Soldiers from the Honourable Artillery Company have their sights set on becoming the first mixed-gender British Army regular and reserve team to scale Mount Everest.
As this issue hit desks the eight-strong outift were tackling a series of acclimatisation climbs ahead of their summit attempt at the end of the month. A gruelling training regime also saw them conquer Nepal's 7,126m Himlung Himal last November, the first service outfit to do so.
In addition, the venture has seen the soldiers collecting samples of microplastics as part of a world-wide study into how the substances travel and impact fragile ecosystems.
Expedition leader, Maj Simon Du Boulay, said the experience so far had been "extremely enjoyable, but undeniably arduous".
"We're proud to contribute to the global understanding of environmental challenges and are looking forward to the most demanding leg of our journey" he added.
