After a long career in education, information technology and academic publishing, Jacquetta became interested in long-distance walking and trekking. After completing the West Highland Way, her first long walk, in 1998 she progressed to Mount Kilimanjaro, which she has since summited four times by different routes. She is a member of the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild and in 2016 won its Award for Excellence (jointly with Max Landsberg) for their jointly authored guidebook Trek to Everest.