Marines with Company G., Battalion Landing Team 2nd Battalion, 1st Marines, 31st Marine Expeditionary Unit, return from a patrol in Shoalwater Bay, Queensland, Australia. The Marines have set up in defensive positions in and around the simulated town of Raspberry Creek, in preparation for the advance of the Australian Army’s 1st Brigade. The coming assault is one of the key battles of Exercise Hamel 2012, the multi-national training evolution between the Australian Army, US Marines, and New Zealand Army, serving as 1st Brigade’s certification exercise. The 31st MEU is the only continuously forward-deployed MEU and is the nation’s force in readiness in the Asia-Pacific region. US Marine Corps photo by Cpl. Jonathan Wright.