Sean Morley's voyage is expected to take six months

Sean Morley, 38, from St Erth, is expected to round Muckle Flugga, the most northerly point of the Shetland Isles, on Saturday, weather permitting.

His journey, scheduled to last six months, began in Falmouth on 3 April.

He is currently only a day behind schedule, despite aggravating an old back injury during his trip.

I cannot quite believe it I have made it this far Sean Morley

He said on Friday: "When I set out from Falmouth in April, the most northerly point of the British Isles seemed a long way away indeed.

"I cannot quite believe it I have made it this far, and I am only a day behind schedule."

During his marathon paddle, Mr Morley has been confronted by a huge whale which rose out of the sea and then crashed down, showering his tiny craft with a hail of spray.

He also faced sharks earlier in his trip, and met the self-styled "king" of an Irish island.

His route is taking him on the seaward side of every inhabited island that makes up Great Britain and Ireland.

They include: the Isles of Scilly, the Channel Islands, the Orkneys and Shetlands, as well as the remotest corner of the British Isles, St Kilda - the isolated Atlantic outpost 41 miles west of Benbecula in Scotland's Outer Hebrides.

He has already completed several record-breaking paddles, including a crossing of the St George's Channel and a 500-mile circumnavigation of Scotland.

His current trip is raising money for the RNLI and the Marine Conservation Society.