Marines head out on patrol during training exercises at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center. The mountainous terrain prepares Marines for Afghanistan’s cold, snowy winters, rugged landscape where communication is difficult and high altitudes where breathing is labored and the trajectory of bullets is difficult to gauge. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
A Marine practices rock climbing near Leavitt Meadows in the Sierra Nevada. Members of the 4th Civil Affairs Group and 1st Combat Engineers Battalion were at the facility learning mountain warfare skills. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Marines cross a snowy creek on their way back to base after a training exercise. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Marines shave in a meadow while on a training mission at the Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center. The center encompasses 46,000 mountainous acres ideal for preparing for warfare at medium and high altitudes such as in Afghanistan. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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Marines have their gear packed before marching back to Pickel Meadow to conclude a training exercise. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Marines load water onto a truck as their unit packs up. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Marines who will eventually be sent to Afghanistan load trucks with supplies at their Sierra Nevada training center, whose mountainous conditions mimic that of Afghanistan. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
Marine Sgt. Timothy Brookshire, left, and Pfc. Will Cornell, members of the 4th Civil Affairs Group, work on mapping coordinates as they train for deployment to Afghanistan at the Mountain Warfare Training Center in the Sierra Nevada. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
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Marines hike back to their base in Pickel Meadow after land navigation exercises. (Brian Vander Brug / Los Angeles Times)
