Susan Blunt

Adventurous Ewe is our small, family-run adventure travel business, established in 2011 and based in Eryri, North Wales. We create trekking, cycling and multi-activity journeys across the UK and overseas, bringing people together to take on challenges, experience places through local eyes and discover what they can achieve with the right support. That support starts with a conversation. You speak with those of us who design, recce and host your trip, so we can understand what matters to you. Whether you’re taking on your first trek, fundraising for a charity or bringing colleagues together, we help you prepare and feel part of the team. For me, the best moments come when people encourage each other through a challenge or our local guides share something of their own lives. Small groups and longstanding relationships make those connections possible. Those relationships matter here at home, too. We employ North Wales leaders & staff, support local businesses Crib Goch Outdoors, Snowdonia Gear Repairs, local accommodation providers, caterers and vehicle hire businesses through our “partner-sheeps”. Local company Artychoke is also rebuilding our website. This care for people and places underpins “Big Adventures, Small Footprint” and achieving the Travelife Partner Award in sustainable travel. What drives me is building a business where a shared adventure means something to everyone involved, from the people taking part to those whose knowledge and welcome make it possible.

My team is built on a simple belief: when people feel supported and their skills are valued, they achieve more together. My husband, Jim Young, born and bred in Conwy, founded Adventurous Ewe in 2011. I joined in 2018 to grow the business. In 2025, Sal, from Corwen, became our first full-time employee and Operations Manager. Together with our leaders, we’ve grown from 14 Snowdonia events in our first year to 68 this year, a 386% increase, offering 12 experiences in Eryri. Many freelance leaders have been with us for years, while new recruits bring fresh skills. Women now make up 38% of our leaders, up from 24% last year. Abi Senior joined our Mountain Leader Trainee Programme for women and is now a qualified Winter Mountain Leader, leading UK and overseas trips. Making adventure more accessible takes listening, planning and teamwork. Together we planned and delivered James’s Kilimanjaro trek, adapting support around his needs as a wheelchair user, and Amanda’s ascent of Yr Wyddfa, 12 years after her spinal injury. I led our work to achieve the Travelife Partner Award, bringing the team together to meet responsible tourism criteria. At Conwy RNLI, my roles as media officer and the station’s first female Helm include recruiting, training and developing crew. Since I joined, female crew numbers have grown from 2 to 8, supported by the whole station. For me, success is bringing people together, building skills, connection and the belief in what they can achieve.

My journey began in Australia, where organising fundraising events showed me what people could achieve together. Over seven years, I helped raise more than A$1 million for St Vincent’s Heart & Lung Transplant Unit, supporting the first da Vinci robotic surgery unit in New South Wales, opened in 2005. After moving to the UK after this, I worked at disability charity John Grooms, then led the Challenge Events Team at Macmillan Cancer Support, with an annual fundraising target of £4.6 million. Supporting people taking on challenges for deeply personal reasons taught me how determination grows when someone listens, prepares and encourages you. Volunteering at the Australian Reptile Park and Zoological Society of London taught me how our actions affect wildlife and habitats, a responsibility that shapes our adventures today. Four years leading sales, marketing & partnerships at Charity Challenge London before joining my husband, Jim, at Adventurous Ewe in 2018. Growing our North Wales business has taken persistence, difficult decisions and constant learning. Leading our work to achieve the Travelife Partner Award helped turn our sustainable tourism values into everyday practice. Five Kilimanjaro summits and a 5,508-nautical-mile ocean yacht race taught me resilience and reliance of strong teams. Filming More Than a Mountain on our all-female Yala Peak expedition honouring Junko Tabei gave me another way to encourage people. Its international recognition means those women’s stories are reaching far beyond the mountain and inspiring many. After 7 years volunteering and training with Conwy RNLI, I became the station’s first female Helm in July 2026. It is a responsibility made possible by the crew who gave their time and knowledge to help me progress. These five nominations are humbling. Australia gave me my beginnings; North Wales is home. What connects every chapter is bringing people together, caring for the world around us and helping others see what is possible.