Three brothers gearing up for a gruelling 9,000-mile row across the Pacific Ocean have begun their journey to the start line in Peru – with a very familiar tour guide bidding them farewell.
The Maclean brothers, who set three world records rowing across the Atlantic in January 2020, are preparing for a mammoth challenge: a non-stop, unsupported row across the world’s largest ocean, due to begin next month. The exact date is TBC due to weather, but they are currently targeting April 1st.
Lachlan (26), Jamie (31) and Euan (32) were waved off at Edinburgh Airport by their mascot, a toy Paddington Bear – the beloved fictional bear from “darkest Peru” who travels to London after his caretaker, Aunt Lucy, moves to a retirement home.
The Edinburgh trio, who are all taking musical instruments on board, are taking on the Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row, an ambitious journey from Lima, Peru, to Sydney, Australia, where they aim to set the record for the fastest human-powered crossing of the full Pacific Ocean. Covering 14,000 km, the expedition is expected to take around four months.
Their boat, which they helped build alongside fellow ocean rower Mark Slatts, is believed to be the “lightest and strongest ocean rowing boat ever made”, weighing just 280kg unladen.
Along the way, they will battle storms, massive waves, technical challenges, sleep deprivation, and sheer exhaustion – all in a bid to raise over £1 million for clean water projects. Their efforts will transform the lives of tens of thousands of people in Madagascar through their charity, The Maclean Foundation, which they founded last year with their father, Charlie, one of the world’s leading whisky experts.
The brothers, who bought a croft in Nedd a small highland village, where they trained for their row with trips to Stornoway, said emotional goodbyes to family and friends at a special send-off party at Cairngorm Coffee in Edinburgh on Friday night.
Speaking as he prepared to board a 5.45am flight from Edinburgh Airport (via Amsterdam) to Lima, Peru – where they’ll spend a couple of weeks making last-minute preparations before departing from Yacht Club Peruano – youngest brother Lachlan Maclean, a recent University of Glasgow graduate, said: “It still doesn’t feel quite real that we’re finally on our way to Peru to begin this challenge. We’ve spent years planning, training, and preparing for what will be the hardest challenge of our lives, and now it’s time to put everything into practice.
“It was a special send-off from Edinburgh, and having Paddington Bear there felt like the perfect way to start—after all, we’re heading to his homeland!
“We know this row will push us to our absolute limits, but we’re doing it for something far bigger than ourselves. Every mile we row brings us closer to our goal of raising £1 million to provide clean water to communities who desperately need it. That’s what will keep us going through the storms, exhaustion, and isolation.
“Once we leave Lima, the next time we touch land, we’ll be in Sydney, so we’re going to enjoy the next couple of weeks in Peru.”
The Rare Whisky 101 Pacific Row has been funded by sponsors including M Yachts, Atacama, Rare Whisky 101, V Group, ClearRoute, Better Beer, Swift Morris Interiors, Contagious, Norda, Clarus, and Chloe Lanthier.
To follow their journey and keep up to date, visit www.themacleanbrothers.com, where you can subscribe to their “ship’s log” or follow their Instagram or TikTok @themacleanbrothers.
