He rowed into Falmouth on the British mainland to a hero's welcome from his family, supporters and sponsors, including Virgin Group boss Richard Branson.

Tycoon Branson said: "He's been at sea for over a third of the year and has been followed by sharks and coped with horrendous storms along the way.

"It is as remarkable an achievement as any of the great British adventurers, and unlike, say, Scott of the Antarctic, he has managed to come all the way home," he said, referring to the legendary British explorer Robert Falcon Scott who died while returning to base after reaching the South Pole in 1912.

When Hicks left New Jersey on May 27, he set out to break the 62-day trans-Atlantic rowing record, but was soon besieged by dreadful weather conditions.

The oarsman had to shift course repeatedly to deal with the most changeable weather conditions in the Atlantic for a century.

His journey ended up being the longest successful west to east trans-Atlantic crossing at about 6,500 km.

"I have no regrets at all about being out there so long, but I am very pleased to be getting home now," Hicks said.

"The last weeks have been very tough as it got colder and wetter and darker and rougher. It's just a hell of an adventure.

"Parts of it were very tough, parts of it were a real joy. On the whole it was pretty nice to be out there.

"There were times when I wanted to be somewhere else, but I knew what I signed up for in the beginning. You've just got to stick it out, and I got there in the end."

Now Hicks has his sights set on becoming the first to row across the iceberg-strewn Southern Ocean.

"I reckon I've got another row in me. Nobody has successfully rowed the Southern Ocean yet, so I could possibly head down to the southern hemisphere. I'd like to achieve a real first."