Dunedin to Cape Horn in 154 days: Russian solo adventurer rows 11,525km through South Pacific

Russian adventurer Fedor Konyukhov. Photo / Ignacio Palma, Gobernación Provincia Antártica Chilena

Fedor Konyukhov wasn't comfortable with just rowing his boat gently down the stream, instead, the Russian adventurer rowed from Dunedin to Cape Horn.

On December 6, 2018, the 67-year-old left Dunedin and set off on the 11,525km row for the southernmost tip of South America.

It took him 154 days and 12 hours to arrive and in doing so, finished the first stage of his solo journey around the southern hemisphere.

A raging storm packing hurricane-force winds welcomed him at the Diego Ramirez Islands at the southern tip of Chile.

The rough conditions forced him to be towed to more sheltered waters on the mainland where he could disembark and celebrate with family and friends.

Asked why he decided to try and tackle the feat, Konyukhov told media he did it to "promote friendship between countries."

The journey is just the first stage of three. Photo / Ignacio Palma, Gobernación Provincia Antártica Chilena

"For example, Now I have arrived in Chile in a Russian boat and I met the Chilean people," he said.

"I have a support team from Australia, New Zealand, South Africa and England.

"The boat was built in England, the trip began in New Zealand. It's like a global corporation."

His boat overturned four times during the crossing, resulting in the vessel losing part of its solar panels which were used for water desalination.

There were only 50 days of relatively good weather, compared to 100 days of storms which included waves up to 10 metres high and wind gusts of 100km/h.

However, on Friday (NZ Time), the International Ocean Rowing Society confirmed Konyukhov had completed his journey over the Southern Pacific Ocean.

The vessel the 67-year-old is rowing around the southern hemisphere. Photo / Ignacio Palma, Gobernación Provincia Antártica Chilena

His row from Dunedin to Cape Horn is just the first of three legs in his 27,000km journey around the world in his specially-built rowboat.

The second leg will begin in December, from Cape Horn to Cape Leeuwin, in Western Australia south of Perth.

The third stage will begin in December 2020, from Australia back to Dunedin.

In addition to the rowing journey, Konyukhov broke the world record for flying around the world in a hot air balloon in 2016, completing it in just 11 days.

Meanwhile, between 2013 and 2014, he crossed the South Pacific Ocean alone between Concón, Chile to Brisbane, Australia.