Northamptonshire man to walk from north-east to the Somme to raise money for war veteran charity

Jordan Blunsom, 22, will leave Durham on May 31 with the aim of reaching the Thiepval Memorial in time for the centenary of the Battle of the Somme on July 1.

That works out at more than 22 miles a day - but the Durham University history student is ready for the challenge.

He said: “I’m doing the walk for Walking with the Wounded, which is a fantastic charity.

“They help injured veterans and their families with stuff like accomodation and getting them back accustomed to society.

“I was in the Armed Forces for four-and-a-half years until October in Southampton but wasn’t deployed to anywhere like Iraq or Afghanistan.

“I’ve been working out the route and it’s about 22 miles a day, so getting on for a marathon for 31 days straight.”

The Battle of the Somme was one the bloodiest battles in the First World War, with more than a million troops wounded or killed.

Mr Blunsom will be taking on the majority of the walk by himself and is expecting the centenary to be emotional.

He added: “I’ve been doing some walking but probably not as much as I should be!

“I’m doing the majority of the walk solo but I’m planning to have a few friends come with me for some of the legs.

“There is no real target amount I’d like to raise – I just want to raise as much as possible.”

To donate to Jordan’s cause, click here.

To follow Jordan’s progress, follow @Durham2theSomme on Twitter or follow the Facebook page.