A team of eight intrepid rowers are tackling a 100-mile journey from St Kilda to Skye in a 120-year-old boat to raise money for charity.
The group set off from the unoccupied Hebridean island at 4am on Friday morning and are due to arrive in Portree today in the afternoon or evening.
Two years of preparation has gone into planning the epic 38 to 48-hour trip, which they are hoping will raise £20,000 for the RNLI and Skye and Lochalsh Young Carers.
And they are determined to overcome sleep deprivation, sea sickness, blisters, back pain and chaffing from the boat’s wooden seats to complete their mission.
Donnie Nicolson, who is leading the challenge, described their emotions on setting off as “a mix of nerves and excitement”.
He said: “The weather is my biggest worry, followed by will the boat stand up to it?
“Last, but not least, can the crew pull it off?
“But we have a good team in place. A lot of people have put a lot of time and dedication into this project and I’m confident they’re up to the task.”
The 20-foot long rowing boat was last used in 1913. It then went into a local boat shed in Portree, where it remained, until Mr Nicolson discovered it.
During 2013, local boat builder, Iain MacLean, has lovingly restored the skiff, replacing most of the structure, but saving almost all of her larch planking.
The Aurora was re-launched in April of this year.
Mr Nicolson explained that four rowers row for half an hour, they then transfer to the support boat to rest and the other team of four take over. Three coxswain are taking turns to keep time and navigate.
He said the charities had been chosen for good reasons.
“As five of the rowers are crew members of the Portree Lifeboat, we are fully aware of the enormous costs that are needed to keep the RNLI running – hopefully we can do our little bit to help.
“And Skye and Lochalsh Young Carers is a charity most of us were not unaware of until the challenge.
“We hope we can, not only raise some funds for them, but also raise their profile and let people know the extraordinary and important job they do in our local community.”
The other crew members are Billy Shanks, Jamie Kirkwood, Donald Budge, Brian Wells, John Nicolson, Matt Barratt and Donald Macphie. And the three coxswains are Rosie McDade, Cathryn Baillie and Gill Houlsby. All the team members live on Skye.