The trailblazing deer stalker busting myths and breaking down stereotypes

Megan Rowland, a deer manager from the Highlands, was chosen as the overall winner of the INEOS Grenadier Countryside Champion Award 2022, coordinated by GunsOnPegs. The judging panel, which consisted of key figures from across the rural community, were unanimous in their view that Megan is a worthy winner, embodying not only the award’s aim to highlight the impact of unsung rural heroes but also the ‘spirit and grit’ of the INEOS Grenadier, the award’s sponsor.

Spirit and Grit

The judging panel - which included representatives from INEOS Grenadier, GunsOnPegs, Countryside Alliance, Game and Wildlife Conservation Trust, Knight Frank Rural, Country Land and Business Association and Fieldsports Journal - were particularly impressed by Megan’s strong communication skills and her tireless championing of sustainable deer and land management in the highlands and beyond. They also acknowledged her support and encouragement of women and girls in the rural sector, leading by example and breaking down stereotypes in a traditionally male-dominated industry, feeling that she was someone who could inspire others into action.

Reaching new audiences

Using her personal blog and social channels she has built a platform from which to document her life as a deer manager and make the case for hunting as a conservation tool. Her prolific twitter feed and thoughtful writing has led to numerous appearances in the media, including on BBC Scotland, BBC Radio Scotland, the Into the Wild podcast and regular columns for Shooting Times. She has also supported the Rural Youth Project and Women in Wellies with a view to encourage more women into the rural sector, and launched ‘Hind Sight’, an initiative to provide women with an interest in deer management with an open and supportive environment to learn more.

Megan was judged to embody the true spirit of the INEOS Grenadier

What they said

Upon receiving the news that the judges has chosen her, Megan commented: 

I’m surprised and delighted to have been named as INEOS Grenadier Countryside Champion. Since becoming actively involved in deer and countryside management over a decade ago I’ve always tried to be honest and open about what we do - and the good that comes of it. This award, for me, is a recognition that the more we talk about what we do and tell our stories the better.

Toby Ecuyer, Head designer of The Grenadier and a keen game shot and fly fisherman, was full of praise for Megan’s tenacity and passion, commenting:

Megan struck a particular chord with the Grenadier team. We felt that her honest and unconventional route resonated strongly with many of the values and experiences embedded in the Grenadier. Swimming against the tide is rarely easy, however, doing so whilst encouraging others to question their own view point, educate and make a living at the same time is nothing short of extraordinary. 

We are delighted to recognise the grit and rigour Megan has demonstrated, a very worthy winner. Congratulations!

James Horne, Chairman of the judges on the day, and Chairman of GunsOnPegs was very pleased that the panel had decided upon such a worthy winner, saying:

The INEOS Grenadier Countryside Champion award was launched because we knew there were individuals out there that the countryside should be very proud of, they simply needed unearthing. Through the nominations process, we have found Megan who sets such a fantastic example to so many. We can only hope that by winning this award, it helps to encourage others to follow in her footsteps. 

Vegetarian turned deer manager

At 18, Megan had wanted to pursue a career in conservation, going so far as to begin a degree in environmental science. However, after 18 months of study something didn’t feel right, so she dropped out and began volunteering in the conservation sector, including stints with GWCT and, notably, the RSPB.

Perhaps ironically, it was her boss at the RSPB who gave Megan her first deer stalking experience. “I had developed an interest in integrated land use in the highlands, and the relationships between farming, forestry and fieldsports,” she told me over the phone. “And I realised that I needed a better understanding of deer management and fieldsports in general, and their role in land management.” A passing remark to her boss led to her first ever stalk, and Megan had found her path.

Writing in The Field in 2019 she said: “The experience of my first stalk changed my outlook completely. It is cliché but I was taken aback by how clean the process was, how small a part in the day the actual shot took, how quickly the beast went from field to food chain, and the insight into the deer and their place in the landscape. I realised I was hooked and wanted to learn more.”

On the phone she explained that from here she began to further embed herself into the fieldsports world through beating, and even working as an underkeeper on a pheasant shoot, before realising that deer management was the path she wanted to take, and signed up for a two-year Game and Wildlife Managment course, which included a placement on an estate in Sutherland, where she guided stalking clients for the next four years, before joining NatureScot as a deer manager in 2020.

Busting myths and breaking down doors

However, not content with merely doing the job, throughout her journey Megan has been sure to use her personal blog and her Twitter and Instagram accounts to not only document her life as a deer and land manager, but to educate and inform the wider public.

“The fieldsports sector does such a lot of good,” she told me, “but it has an image problem. It is a very emotive topic, and a lot of the good work that goes on gets overwhelmed and lost in the negativity. I want to help highlight the habitat and land management work that goes on every day through the fieldsports world.”

She also felt that as a non-typical deer manager, she had a unique point-of-view and voice, adding: “Coming from a non-fieldsports background gives you a different perspective and narrative - people pay attention when there’s a different voice, and my environmental and conservation background also help to get people paying attention.”

Women in wellies

Her vociferousness on social media has led to numerous appearances on TV, radio, podcasts and in the printed press, as well as public speaking appearances, discussing deer and land management. She has also worked with the Rural Youth Project and the ‘women in wellies’ programme, which seeks to encourage women and girls into the rural sector.

On the final point, Megan is passionate. Predictably, her path through the traditionally male-dominated fieldsports sector has come with detractors and doubters, and she is committed to showing that despite the heavy lifting, bad weather and occasional isolation, there is a route into this world for women and girls. “It is a hard field to get into if you can’t see people who don’t look like you doing it,” she says, “and there’s lots of barriers to entry.” 

In attempting to break down those barriers, she started her own initiative, Hind Sight, an open and supportive environment for women of all experience levels who are interested in deer stalking, deer management, and managing habitats within the areas they stalk.

Runners Up

Second place was awarded to Gloucestershire beef farmer Ian Boyd, whose 25 year efforts to farm in closer harmony with nature and to restore the depleted soils and damaged biodiversity impressed the judges.

The judging panel awarded third place to Bob 'Crayfish Bob’ Ring. They described Bob’s one-man-mission to rid the UK’s rivers, lakes and canals of the destructive and invasive American signal claw crayfish and advocacy for ‘consumption as conservation’ as inspiring and ambitious.

Outstanding Contribution

In recognition of the volume of nominations received, the panel also took the decision to hand an “Outstanding Contribution” award to Jeremy Clarkson and Caleb Cooper. Although the INEOS Grenadier Countryside Champion Award aimed to honour unsung heros, the judges felt the Amazon Prime pair had made an enormous impact within the countryside and beyond, bringing the realities of modern farming to a wide audience.