SIX Salisbury pupils have taken part in the British Army's "premier" youth outdoor challenge, completing the event last weekend.

The pupils, all from Bishop Wordsworth's School (BWS), completed the 35 mile category of the Exercise Wyvern Tor - also the back drop for the Ten Tors Challenge.

This was the school’s first attempt at the event which takes place every year on Dartmoor in Devon and is a vital high-level military resilience exercise.

The event sees teenagers trek unaided over different 35, 45 or 55 mile routes and encounter some of the toughest terrain and highest peaks in Southern England.

They rely on their navigational skills and carry all their food, water, bedding, tents and other essentials as they go.

It is a feat they must complete as a team and without any help from adults and they must remain entirely self-sufficient, including camping out overnight on the moor.

In all, 2400 youngsters aged between 14 and 19 take part in Ten Tors, with a further 300 youngsters with physical or educational needs taking part in the Jubilee Challenge.

The boys completed the course an hour ahead of their anticipated finish time.

Ollie Bate, the team leader said: “I heard about the challenge and thought it would be quite good fun and so I got a bunch of mates together.

"During training, we sometimes felt a tad isolated as we were the only ones around on the moor, however during the actual event, I was staggered by the number of teams that wished us well, asked us if we were alright and where we were heading as we passed them.”

Others in the team were Jack Pawson, Seb Keyte, Stanley Bell and Sam Thomas.

Ollie added: “We really enjoyed meeting other teams on the way around. It was just an incredible event to be a part of.

"It was very much also a physical challenge for us as the team had varying levels of experience in hill walking, however our training helped us to set a good pace and maintain it throughout the event.

"On behalf of the whole BWS Team, we would like to say a massive thank you to all of the Ten Tors support staff, the Team BWS parents and look forward to seeing Team BWS compete again in this fantastic event.”