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There’s something special about finding people who truly understand your passions, especially in an industry where that connection can feel few and far between. Founded by women, for women, Hind Sight has grown into a supportive and inspiring community centred around deer, land, and sustainable management. From practical training in the Highlands to creating welcoming spaces for women to learn and connect, we caught up with founder Megan to talk about how Hind Sight began, what their Winter Camp is really like, and why building confidence in the countryside matters more than ever.
Hi Megan – Could you tell us a bit more about Hind Sight and why you set it up?
I have worked in the land and deer management sector for over a decade. In this time, I met with many women, in the deerstalking world and adjacent to it, who often were as excited as I was to find another woman with similar interests.
We would also find ourselves discussing the barriers and difficulties that we had faced to get where we were – everything from limited clothing choices to discrimination.
After years of this, in 2019, I felt it was time to cast a net and see how many women were out there, who would wish to meet with one another. Thus Hind Sight was born.
A network by women, for women who are interested in deer and their sustainable management.
Unfortunately, plans for an ambitious 2020 were cut-short by the Covid-19 pandemic, and so Hind Sight remained simply as a well-utilised online peer-support network for women in the sector to join as they found us, in this way it grew organically. Over the next couple of years, I also had two children, which somewhat limited my capacity to organise anything!
However, this year the stars aligned and people and capacity came together, and we were able to organise and run our first Winter Camp.
Your winter camp looked incredible – can you tell us more about what your guests experienced?
Being based in the North Highlands, we wanted to ensure that those who travelled to take part would have a complete experience.
There is more to deer management than just going out and shooting deer – in fact, arguably, that is a tiny part of the whole endeavour! As such, we wanted to ensure attendees could spend time with industry experts to learn about a range of elements.
They spent time with Dr Cathy Mayne learning about habitats and ecology and how deer tie into them. Helen Stammers of Apex Deer Management ran sessions about firearms, on their safe use and handling, helping participants gain confidence and knowledge in using them, in a supportive and judgement-free environment.
We were very kindly supported to deliver deer management training by Robbie and Scotty from Practical Land Management Ltd., in what was truly some of the worst weather we had in the North Highlands all winter!
Last, but most certainly not least, participants were fed and looked after by our on-site host, Lucy Marr, who worked her kitchen magic to provide nourishing and warming meals every day, utilising game meat or foraged foods all week for lunches and dinners.
What has been your best moment / achievement for Hind Sight? And what are your goals over the next few years?
The conclusion of the Winter Camp was quite a special moment for me. It was the culmination of months of planning and organising, and prior to that years of our community growing and supporting one another, so it was exciting to see it all come together and have everyone enjoy their time with us.
Next on the agenda for us is to become a Community Interest Company. Hind Sight isn’t about me or any one woman, it’s about a whole diverse community, and we hope to reflect that. We’re also going to run another Winter Camp and next year a Spring/Summer Camp in a new location. Watch this space!
How did you get into deer management and what do you find most fulfilling about it?
I came to deer management in a round-about kind of way. I have no family connections to it and I ended up going out deerstalking almost by accident whilst volunteering with RSPB Scotland.
After that first time I had a serious re-think about everything I thought I knew about land, wildlife and hunting and decided to re-train in game and wildlife management. I still didn’t quite know what I wanted to do for work long-term, but I knew I wanted it to involve deer.
They’re glorious animals – one we’ve had a connection to since we’ve been able to walk upright. Honestly, one of the most fulfilling elements for me is simply to sit and watch them. I honestly believe if folks were collectively more interested in watching their local deer, rather than obsessing about what the latest sexy rifle calibre is or shooting a bigger buck than the other people in the syndicate, we’d have a healthier and more effective deer management operation in the UK.
Who is Hind Sight for / who could benefit from it?
Hind Sight is a community for any woman with an interest in deer and their sustainable management – whether they have years of experience or none at all. However, we also welcome support from men, we’ve never been about excluding them, our purpose is to include women.
Through providing female-only learning spaces, we’re hoping to benefit women who want to get into deerstalking or deer management but who lack the confidence or opportunity to make that step, we’re also there for those women already involved in and working in the sector who would like to join a community of likeminded women.
It’s not about sitting around the campfire singing kumbaya and holding hands, but about coming together to show the wider sector that there is a need for rifles, clothing and boots that fit women who need tools to do their jobs.
If any members of the Stile community want to find out more / get involved, how can they contact you?
On social media, we’re on Instagram (@women.deer.land) and we have a Youtube channel (@women-deer-land), where you can see our new film from Winter Camp 2026.
We also have a website (www.hindsight.org.uk) where any interested parties can see who we are, what we do, how to support our work, check out our resources (an ever growing section) and where they can go to sign up to our newsletter to keep up to date with what we’re up to.
