A YOUTH worker has set himself the daunting challenge of walking 500 miles along an ancient pilgrimage route in northern Spain in aid of two Swindon charities.

The Camino de Santiago, also known as the Way of St. James, stretches from the French border in north eastern Spain all the way to Galicia in the North West.

Rob Burns, 30, of Upper Stratton, decided to make the journey after being inspired by the 2010 Emilio Estevez and Martin Sheen film The Way, which tells the tale of a grieving father who does the walk in memory of his late son.

Rob, a youth worker at Swindon Youth for Christ, said: “I have always been a keen walker but I’ve never done anything like this before.

“After watching the film and seeing how it brought people together from different walks of life, I found it really inspiring.

“I always thought I’d love to do this walk and if I don’t do it now I’m not sure if I ever will. It does feel a bit like jumping into the unknown, but I’m ridiculously excited about it.”

Rob, who will be undertaking the walk on his own, will fly from Gatwick to Biarritz in southern France on July 24 and expects the journey to take around five weeks.

He said: “I’m hoping for a few days to rest in the town afterwards. It will be nice to sit in the sunshine and not have to think about covering anymore miles.”

Rob is doing the walk in aid of youth charity BIOS, who he has worked with for the past six years, and Swindon Foodbank.

“I wanted to raise funds for BIOS because of all the wonderful work they do with young people in the town,” he said.

“With Swindon Foodbank I wanted to choose something that would bless the local community, and I know they do a lot of good work. I think it’s something that’s really needed in the UK at the moment, so I thought I’d choose them.

“When I told my friends they were all very supportive. I wasn’t originally going to do it for charity but a lot of people said they’d pledge if I did so I chose a couple of local charities to support.”

Santiago de Compostela is the alleged burial site of the apostle St. James and has been the destination of the pilgrimage route since the beginning of the 9th century.

Hundreds of thousands of people from all over the world walk the Camino de Santiago every year, whether on their own or in a group, and Rob will be aiming to cover around 15 miles every day.

He is hoping to raise £500 for each charity and has so far received more than £300 on his online funding page.

He wished to thank outdoor superstore Go Outdoors for supplying him with more than £200 worth of top of the range walking materials.

Donations can be made by visiting www.gofundme.com/5weeks500miles.