'Those final few hours were brutal': UK duo finish epic journey in Down Under after rowing across the vast Pacific
One last sunrise to sunset. One more session navigating the unforgiving ocean. A final stretch with aching hands clutching relentless paddles.
But after more than 8,000 nautical miles at sea – a monumental half-year voyage over the Pacific Ocean that included intimate meetings with marine giants, malfunctioning navigation equipment and sweet treat crises – the waters delivered a last obstacle.
A gusting 20-knot wind approaching Cairns kept pushing their small vessel, their boat Velocity, off course from land that was now painfully near.
Loved ones gathered on land as a planned midday arrival shifted to 2pm, subsequently 4pm, then dusk. Ultimately, at 6:42 PM, they came alongside the Cairns sailing club.
"The concluding hours proved absolutely punishing," Rowe stated, finally standing on land.
"The wind was pushing us off the channel, and we honestly thought we weren't going to make it. We drifted outside the navigational path and thought we might have to swim to shore. To ultimately arrive, following years of planning, proves truly extraordinary."
The Extraordinary Expedition Starts
The British pair – aged 28 and 25 respectively – pushed off from Lima, Peru in early May (a first try in April was stopped by equipment malfunction).
Over 165 days at sea, they maintained 50 nautical miles daily, rowing in tandem during the day, single rower overnight while her partner rested a bare handful of hours in a confined sleeping area.
Survival and Challenges
Sustained by 400 kilograms of dehydrated meals, a water desalinator and a vessel-based sprout cultivation system, the women counted on a less-than-reliable solar system for limited energy demands.
For much of their journey across the vast Pacific, they've had no navigation equipment or location transmitters, making them essentially invisible, hardly noticeable to maritime traffic.
The duo faced nine-meter waves, traversed marine highways and endured raging storms that, at times, disabled all electrical systems.
Record-Breaking Achievement
And they've kept rowing, stroke by relentless stroke, across blazing hot days, below stellar evening heavens.
They achieved an unprecedented feat as the first all-female pair to paddle over the South Pacific, non-stop and unsupported.
And they have raised in excess of £86k (Australian $179,000) for the Outward Bound Trust.
Existence Onboard
The women attempted to maintain communication with civilization outside their tiny vessel.
During the 140s of their journey, they declared a "cocoa crisis" – down to their last two bars with over 1,000 miles remaining – but granted themselves the pleasure of opening one bar to honor England's rugby team winning the Rugby World Cup.
Personal Insights
Payne, from a landlocked part of Yorkshire, lacked ocean experience before her solo Atlantic crossing in 2022 in a record time.
She has now mastered another ocean. But there were moments, she acknowledged, when they feared they wouldn't make it. Beginning on the sixth day, a path over the planet's biggest sea felt impossible.
"Our power was dropping, the desalination tubes ruptured, but after nine repairs, we achieved an alternative solution and simply continued struggling with minimal electricity throughout the remaining journey. Each time problems occurred, we just looked at each other and went, 'naturally it happened!' But we kept going."
"Having Jess as a partner proved invaluable. The remarkable aspect was our collaborative effort, we addressed challenges collectively, and we were always working towards the same goals," she said.
Rowe originates from Hampshire. Before her Pacific triumph, she rowed the Atlantic, hiked England's South West Coast Path, climbed Mount Kenya and pedaled across Spanish terrain. Further adventures likely await.
"We had such a good time together, and we're enthusiastically preparing additional journeys as a team again. No other partner would have sufficed."
