Scots brothers to row 9,000 miles across Pacific Ocean in 120-day challenge (2025)

Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean will depart from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time on Saturday in their bid to row non-stop and unsupported to Sydney in Australia.

Three Scottish brothers with their sights set on becoming the fastest people to row across the Pacific Ocean are gearing up for their four-month, 9,000-mile voyage.

Ewan, Jamie and Lachlan Maclean will set off from Lima in Peru at 9pm UK time on Saturday. Their ambitious plan is to row non-stop and unsupported all the way to Sydney, Australia.

The Edinburgh trio are anticipated to spend more than 120 days at sea in their custom-built carbon fibre ocean rowing boat, covering a distance equivalent to 343 marathons.

Their vessel, which they had a hand in designing and building, is named Rose Emily, a tribute to their sister who was lost during pregnancy. Their mother Sheila, a watercolour artist, personally painted the name onto the hull of the boat.

Rowing in two-hour shifts around the clock, the brothers are expected to make an estimated four million oar strokes as they contend with extreme weather, sleep deprivation and total isolation on the world's largest ocean.

In 2020, they made history by setting three world records when they rowed the Atlantic Ocean in just 35 days. They became the first trio of brothers to row any ocean together, the youngest trio, and the fastest trio to ever row the 3,000-mile journey from the Canary Islands to Antigua.

The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row aims to raise more than £1 million for The Maclean Foundation, a clean water charity the brothers established with their father, Charles Maclean, following their record-breaking journey in 2020.

The charity, famed for providing boreholes to over 5,000 individuals in Madagascar, expects its reach to significantly expand due to the brothers' latest sea voyage.

Ewan, 33, said the venture merges their passion for the ocean with the desire to generate funds for a noble cause. The former Dyson design engineer said: "The plan for this all started during our Atlantic row.

"We realised how at peace we felt at sea - and also how truly lucky we are. We started thinking about how we could spend more time on the water and help more people – and this daft challenge was born."

Discussing the enormity of the task, he said: "The more we looked into rowing the full Pacific Ocean, the more we understood why so few attempt it. But if we want to raise a million pounds for a cause that means so much to us, we had to go for something pretty big."

"During our trips to Madagascar, we've seen what access to clean water can do – it helps kids get an education, helps communities thrive and saves lives. That's what drives us."

Customs delays held up their departure by over 10 days as their boat and 500kg of freeze-dried sustenance – including 75kg of oats for their world-record endeavour – were stuck at the port.

Lachlan, the younger brother at 26, conveyed his frustration saying: "We've been like coiled springs. We usually get on well but there's definitely been some tension this week - we've just been desperate to get going.

"We're a bit weird in that we've realised we're probably happiest at sea. Life is simpler. There's peace on the water and there's a strange enjoyment in the physical toll.

"On land, there are too many competing priorities. I get more joy from a two-hour shift rowing than two hours of emails."

The trio collaborated with Dundee-based farm Arbuckles to freeze-dry a selection of high-calorie meals made from Scottish ingredients, including Scotch beef chilli and Thai red curry, as well as a special haggis, neeps and tatties dish for Lachlan's 27th birthday in June.

The brothers will also carry bagpipes, a small guitar and a miniature accordion on their journey, providing musical entertainment during their rest periods from rowing.

Jamie, 31, a trained architect who now constructs saunas, said the voyage would "honour" the sister they never knew.

"We never got to meet our sister, but she's always been part of our family. We wanted to honour that. Our mum hand-painted her name on the back of the boat - so she'll be with us every mile.

"In the quiet moments - and there will be plenty, assuming Ewan and I can find somewhere to hide Lachlan's accordion - we'll know she's right there.

"We know this will be hard for mum and dad, having all three of us at sea, but they've been incredibly supportive. They've worked just as hard as we have to prepare, and we can't wait to see them when we row into Sydney Harbour."