It will be a far cry from rural Oxfordshire when animal charity worker David Key takes on the Arctic wastes in a month's time.

And, though he's used to seeing all manner of dogs at the Blue Cross animal centre in Burford, it will be the first time he's had to deal with a pack of huskies.

The 38-year-old is one of a four-man team setting out from Baffin Island on a 325km expedition that takes in a trek across sea ice and up into a windswept mountain range.

He said: "We will be living in a mix of tents and timber shacks. Though it is some way from the Pole, it will still be -10C during the day and -25C at night." David, from Ascott-under-Wychwood, works as a building specialist for the charity and is based at the Shilton Road centre, Burford.

He and the others will be reliant on a team of 24 huskies when they set out on April 5.

"I've never worked with them before. The dogs we usually get here have been pets, so it is something entirely different.

"I have done a lot of canoeing and mountaineering and recently cross-country skiing in Scotland, but this is the biggest challenge so far," added Mr Key.

He hopes the expedition will raise through sponsorship a total of £12,000 for an ultra-sound scanner at a hospital in Grimsby.

Story date: Wednesday 10 March

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