Perthshire adventurer Elaine Hopley has passed the half-way mark in her marathon solo row across the Atlantic.
The 44-year-old former Glenshee ski instructor battled through high winds and storms in her first week at sea.
In recent days, however, she has been blessed with unusually calm water and helpful breezes, helping her to pick up speed.
That has seen Elaine, from Dunblane, reach the halfway point of the Talisker Whisky Atlantic Challenge in just 37 days.
To mark the milestone, she slipped “memory stones” bearing the names of sponsors’ loved ones into the unusually calm water.
Although the race has been won by a quartet of British and Californians, Elaine has set her sights on becoming the fastest woman to make a solo crossing of the Atlantic.
She left the sunshine island of La Gomera on December 15, en-route for the Caribbean more than 3,000 miles away.
Since then she has enjoyed daily visits from flying fish and all manner of birds and made the most of fine weather and endured huge waves and being stung by jellyfish.
In addition to the exertion of pulling at the oars, she has also reported a battle with keeping the boat’s hull clean to maximise speed and with repetitive rations.
Elaine is raising money for Alzheimer Scotland in memory of her late mum Jan, after whom her boat is also named.
To support her adventure, visit www.justgiving.com/fundraising/Elaine-Hopley1.
