The Adventure Element Ltd

08/03/2026

This International Women’s Day, we’re celebrating the incredible women who help to bring the magic of who we are, who journey with us, lead us, inspire us and represent us.

Our leaders: From leading Duke of Edinburgh Award expeditions to supporting on charity events, their character, skillset, experience, and leadership make a real difference every single day.

Our participants: With DofE expeditions seeing more girls than boys sign up, we have had the pleasure of welcoming more girls on expedition than ever before. Their ambition, problem-solving, enthusiasm and determination is admirable. Again on our events, we have seeing an increase in women participants across the board and what an enriched, brilliantly fun and engaging experience it is to have so many women at our start lines.

Our partners: The charities and corporate teams we are lucky enough to work with and provide adventures for have an amazing array of women that are critical to the success of each and every adventure, encouraging teams, building connections and helping others to experience the outdoors.

To the brilliant women on our team, in our lives, and out there living the adventure.

07/03/2026

Next up in our International Women’s Day series, we hear from Kaz as she chats about the adventures she embarks on and how her feelings around participating in a male dominated sport changed followed a particular ride in the hills of Tuscany.

Kaz is a strength & conditioning coach, swimming guide, event safety, and outdoor instructor. Used to balancing a busy active life, she also finds time to hit the trail on her gravel bike and compete in races to spur on her training. Kaz leads on our DofE expeditions and is a fantastic role model for our participants to interact with.

06/03/2026

Next up for International Women's Day, we heard from Alex who is busy working on her Winter Mountain Leader training. We asked Alex about her vast experiences in the outdoors: her proudest moments, the challenges she has faced and how she has overcome those challenges.

“Career-wise, my proudest moment has been a long journey, leading me to be a full-time freelance instructor. From apprenticeship in 2001, to leaving my current part time job at an outdoor centre next month. My dream was always to have the flexibility and skills to work in a variety of places. These days, I see my job as a way of enabling and empowering people to try new things, push their limits and help them to get comfortable with being uncomfortable.

No stranger to setbacks, in 2013, an accident that almost took my lower leg essentially changed my outlook on life and, after 15 years away, redirected me back to the UK and into outdoor education. Now I understand I’m happiest when ‘playing out’, meeting people and experiencing different cultures. I have followed this way of life, choosing to push myself in new sports, gain qualifications, travel and mingle even though this regularly puts me right out of my comfort zone!

One of the hardest challenges has been repeated inner dialogue that I’m not experienced enough, too old, not knowledgeable enough, too fat, not ‘good’ enough. How do I manage all this inner turmoil? Well, in a variety of ways, but mostly by just getting on with things even though I might not feel like it at the time. I have NEVER regretted time spent walking in the hills or going for a ride on my bike. However, I ALWAYS regret time spent procrastinating or bimbling around the house when outside it's glorious or even when it’s not so glorious!

When the mind's dialogue gets hard, I have learned that taking a moment to realise that I’ve been here before and remember the suffering this has caused in the past. To calm myself enough to understand that I am not alone in these feelings of inadequacy.

People can generally relate and empathise, having similar thoughts themselves. Through openness it’s easy to see that regardless of our stories, strengths and knowledge we all have fears, doubts and insecurities. Showing up, doing our best, feeling the fear and doing it anyway, makes us all incredibly brave and indeed enough!”

05/03/2026

The countdown is on!
Very much looking forward to welcoming Eden Valley Hospice fundraisers to the trail...

05/03/2026

In time for International Women's Day we wanted to give a shoutout to some of the amazing female leaders we are lucky enough to have work with us. Lou is a much-loved instructor on our DofE expeditions, a mountain leader both overseas and in the UK, an avid hiker and a talented artist.

Lou kindly chatted about her favourite kind of solo adventures here in the UK and further afield as well as the wellbeing benefits of being outside.

Often found with a sketch book in her rucksack, being outdoors also gives Lou a chance to be creative in a natural setting.

Fancy joining Lou on an arty explore? Save a space on her upcoming session over in Keswick... one of our leaders is already signed up!
https://guidedoutdooradventures.co.uk/product/walk-and-sketch-coniston-black-lake-district/

04/03/2026

Continuing our International Women's Day celebrations: Melissa kindly took the time to share her experiences of working in the outdoors with likeminded women and her biggest achievement in the adventure industry. Melissa is an experienced mountain leader in the UK and overseas, who we are lucky to have on plenty of our events. In her spare time she keeps busy with trail and fell running, cycling and skiing.

“My biggest outdoor achievement is passing my ML, it gave me the skills and confidence to operate safely under pressure in the outdoors. It enabled me to embark on solo exploits either on foot, on a bike or in water, and gave me the opportunity for UK adventures, world travel, and working alongside some of the kindest people.

Alongside my degree, I was able to teach outdoors and pass those skills and experiences onto young people, so they could experience those magical places for themselves. It changes how young people see the world and how they relate to one another and they realise what matters is trust, reliability and shared responsibility which allows for personal growth. It's been a privilege to be a part of those experiences.

The best part of working with likeminded women in the outdoors is the ease and quiet empowerment with no ego. It's shared collaborative fun with skilled, grounded, capable women you're not in competition with. While working with inspirational women who care and who have compassion and competence, we are able to create something meaningful in a warm, supportive atmosphere. Those experiences are priceless and stay with us for a long time.”

04/03/2026

We love working with local charities to raise awareness and provide unforgettable triathlon experiences for participants... making a difference while doing something you love.

Who is coming along?

🧡 Do something incredible for children and families who need our care

This May you can spend a brilliant day in the Lake District, all to raise funds for Eden Valley Hospice and Jigsaw, Cumbria's only Children's Hospice.

Your team can complete the whole course as a team or choose the relay - cycling, paddle and hike amongst the stunning backdrop of Ullswater and Helvellyn.

We can't wait to cheer you on for a brilliant and unforgettable day!
Register now and turn your miles into moments that matter.
🔗 www.jigsawhospice.org/support-us/events/bikes-boats-boots-2026/

📅 Saturday 9 May

03/03/2026

With International Women’s Day coming up this weekend we have been catching up with our female leaders who make up our experienced team on expeditions and events. We are incredibly proud of the team we work with and couldn’t miss out on the opportunity to showcase some of the talented, truly fantastic women in our ranks.

Starting off with Nao! Nao has worked with us for quite some time on our DofE expeditions and our charity events. A mountain leader, keen photographer and all round enthusiastic explorer. She kindly took the time to answer a few questions to help encourage more women in the outdoors.

26/02/2026

Could The Duke of Edinburgh's Award help towards tackling the mental health crisis in young people? Read our latest blog by our DofE manager Alex Knill.

With the rise of major depression in teens, the search for the source and solution are hot debate. And rightly so.
We see the firsthand positive impact of providing young people with an opportunity to:
-Experience the outdoors
-Have a safe environment to challenge themselves
-Learn skills without the pressure of comparison to others
-Have a sense of belonging outside of the academic structure of school

| The Duke of Edinburgh's Award |
https://www.theadventureelement.co.uk/posts/could-the-duke-of-edinburgh-s-award-help-tackle-the-mental-health-crisis-in-young-people

24/02/2026

The Duke of Edinburgh's Award turns 70 this year!

An immense amount of young people have embarked on adventurous expeditions in 70 years and The Adventure Element is proud to be a provider that enables plenty more to keep on experiencing the DofE journey.

With less than a month before our first DofE expeditions of 2026 head out, we are already excited to meet the young people that will be challenging themselves, developing skills, and getting a taste for adventure that hopefully stays with them for life.

| The Duke of Edinburgh's Award |

We’re turning 70! 🎉Since 1956, the DofE has empowered young people to discover lifelong self-belief. As we celebrate this milestone, we’re staying true to o...

16/02/2026

When the calls comes in, you have to go!

Last minute ‘fast and light‘ dash along the Helvellyn Edges on Friday evening before the thaw hit for our MD Ben Keen and his buddy Ed. Sublime conditions and great company.