Despite pursuing a career which took her outside into nature on a daily basis, Shropshire-born ecologist Bryony could once have never classified herself as the ‘outdoorsy’ type.

Fast forward five years years and Bryony is not only an experienced hiker who has climbed all 257 Nuttalls in England but is also a recently qualified Mountain Leader and an inspiration to other women who want to explore the outdoors on foot but might not know how and where to start.

Bryony on her 256th Nuttall, in our Mountains Please T

Bryony admits that she doesn’t have the typical backstory of a hiker:

“As a child I never went on those typical family holidays to the countryside where my dad would take me up mountains on his shoulder,” she says. “I grew up in Telford and while I've always enjoyed the outdoors and wildlife in a professional capacity, at the weekends I’d never dream of heading into the hills. I used to go on holidays to far away countries and had no idea about what was available in the UK; I'd never even been to the Lake District.”

Bryony explains that it was a traumatic personal experience which was the catalyst for her to start exploring the countryside. Her decision to start climbing the Nuttalls — a list compiled by John and Anne Nuttall of mountains in England and Wales standing at over 2000ft — came when chatting with a friend:

“I had really knocked my confidence and needed something to focus on,” she explains. “My friend, Tom, had been hiking for the past few years and he mentioned the Nuttalls. I read up about them and liked the idea of setting myself a personal challenge.

“Tom initially offered to take me out into the mountains. I remember being so daunted by everything, even small things such as where to park at the bottom and how to know which route to take to the top. I remember being sat at home one cold, dark evening in March (2015) and I just had to say ‘f*ck it’. That April I started.”

Everyone who has ever taken up a new hobby knows those early days are full of blunders and mistakes. Bryony reminisces back to her first few climbs as a novice:

“I didn’t understand the mountain weather,” she says. “It is so much windier and colder higher up. Once, I went climbing in Honister Pass. I had checked the weather for Borrowdale and it was a bright, clear day in the valley. Once we got to the top gale force winds proceeded to flatten us and we had to commando crawl. This consequently made me learn about the Mountain Weather Service.

“I was also naive about things like clothing; on my very first hike i went up in a pair of Primark leggings and a hoodie carrying a laptop rucksack bag.”

By 1 August 2020 Bryony had completed all 257 Nuttalls in England. She is currently on with climbing the 190 on offer in Wales. She details her adventures on her Instagram page (hike_this_way) which is close to hitting the 10k follower mark. Social media has played a huge part in Bryony’s journey:

“As well as wanting to document these amazing experiences I also didn’t really have anyone else to go hiking with,” says Bryony. “I went to some local rambling groups but I felt a little out of place age wise and I found I couldn't really relate to anyone. On Instagram I quickly discovered hashtags and found other people similar to myself. We were able to chat about routes we’d done and exchange tips. Before long I was invited out on hikes, scrambles and wild camps. I met some really inspirational people and I finally felt like I'd found my tribe; like minded individuals who would go out in all weathers and get up in the middle of the night to go hiking. I’ve also met my best friend through social media. In the two years since I started my page I feel as though I've grown into the person I was always meant to be.”

Bryony wearing our Resurgent Hooded Mid-layer - Photo: Adrian Conchie

But why has Bryony’s specific narrative appealed to so many? She believes it’s because of her self-confessed ‘ordinaryness’:

“I think i’m relatable because i’m just that; an ordinary person who was once a complete novice.

“I love talking to other women who feel like they’ve gone through similar confidence battles and feel overwhelmed by the prospect of getting out into the mountains. I want to show others that they can do it and that heading up the side of a mountain doesn't have to be this daunting thing. Even if you haven’t experienced the outdoors before it’s never too late to start.”

And her recently acquired Mountain Leader status will ensure that Bryony has the tools to show newcomers the ropes:

“When I first heard about the Mountain Leader course I thought it was way beyond me,” she says. “The leaders seemed like superheroes. But when I looked into it I realised that I'd already done the 40 quality mountain days needed to complete the course in my own hiking. My navigation skills were improving all the time and I also realised that through work I was already a qualified Lowland Leader. When the opportunity to do the training came up it was another ‘f*ck it” moment!”

Bryony completed with the training with six friends she’d met through Instagram. Through her career in ecology and her own personal hiking experience, Bryony already had a lot of the basic skills needed to become a Mountain Leader. She officially gained her qualification in July 2020.

“I got so emotional,” she reminisces. “To go from not even knowing where to start to this is unbelievable. The premise of being a Mountain Leader is to promote the outdoors in a safe but fun and enjoyable way. I’d never let my ego prevail and I'm always cautious but the course has helped me fine tune my skills. I have more flexibility when out in the mountains and feel more confident to take a few more risks. My aim is to eventually set up some free meets for beginners, specifically women who want to get into hiking.”

Want to follow Bryony’s adventures?

Find her on Instagram @hike_this_way