Soldiers Patrolling the Countryside Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya Province Afghanistan

Photos by Staff Sgt. Andrew Smith

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U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Icar Morales, from Woodbridge, N.J., walks up a mountain during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Morales is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Spc. Joshua Smith, from Plant City, Fl., walks past Afghan farmers during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Smith is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Zachary Adkins, from Sweetland, W.Va., rests during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Adkins is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Spc. Adrian Rosas, from Brownsville, Texas, walks past a group of Afghan men during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Rosas is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Kevin Jewell, right, from Alamogordo, N.M., talks to his sergeants to determine the best route during a patrol near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Jewell is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Spc. Scott Walker, from Elkin, N.C., walk past a group of Afghan boys during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Walker is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Zachary Adkins, from Sweetland, W.Va., picks up his rifle and prepares to continue walking during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Adkins is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

An Afghan man on horseback watches as U.S. Army Soldiers and Afghan Border Policemen cross a log bridge during a patrol near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. The Soldiers are deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Zachary Adkins, from Sweetwater, W.Va., walks across a log bridge during a patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. Adkins is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Jose Badillo, left, from Anchorage, Ak., and Spc. Joshua Smith, from Plant City, Fl., rest during a patrol with their platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. The Soldiers are deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Soldiers and Afghan Border Policemen walk along a mountain trail during a patrol near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 13, 2009. The Soldiers are deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Staff Sgt. Antonio Rosales, from San Antonio, Texas, jumps on a suspension bridge to make it wobble while on a dismounted patrol near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. Rosales, and his platoon, was searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. Rosales is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army 1st Lt. Kevin Jewell, from Alamogordo, N.M., conducts a dismounted patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. Jewell is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Kyle Brown, from Pendleton, Or., patrols through a village with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. Brown is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Spc. Scott Walker, from Elkin, N.C., stands on a hilltop while on a dismounted patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. Walker is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Spc. Adrian Rosas, from Brownsville, Texas, checks his location on a map while on a dismounted patrol with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Pfc. Tyson Davies, from Spanish Fork, Ut., patrols through a village with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. The Soldiers are deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

.S. Army Staff Sgt. Icar Morales, from Woodbridge, N.J., patrols through a village with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost.Morales is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.

U.S. Army Sgt. Kyle Brown, from Pendleton, Or., patrols through a village with his platoon near Combat Outpost Herrera, Paktiya province, Afghanistan, Oct. 11, 2009. The Soldiers were searching for sites from which the Taliban has been using to fire rockets at the outpost. Brown is deployed with Apache Troop, 1st Squadron, 40th Cavalry Regiment.