I’ve been an OS GetOutside Champion since 2020, I’m the Chief Volunteer Queen for Adventure Queens South Wales and deputy chair of the Brecon Beacons National Park LAF.
I’ve just turned 50 and am not your stereotypical outdoor type. I’ve never been great at sports and I’m not a pretty sight puffing and panting up a mountain. But being outdoors makes me feel alive – it’s my soul food.
My goal is to encourage more women of every age, size, ability and background to participate in outdoor activities and that’s what I do for Adventure Queens South Wales. Adventure Queens is an online UK-based community of more than 20,000 women. Its goal is to encourage, inspire and educate more women to get outside.
Over the past four years I’ve organised weekends away (camping, surfing, scrambling, climbing, hiking, climbing, kayaking and wild swimming), day walks, social evenings and walked the 99-mile Beacons Way. On top of that I’ve given live online talks, organised virtual meet ups and mentored new members.
AQ has transformed my own life. I was a cautious day walker before I joined, but since then I’ve become a seasoned camper, I’ve completed multi-day hikes, learned scrambling, climbing, surfing and paddleboarding – I keep pinching myself as I can’t believe this is really me!
A big part of my role within AQ is sharing advice and sparking discussions on kit, nutrition, self-care and mental well-being. The women in our community vary from seasoned adventurers to mums camping out in their garden for the very first time. All our members are concerned about their carbon footprint and are passionate about protecting our planet.
Phillipa Cherryson
