Kate: our new Outdoor Chic (Part 2)

Last week I introduced documentary filmmaker, Kate Williams, as the newest member of our Outdoor Chics team, but there was far too much interesting content to put into just one blog. So here’s part two, where Kate tells us more about her favourite rainy day adventures, how to get out if you’re really not feeling it and a little something unexpected…

Do you ever have days where you really don’t want to get out? What gets you going?

All the time. I’m very quick to find excuses, but I know how guilty I feel if I don’t go and how great I feel when I do — so that’s a real motivator to get out. Getting out with friends really helps to keep you on track too. You can’t really bail if your mate is waiting for you outside. Routine is also key — get one and it all becomes so much easier. The first few weeks are tough but once you’ve got that, you’re onto a winner.

What kind of adventures do you like on rainy days?

Surfing’s always good when it’s wet. I mean around here you get pretty bad surf a lot of the time, but it doesn’t really matter if it’s wet and stormy. You just get in there and have fun, because you’re going to get wet anyway. I also love running in the rain — it just makes me feel so epic! If it’s absolutely lashing it down, I just feel like I’m the most extreme person in the world! (chuckles)

Sometimes though, if it’s really stormy, I love just staying in. In the summer I often feel pressure to go out all the time and make the most of the weather all the time. So when it gets to winter, I quite enjoy a really wet stormy afternoon where you can sit with a cup of tea and a good book or movie and enjoy being all cosy and warm.

What are you most excited about being the newest member of Outdoor Chics?

I’m really excited to actually have a reason to put pen to paper and be part of your blog. I find it’s just an awesome way of connecting with others, sharing stories and just getting women excited about getting out there. I’m excited to be a part of a community that’s so supportive, inspirational and really encouraging.

I’m also excited to have another excuse to get out and do more stuff, like ‘Oh yes, I need to go and paddle board this’ or ‘I need to go on another climb’, because I need to blog about it! Maybe I’ll get stuff for free — hmmm…

Got a favourite anecdote or story?

There are too many, but the one that sticks out is when I first saw the Northern Lights. I was working in Northern Siberia and our vehicle had broken down. It was about 7pm and -50 outside. The rest of the crew had gone on to get help, leaving myself and our translator in the broken truck. They’d been gone for about two hours and I was starting to get worried — we had no way of calling them to see where they were, we just had to wait. Then our heater started to pack in. I was trying not to freak out when my translator came back from a toilet trip and said, ‘Kate you have to come out and see the lights’. I went outside and looked up. Green ribbons were dancing across the black sky like waves in the sea — it was utterly amazing, so beautiful, a dream come true. And just like that all my worries melted away, I felt completely calm.

What’s your life ambition?

Simplicity. I don’t want a big house or a car that costs a fortune to run. I want to have a lifestyle that means we can work as little as possible, so we can go out and enjoy the mountains. If that means living in a van or finding a little plot of land and building something really small (like a tiny house with a big shed!) — that’s what I really want. That’s the ambition now — keep life simple — so you don’t have to work all the time to pay for everything. You’ve got little outgoings, so if you want to take off for a year or six months, you can.

Tell us something unexpected about you…

I get scared a lot, which is frustrating, because it often holds me back in my climbing or surfing. But I’m working on it and my hardcore female friends are really helping me out with it. I also love any excuse to dress up. I don’t get many, but if there’s a posh work do or a nice meal, I love dolling up a little.

You recently ran a mountain marathon in the Brecon Beacons. What’s next?

I’ve got a couple of goals for this year. My husband Joe and I are quite focussed on mountains at the moment, so the aim is to get fit and keep fit, so we can move quickly and competently while climbing. I would like to be leading on trad by the end of this year and I’d really like to complete my first ultra marathon. I’m also going to get my mountain leadership award this year. I’ve done the training, so I’m going for the qualification now.

Then my friends Lucy, Sarah and I are going to have a go at the Bob Graham Round in the summer, which is a 77 mile trail running circuit in the Lakes. It’s meant to be done in 24 hours and it takes in something like 66 peaks (might be less though), but we’re going to do it over a weekend and have some fun.

If you missed part one of this interview, read it here.