Rather, the biggest challenge facing Emily would be tracking down the right clothes she needed to do it.
As one of the 45% of UK women above a size 16, simply walking into an outdoor specialist shop to pick up the plus size dry trousers and waterproof jacket she needed, was out of the question.
With larger sizes rarely available to buy off the shelf, she’d either have to make do with men’s clothes in sizes that wouldn’t fit terribly well, or endure tiresome hours of scrolling the internet in the hope of finding someone, somewhere who might just stock something in her size.
That, she says, is a major obstacle that can leave size 16 plus women who crave adventure believing that the great outdoors may not be for them.
The other barrier, adds Emily, is that with many outdoor adventures focusing on going further, faster, higher or longer – and more often than not, featuring the achievements of men – women like her were often left wondering where on earth they might fit in.
Emily and her friend Lisa’s canoe adventure has been captured in short film which shows the pair in glorious Hebridean scenery paddling their bright red canoe, sharing the load as they drag and carry it from one loch to the next and enjoying each other’s company camping in the wilderness.
There is gruelling hard work as what appeared on their maps to be rivers that could be easily navigated by canoe turned out to be too rocky and shallow, leaving no alternative but to carry their heavy load for miles.
Alongside are scenes of blissful tranquillity as they raise the sail on their canoe and steer it – a bright red dot in a landscape of muted shades and glassy lochs – plus a few breathless and bumpy rides as they tackle fast flowing waters.
Made by filmmaker Roxanna Barry, Capsized – which is now touring venues around Scotland – highlights the issues faced by women like Emily who are a certain size, and the magical moments that can come when they shut down the nagging fear that the outdoors is for other, thinner, people.
The Isle of Lewis trip was one that particularly appealed to Emily, a co-founder of Every Body Outdoors, a group devoted to highlighting the need for clothing, equipment and greater visibility of plus size people enjoying the outdoors.
“I am passionate about representation and seeing plus size bodies doing things,” she explains.
“When we began researching making Capsized, we realised there were only five films out there that feature plus size women.
“Yet 45% of women in the UK are size 16 or over.
“So, you have 45% of women who are struggling to access the technical equipment and clothing they need to have an adventure in the outdoors.”
Outdoor films depicting “thin men” on great adventures that take weeks to complete also left her – a busy mum with a job – also feeling disconnected.
To shatter the image that outdoors adventures are only for thin chaps with plenty of spare time on their hands, Emily set about making her canoe idea a reality.
First though, came the tricky challenge of finding a pair of trousers and jacket which would protect her properly from the water and, crucially, fit.
Her friend Lisa could easily try on different styles and sizes and buy her kit from an outdoor shop.
Emily, however, faced hours of searching online before finally having to have her kit made specially to fit.
“I wanted dry trousers because I’d be spending a lot of time paddling through rivers, pulling the canoe over bog I didn’t want to be sitting in wet clothes all day long,” she says.
“Men’s trousers might be an option for some women who are tall and slim, but I’m short and pear-shaped.
“By the time I got up to an XXL in a man’s size, it’s assumed you’re a foot taller.
“When I’m wearing a man’s jacket, the underarm area will be bulky, there’s extra fabric on the top of the sleeves, and the shoulders are too big.
“If you are a size 22, you can’t just walk into a shop in the UK because the chances of finding something in your size is minimal. There might be one coat and certainly no choice.
“There’s the extra effort involved in finding what you are looking for, and there’s a safety issue too.
“If you can’t get waterproof clothing that fits, how can you safely go up the hills in Scotland on anything other than a glorious day?”
None of which was a surprise for Emily, who as a size 18 teenager at high school developed a deep loathing for sport and seemed unlikely to embrace a future life of outdoor activity.
“Gym knickers, short skirts for hockey and cross country – the competitive side of sport as it was presented to me in 1990s at school was a total turn off,” she says. “How is that doing to teach you that moving is joyful and good for you and has so many benefits?
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That changed at university, when she joined an outdoors club and found she was more than able to enjoy activities she had thought were not for her.
She went on to make a promise to herself not to fall into the trap of thinking that her size should be a reason not to give something a go.
“People who are plus size often tend to put things off as something their imaginary future self will do,” says Emily.
“I made a promise to myself that I would not do that.”
Dressing appropriate for outdoor activities, whether hill walking or on the water, have always been a problem for both men and women, she adds.
And there has been some progress, Emily and the Every Body Outdoors group, which runs regular walking and outdoor events in Scotland, say brands have yet to fully cater for the needs of larger women.
“Things are improving but we want to draw attention to the way it impacts people’s ability to access and connect with nature and to get outdoors to enjoy the mental and physical health benefits.
“If you can’t easily buy the right coat or a sleeping bag, then how are you going to do it? It prevents people from even starting.
“We are also saying to brands you can’t just make bigger sizes and expect them to sell well because your current audience is not that size.
“People have been systematically excluded.
“They might make clothes up to size 22, but if visually the people on their website are all a size ten, then there’s less likelihood of me looking and checking what sizes are available.
“There’s a lot of community building to do but it then creates a chain effect.”
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Equipped with her custom-made outdoor clothing, Emily and Lisa set off for the middle of Lewis and a south westerly route from Achmore leading to Callanish made up almost equally of land and water.
The hope had been to spend most of the time paddling and sailing. But, adds Emily: “We did a lot more portaging than we expected,” says Emily.
“Portaging is hard work because you have to cover the distance three times – first take your bags and leave them and then go back for canoe, and it’s mostly bog and heather that you’re walking through.
“We couldn’t find information about anyone else having canoed in the area so looking at aerial photos on Google, we thought there’d be around 700m of portaging in the whole trip.
“But what looked like rivers were actually full of rocks.
“The first day was 1.5km of portaging which took ages and we didn’t know where we were going.
“By 5pm that day we were hoping it would get easier because if whole 35km was like last 5 km this would be an absolute epic trip!”
The rewards for their hard work – captured in the film – show the pair in a stunning and almost otherworldly landscape.
“There was something very lovely and magical about being in the canoe,” she adds. “It’s silent and there’s something about sweeping through this glassy water.
“For a lot of the trip we were dawdling along, stopping off at the little islands to sit and wonder how many people ever get to do this.
“It wasn’t about conquering something, going further, faster or higher.
“It was just about two women getting away together, challenging themselves and having fun.”
Capsized has been selected for Kendal Mountain Festival, London Mountain Film Festival, and won ‘Best Inspirational Film’ at Walkerwater, a Canadian watersports festival. It is being shown later this month at Edinburgh and Inverness branches of Alpkit. For details go to https://www.eventbrite.com/cc/capsized-film-tour-alpkit-3781943
