Mystery surrounds a yacht that has washed up on Kilcoole beach in Co Wicklow with nobody on board.
The 6.4m Horizon yacht named 'Katie' was first seen on Saturday in Bray but on Monday drifted down the coast to Kilcoole beach, just south of Greystones, where it remains.
Gardaí were notified and discovered the vessel first washed up on a beach in north Wales.
Rhyl Coastguard Rescue Team in Wales put blue tape around the boat and contacted the owners who were making arrangements to have the vessel recovered.
However, before the owners could get to the yacht, it again drifted and landed on Irish shores with the engine and rudder missing.
Captain and member of Greystones Sailing Club Oscar Rossi Schenone said he was not surprised to hear a boat from Wales made it as far as Wicklow.
"Boats drifting out of the shore or a harbour happen more often than you think. For example, I was in a race off Dún Laoghaire and a boat capsized and started drifting north up to a sandbank quicker than they could get the boat back up," he said.
"When you have a boat, one of the most important things is to have good mooring and taking into consideration what kind of winds you are expecting, and taking note of the change in weather.
"If you don’t secure your boat properly in Greystones marina or the harbour in Bray, come October, the boats are not going to be safe," he explained.
"I am not familiar with the harbours in north Wales, but as someone who has been sailing my whole life, the change in weather has made everything more difficult. With the winds at the moment and the changing tides, I am not surprised this boat drifted all the way here," Mr Schenone added.
Gardaí in Greystones said they were going to visit the site today and work with the coast guard to have the boat removed before stormy weather hit.
