‘dream home’ and guest house overlooking the Columbia River Gorge. Their home has been featured in the Wall Street Journal.

In 2023, Berman developed and opened the Hotel Iconica, an independent boutique hotel in the center of downtown White Salmon. The first phase, completed in the spring of 2023, includes 16 contemporary suites. An additional 14 suites will be added in phase two of the hotel development. He also owns ten vacation rentals under White Salmon Vacation Rentals.

For Tao, who loves “thoughtfully designed architecture,” developing in his hometown is just one way to give back and support the community where Tao and his family call home. “It gives me immense satisfaction to build architecture that brings people to our community and enjoy all that the area has to offer,” says Berman. “In the end, it’s building community that becomes our legacy.”