Twelve cadets from 485 (Harborne and Quinton) Sqn accompanied by three members of staff, travelled to the Malvern Hills on 30 th July to take part in their Duke of Edinburgh's bronze expedition.

The cadets gathered at the Sqn headquarters on the Saturday morning and following a last kit check, all the cadets were transported to the start of the first days walking. The cadets were split up into two groups and following a full and detailed brief given by FS Richard Coates, the cadets started out on their first legs.

Saturday was very hot and the cadets were soon drinking copious amounts of water. The Malvern Hills were very busy with other walkers, but few of them were carrying the kit that the cadets were carrying, in fact most were just out for a gentle stroll!

The first days walk ended at the Malvern Outdoor centre which is situated in West Malvern . This excellent facility provided the cadets with all the facilities they needed for the night. The cadets were soon cooking their food on the stoves; I don't think any Michelin stars were given out on the evening!

Sunday dawned and again it was a hot and sunny start to the day. Following breakfast the cadets broke camp and set out on their second days walk.

The cadets all arrived back at the Sqn on Sunday afternoon and all were rather tired, to say the least!

Fg Off Simon Jennings , OIC 485 Sqn commented “Firstly, I would like to thank FS Coates and CI Peter Coates for organising the weekend. The Malvern Outdoor Centre is a fantastic facility and I know it was a welcome sight to all the cadets on the Saturday night! Thanks also to CI Richard Mcgeachie for attending at the weekend, his help was greatly appreciated. Secondly, I would like to thank all the cadets for their performance throughout all of the weekend. There were no major map reading errors and everybody worked as a team. The weather was hot and it's difficult to carry all the kit they needed, but FS Coates tells me that he has no problem in passing all the cadets in relation to this expedition”.