Stormtrooper charity event rolls on towards NSW

Capturing the attention of media outlets around the world, Jacob French's epic foot trek across Australia - known as TrooperTrek - is nearing its final leg.

The former sales clerk left Perth on July 11 2011 on his own and has since walked across the Nullarbor through to South Australia, up the Adelaide Hills and across the border to Victoria - all the while dressed up in his personal suit of Stormtrooper armour.

On February 10 the intrepid traveller passed through Ararat and Ballarat, where he stayed the night before getting ready to continue on his way.

While his eventual goal is to reach the city of Sydney, the 21-year-old traveller has not indicated whether or not he will take a detour out to Melbourne before making his final push up to the NSW border.

The heroic figure said he came up with the "Forrest Gump" idea of leaving the house and going on a long journey for a good cause.

French chose the Starlight Foundation the bet the Australian charity to benefit from his efforts and initially aimed to raise $50,000 before reaching his destination.

He told reporters: "I didn’t want to waste the effort, I wanted to help people out and raise money for Starlight, so I thought what would be the best way to get the most attention."

"I have always had this dream to walk across Australia and I thought if I was going to put that much effort into something which would make me happy, I might as well make other people happy on the way."

''I thought I might as well give people a bit of a chuckle at the same time by doing it in a Stormtrooper suit.''

French is a member of "an all-volunteer organisation" called the 501st Legion who aim to bring together "costume enthusiasts under a collective identity within which to operate".

Well known for their charitable contributions across the world, French's affiliation with the community organisation - his legion ID is TK 6283 from the Terror Australis Garrison - has brought with it some welcome publicity.

As a result, the long-distance trooper has smashed his previous targets of $50,000 and has raised the bar on his EverydayHero account to $80,000.

His selfless act has seen French nominated for the Vegemite Toast of Australia award - with his likeness immortalised on jars around the country.

In addition to this welcome nonprofit marketing, French has been able to enjoy community support along the way - with discounted accommodation, food and several pairs of running shoes donated along the way.

The welcome gifts were faithfully documented by the young traveller on his Facebook event page, along with a number of other moments that are sure to become valuable memories once the Trooper finishes his trek.