Three Sussex students are preparing to take on an expedition across the Scottish Highlands, where they will attempt to climb nine of the country’s highest mountains in just three days.

Theo, from Angmering, will be joined by fellow University of Portsmouth student Eddie and University of Brighton student Yaseen, who hails from Liverpool but is now based in Hove.

The trio, who met while studying on an engineering course at Chichester College, will tackle the challenge from September 8 to 10, traversing two of Scotland’s major mountain ranges.

The expedition is being undertaken in support of Sussex Wildlife Trust, with the students aiming to raise both funds and awareness for the protection of natural environments.

Three Sussex students are preparing to take on an expedition across the Scottish Highlands, where they will attempt to climb nine of the country’s highest mountains in just three days. Photo: Theo Asser.

placeholder image — Three Sussex students are preparing to take on an expedition across the Scottish Highlands, where they will attempt to climb nine of the country’s highest mountains in just three days. Photo: Theo Asser.

Theo has been interested in exploration for around three to four years, beginning with trips across the South Downs before taking on challenges including the Three Peaks earlier this year.

“Because I live in Angmering, which borders the South Downs, I started off there,” he said.

“I’ve done the Three Peaks - that was February of this year - which was amazing because it was snowing. It was gorgeous.”

Eddie has recently been on a backpacking journey through Estonia, while Yaseen described his experience as more casual despite being keen to discover new places.

Theo has been interested in exploration for around three to four years, beginning with trips across the South Downs before taking on challenges including the Three Peaks earlier this year. Photo: Theo Asser.

The idea of turning their interest in exploration into a charity challenge came from one of Theo’s colleagues.

“I currently work in retail, and the community champion at my store kept saying: ‘Well, why don’t you do it as a charity thing?’” he explained.

He says he chose Sussex Wildlife Trust because of his love for the natural environment, with recent wildfires reinforcing the importance of protecting it.

For Yaseen, the expedition offers an opportunity to combine exploration with a physical test.

“It feels adventurous - challenging but achievable,” he said.

“I went to Germany not too long ago, and I did a bit of hiking there. It was steep hills and up above 1,000 metres - I really liked it.”

The group plans to begin with the Lochaber 4,000s, which include Ben Nevis, before heading to the Cairngorms.

Theo estimates that the first part of the journey will take approximately 10 hours, while the Cairngorms route will cover around 40km over two days.

The physical demands are among the main concerns for the trio, with each of them focused on managing their pace, backpack weight and avoiding injury.

“It’s going to be a case of not pushing ourselves too hard,” Theo explained. “When I first started doing these kinds of trips, I definitely pushed myself too hard. I ended up damaging my right Achilles because I brought way too much weight.

“The biggest challenge is going to be avoiding injury and trying not to kill each other by the end.”

The expedition is also aimed at raising awareness for protecting the natural environments the students enjoy exploring.

“I think every young boy loves a bit of getting out in the mud and exploring,” Theo said. “And then it just depends on how you grow up and whether that disappears in the end. But it certainly hasn’t for me, and I think in the case of Yaseen and Eddie it’s the same. We absolutely love getting out into nature and also protecting it.

“Everyone’s got their part to play in protecting the environment, because once we damage it, it will take a lot longer to come back. It’s much easier to burn it down than it is to build it up.”

The Scottish expedition is intended to be the first in a series of increasingly ambitious challenges, with plans including a 100km winter sled-pulling journey through the Scottish Highlands, a crossing of the Greenland Ice Sheet and, eventually, a trek through the Transantarctic Mountains.

Theo described the plans as a long-term ambition, with each expedition aimed at providing experience for the next.

“It’s a long-term plan, because those kinds of trips take arguably more logistical and financial planning than they do actual physical work. And each of those trips is a stepping stone towards proving that you can do every stage.”

The trio will document their Scottish expedition through photography, video and logs, with Theo hoping the material could eventually help attract sponsors for larger projects.

“The hope is that by documenting it through my photography and videography, which I’ve been doing since I was about 14, that we can attract sponsors. A polar expedition can cost upwards of 50 grand.”

For Yaseen, completing all nine mountains is not necessarily the only measure of success.

“The actual trip is what will make it good. So even if I didn’t get to that last mountain, I’d still be happy.”