A TEAM from Ilkley have successfully completed a 10,000 mile adventure to deliver an ambulance to Mongolia.

One Steppe Beyond - made up of 24-year-old twin brothers Matthew and William Wild and their friends 23-year-olds Megan Hampton and Oliver Hayes - represented Yorkshire in the 2016 Mongolia Charity Rally.

The Mongolia Charity Rally is an epic 10,000 mile pan-continental roadtrip for charity across three mountain ranges, five deserts and many barren and inhospitable lands.

The team who met at Ilkley Grammar School purchased and prepared a 4x4, and on July 8 set of from Ilkley, to drive it 10,000 miles to Mongolia to deliver vehicle to registered charity Go Help in Ulaanbaatar, the capital of Mongolia.

The trip took them through Brussels, south east through Hungary, Serbia and Bulgaria to Istanbul. Olly Hayes said: "Not everything went quite to plan; as we entered Istanbul our truck started to leak brake fluid. It's not easy to drive in Istanbul at the best of times, even with working brakes, so were very relieved to find some local mechanics keen to help."

After following the Black Sea through Turkey, narrowly missing the coup, Matt and the team made their way through the mountains in Georgia and the flats of Azerbaijan to the Caspian Sea. Matt Wild said: "We crossed the sea on an old German cargo ship, however due to high winds the 14 hour crossing in fact took three days. This was more than enough time for cabin fever to take hold."

Once docked in Turkmenistan the team followed the old Silk Road through Uzbekistan, Kyrgyzstan and Kazakhstan, stopping at some of the oldest cities in the world. Megan Hampton said:"As we headed East the temperature climbed above 40°C whilst the quality of roads and driving declined fast. By Turkmenistan camels and goats were among the latest obstacles in the road."

On arrival in Ulaanbaatar the team handed over the keys their 4x4 to registered charity GoHelp. The truck will now begin its next adventure serving as an off-road ambulance, providing access to primary healthcare for some of the poorest communities in rural Mongolia and helping to meet the country's current 20 per cent shortfall in ambulances.