A boat beached on Pilot Bay had broken free of its mooring, says the Bay of Plenty Regional Council.

The yacht was spotted on Pilot Bay yesterday afternoon.

It sparked quite a bit of interest from people walking along the beach, with one person contacting SunLive asking what had happened.

The Regional Council and harbourmaster were made aware of the boat and were waiting for high tide to refloat it.

"A boat did beach itself in Pilot Bay," says harbourmaster Peter Buell.

"This vessel had come off its mooring, and after we contacted the owner they came and collected it."

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