QUEENS OF THE OUTDOORS The group making bold steps in female adventuring

Words by Erin Zammitt Credit: Nadia Weigh

If you were to Google the term ‘adventurer’, the search results would likely be dominated by men celebrating their epic outdoor explorations, with very little space given to women doing the same.

This lack of female representation was a concern for outdoor lovers Anna McNuff and Emma Frampton. To challenge this inequality, they founded Adventure Queens in 2017, a not-for-profit women’s adventure community run by volunteers.

What started as a Facebook group six years ago is now a nationwide organisation with 28 regional groups that hold regular events for its members like walks, navigation skills workshops, paddle boarding and kayaking. Nadia Weigh, one of the group’s community leaders, says women have certain unique barriers that stop them from getting outdoors, which is why groups like these are needed.

In the online groups, members regularly have questions about outdoor activities that speak to these particular challenges. How do you wear a buoyancy aid for paddle boarding if you have a larger bust?

What is the best female-specific bike saddle? (Fun fact – women have wider sit bones than men, and so prefer to sit further back on the saddle.) Adventure Queens encourages discussion about issues like these, creating an environment where members can share tips and advice.

However, there is perhaps a more pressing need for groups such as Adventure Queens. In a 2021 survey by female-centric adventure community Love Her Wild, 62% of respondents reported being treated differently in the outdoors because of their gender, with experiences including feeling unwelcome, patronised, and ignored in group activities.

The idea of a women-only group is sometimes questioned (“often by men,” remarks Weigh), but the purpose is to enable women to have adventures together safely and securely and experience the outdoors without fear.

Virtual adventures

Watching a movie or reading a book might not be the most likely of activities for an outdoors group, but a new addition to Adventure Queens is just that: an online film and book club that takes place monthly. This was only meant to be a temporary alternative to in-person meetups during Covid restrictions; a way to keep the community connected while they could only dream of future adventures. However, the online discussions of adventurethemed media attracted new members who had never come to an event before.

In the same Love Her Wild survey, 55% of women said that a lack of confidence was stopping them from getting outdoors. To combat this issue, the online meetups and virtual skill-sharing sessions allow members to meet one another in a relaxed and low-pressure environment. Weigh believes this new type of event has made the group even more accessible and inclusive.

“When you’re trying to get people outdoors, sometimes it’s okay to start indoors,” she says. “It’s planting that seed of adventure in people’s minds and helping them build their confidence before they commit to an actual outdoor event.”

The future is female

But, what more can be done? The group is introducing more outreach work to their programme. While their members have benefitted from the community, Weigh is aware that many more women don’t yet feel confident enough to join a group like Adventure Queens.

Upcoming projects for this year include working with refugee women as well as women who are living with long-term health conditions. “We’re really passionate about working with women at all stages of their adventure journey,” says Weigh.

Adventure Queens’ website states that the community helps to “delicately smash down barriers” that prevent women from accessing outdoor adventures, a phrase that Weigh says sums up what they are trying to achieve. she adds, “I think women are supposed to be feminine and delicate, but actually, we are smashing down these barriers and we’re not going to be polite about it.

“We like the contrast between what we’re supposed to be, and what we feel like we are.” Groups like Adventure Queens are redefining what an adventurer looks like – regardless of what the Google results say.

For more info about the group, check out adventurequeens.co.uk.

Breaking new ground

Adventure Queens aren’t alone –here are some other female-centric adventure groups around the UK making the outdoor scene more inclusive:

Glamoraks (www.glamoraks.com)

Described as an airbnb for hiking, Glamoraks is a collaborative online community and mobile app that allows women to find fellow female walkers near them and to share their hiking experiences with other outdoor lovers.

Black Girls Hike (@bgh_uk)

A safe space for black women to explore and enjoy the outdoors, Black Girls Hike focuses on challenging the status quo and hosting hikes that are both easy and fun for their participants.

The Wanderlust Women (@the.wanderlust.women)

The aim of this group is to “encourage Muslim women and women from ethnic minorities to get outdoors and break barriers and misconceptions” through hikes, navigation courses, and expeditions in both the UK and Europe.

Rivers In Numbers

Rivers provide two-thirds of our water supplies - data from Rivers Trust

42% of fish are of good quality in UK rivers - data from GOV.UK, June 2021

Zero rivers in England, Wales, and Northern Ireland are considered to be in excellent health - data from Environmental Audit Committee

Freshwater ecosystems provide habitat for more than 100,000 known wildlife species - data from Rivers Trust