Our first morning in Bastion starts early with a trip to visit the Royal Dragoon Guards based here.

From Bastion, the RDG patrol in Vikings, a nippy armoured vehicle that is flexible enough to drive in villages, to protect the engineers building a road from Lashkar Gah to Gereshk. The road, called Route Trident, will be more resistant to the laying of IEDs.

The RDG Vikings have had a tough time during this tour, and losses include Bridlington lad Matthew Stenton, who is still sorely missed by his friends.

Other troopers on their way out again have also been hit by improvised explosive devices (IEDs). It's all part of the job and they go out again.

Next we visit the North East and Yorkshire gunners, who use accurate guns to support troops on the ground from a distance. They mainly fire smoke grenades to block the view and enable troops to get away when there's a threat. It's part of a strategy to win hearts and minds in the conflict, using deterrent as its main weapon, and force when absolutely necessary.

This is where this war varies from so many others in the experience of the British Army. It is not an old-fashioned war, meeting the enemy on the front line. It's not accurate to speak of a front line. It is a 360 degree battlefield. Outside the camp boundaries is known as "the ground". There the enemy is disguised as civilians, and uses improvised methods of attack.

While their technology may not be so advanced, they fight fiercely and are clever, evolving their tactics as the allied forces improve theirs in a progressive game of cat and mouse.

The troops interact with the local people, giving them leftovers from their ration packs and the locals sometimes offer them food and cold drinks. In different areas they're more hostile.

Sometimes usually friendly locals are absent or standoffish and that signals insurgents could be around. The Afghan National Army and interpreters accompany some patrols to spot cultural abnormalities. Farmers ploughing at the wrong time of year are likely to be up to something more sinister.

The Brigade Reconnaissance Force (BRF) is selected from the best of the best and is jokingly called inside the regiment as the Brigadier's Special Forces. In other wars performing the reconnaissance of equipment, in this theatre they collect information. They meet the national locals and are invited in for chai, a sweet clear tea, while they discuss their needs and concerns.