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A final 24-hour stretch. One more session navigating merciless swells. A final stretch with aching hands gripping unforgiving oars.

Yet after traversing 8,000+ sea miles across the ocean – an epic five-and-a-half-month journey over the Pacific Ocean that included intimate meetings with marine giants, malfunctioning navigation equipment and cocoa supply emergencies – the ocean presented a final test.

Powerful 20-knot gusts near Cairns continuously drove their tiny rowboat, the Velocity, away from solid ground that was now painfully near.

Friends and family waited ashore as a planned midday arrival shifted to 2pm, followed by 4pm, then twilight hours. Ultimately, at 6:42 PM, they reached Cairns Yacht Club.

"Those final few hours were brutal," Rowe expressed, finally standing on land.

"The wind was pushing us off the channel, and we honestly thought we weren't going to make it. We found ourselves beyond the marked route and considered swimming the remaining distance. To at last reach our destination, following years of planning, proves truly extraordinary."

The Epic Journey Begins

The English women – Rowe is 28 and Payne 25 – pushed off from Lima, Peru on 5 May (an earlier April effort was stopped by equipment malfunction).

Over 165 days at sea, they covered approximately 50 sea miles each day, working as a team through daytime hours, one rowing alone at night while her partner rested a bare handful of hours in a cramped cabin.

Perseverance and Difficulties

Sustained by 400 kilograms of dehydrated meals, a water desalinator and an onboard growing unit for micro-greens, the women counted on a less-than-reliable solar system for only partial electrical requirements.

For much of their journey over the enormous Pacific, they've had no navigation equipment or location transmitters, creating a phantom vessel scenario, nearly undetectable to passing ships.

The duo faced nine-meter waves, traversed marine highways and weathered furious gales that, periodically, disabled all electrical systems.

Record-Breaking Achievement

Still they maintained progress, each pull following the last, through scorching daylight hours, under star-filled night skies.

They have set a new record as the first all-female pair to cross the southern Pacific by rowing, non-stop and unsupported.

Furthermore they gathered more than £86,000 (Australian $179,000) for the Outward Bound Trust.

Daily Reality at Sea

The duo made every effort to keep in contact with the world outside their tiny vessel.

On "day 140-something", they declared a "cocoa crisis" – diminished to merely two remaining pieces with still more than 1,600km to go – but permitted themselves the luxury of unwrapping a portion to honor England's rugby team triumph in global rugby competition.

Individual Perspectives

Payne, from a landlocked part of Yorkshire, lacked ocean experience before her solo Atlantic crossing in 2022 in a record time.

Another ocean now falls to her accomplishments. However there were instances, she conceded, when they doubted their success. Starting within the first week, a route across the globe's vastest waters felt impossible.

"Our energy was failing, the desalination tubes ruptured, but after nine repairs, we managed a bypass and simply continued struggling with little power throughout the remaining journey. Each time problems occurred, we merely made eye contact and went, 'of course it has!' Still we persevered."

"It was really great to have Jess as a teammate. Our mutual dedication stood out, we addressed challenges collectively, and we perpetually pursued common aims," she stated.

Rowe originates from Hampshire. Preceding her ocean conquest, she crossed the Atlantic by rowing, hiked England's South West Coast Path, ascended Mount Kenya and biked through Spain. Further adventures likely await.

"We shared such wonderful experiences, and we're already excited to plan new adventures as a team again. No other partner would have sufficed."