Getting Started in the outdoor industry I Sam Phillips | Outdoor Instructor

Sam has been working in the Outdoor Industry for 7 years.

She loves all things adventure, lives in Swanage and has an 8 month old baby called Jack.

How did you start work in the outdoors?

A season at PGL when I was younger gave me an intro. Then I travelled for a while. Then I discovered Outdoor Instructor Training which gave me the tools & opportunities I needed to progress.

Why do you stay working in the outdoors?

What’s better than fresh air, being outside and jumping in the sea

Why not do something you love? There’s so much variety in the great outdoors – work is never dull.

Also my favourite colours are blue and green… sea, sky, grass & trees!

What was the first activity you got into?

Camping and hiking – with family and friends.

Why?

To explore new places. And I like reaching the top of stuff.

Best places you’ve worked?

Land & Wave – you can’t beat the Jurassic coast and I like working with kind people.

Best landscapes you’ve travelled through?

That’s a tough one; the beaches and rain forests of Costa Rica are pretty special, the islands and snorkelling off Belize, the grandeur of Yosemite, the fruit in Hawaii…

Favourite things to do?

Jump in the sea (when it’s warm), explore new places, hike & scramble up things, eat lots of chocolate, eat an inordinate amount of melon – I’m a bit of an expert on the ‘perfect fruit’, cantaloupe for preference but I’m not fussy.

What is adventure?

Anything you want it to be – packing a bag and heading out for a wild camp, doing something new and exciting, exploring new places. Trying chilli chocolate. 

Having a baby. Meeting someone for the first time. Something new. Something challenging.

Adventure tips? Food. Kit. Tricks?

Homemade flapjack for fuel, can’t beat it. Love a thermos. Change robes are essential for getting undressed in the great outdoors. 

Get a van (but still pack a tent for when you want to climb into the hills). Always carry a bit more food than is necessary and have lots of back up chocolate. 

Ladies – revel in weeing in the wild, it’s liberating & necessary.

Lessons learnt from mistakes?

Do not try a full day climbing after no sleep and a very long drive. You may end up with no skin left on your elbows and knees,

Lessons learnt from other people’s mistakes?

Always wear something under your wet-suit…

What to do?

Have fun. Be kind.

What not to do?

Leave a blister – get it covered!

Land & Wave trains Outdoor Instructors 

Questions by Land & Wave.

Words by Sam Phillips.

10 June 2020 by Owen Senior