Students from Exeter College gave up their summer holiday time to take part in a very special walk on Thursday 25th July. Students from the college's Reach Academy for gifted and talented students, joined the University of Oxford's Exeter College Rector , Frances Cairncross, as she launched their 700th anniversary celebrations by walking in the footsteps of its original students from Devon to Oxford.

Exeter College, Oxford, was founded in 1314 by Walter de Stapeldon, Bishop of Exeter, and its early students came mainly from Devon and Cornwall. The Rector will walk 160 miles to broadly follow the track of the very first Exeter College Oxford students of the 14th century – many of whom would have made the journey on foot.

As well as the local college students, the Rector was accompanied, on the first stage of her journey, by the Dean of Exeter Cathedral, the Very Rev'd Dr Jonathan Draper. As Bishop of Exeter, Walter de Stapeldon contributed liberally to rebuilding the Cathedral, and his tomb is on the north side of the high altar.

Encouraging the students to take part in the historic event, Reach Academy Coordinator Martin Gilbert said: “This is a fantastic opportunity for Exeter College students to celebrate our close links with University of Oxford's own Exeter College. We are delighted to work with them on projects throughout the year and a number of our students have progressed to Oxford, so it seems fitting that they should celebrate the long history the city has shared with the university.”

The Rector's route will continue through Honiton, Axminster, Beaminster, Sherbourne, Wincanton, Rode, Devizes, Avebury and Abingdon, taking in Roman roads, the Jubiliee Trail, Monarch's Way, Wessex Ridgeway, MacMillan Way, the Kennett and Avon Canal, the Ridgeway, and the Thames Path. The Rector plans to arrive in Oxford by 11 August and is hoping to raise money for an internship bursary at the university.

Anyone wishing to sponsor the Rector on her walk can do so here: http://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/FrancesCairncross

She can be followed on Twitter @Rector2014