As Alexander McDonald read the notice at the Tobermory wharf he knew that he would be one of the first to sign up for the long journey across the ocean. But first he needed to find a wife, someone who would willingly share the trials that would lie ahead. With the offer of land and a future for their families, it is easy to see why the young men should be tempted to make a new life for themselves in far off New Zealand. Follow the fortunes of those who left their homes to embark on the long journey across the sea and those who stayed behind to carry on with their every day lives in 19th century Scotland.