A group of British women has become the first team of four to row the Pacific Ocean after ending their mammoth journey at Cairns in far north Queensland.

The Coxless Crew, made up of Meg Dyos, 25, Emma Mitchell, 30, Natalia Cohen, 40 and Laura Penhaul, 32, set out from San Francisco, America on 29-foot, bright pink rowing boat Doris for the 15,640-kilometre odyssey to Australia.

They rowed 24 hours a day in two-hour shifts, stopping only in Honolulu in Hawaii and Apia in Samoa for up to a week at a time to re-stock before setting off again.

They began the row in April 2015, and spent 235 days at sea.

The journey ended when they arrived at the Cairns Marina about 11:00am, where they were greeted by more than 100 people, including some of their families.

Earlier, operations manager Tony Humphries said the four women, all from the UK, were looking forward to stepping back on dry land.

"I think it's fair to say they're pretty fatigued now," he said.

"They have various aches and pains and skin conditions with the harsh environment. They have no shade on the boat, so they're out in all conditions be it sunshine or rain.

"They're constantly being splashed by the salt water which is quite harsh on the skin.

"They've all lost a bit of weight, the food they have left is not necessarily food they enjoy eating."

Map The route the Coxless Crew has taken from San Francisco to Cairns

Bad weather delays crew's triumphant finish

Doris was expected to arrive in Cairns on Sunday evening but was delayed due to the weather.

"The wind went more northerly and that made getting into the marina much harder, it slowed things right down," Mr Humphries said.

"A 35-mile day is a fairly average mileage — but the last five to six days they've been down to about 20 miles a day which is very slow.

"They have to stay on their course and sometimes they're fighting the wind or the current and that's slowed thing right down for them."



Mr Humphries said each crew member had a long list of things they were looking forward to upon reaching Cairns.

Coxless Crew members Meg Dyos, Emma Mitchell, Natalia Cohen and Laura Penhaul. ( Supplied: Losing Sight of Shore )

"I think obviously knowing that it's finished, seeing their family, eating fresh food and having cold drinks ... sleeping in a bed that's dry and not moving around and not having that physical contact with someone laying beside you in the heat and humidity of the cabin, all of that I'm sure."

The aim of the row was to raise money and awareness for charities Walking with the Wounded, which supports injured servicewoman in the UK, and Breast Cancer Care.

It was also documented by filmmaker Sarah Moshman for the film Losing Sight of Shore, which is expected to be released later this year.

Mr Humphries said he hoped Dyos, Mitchell, Cohen and Penhaul would have time to explore Cairns and the surrounding area before flying home to the UK in early February.