A north lifeboat crew was called out in the early hours to rescue a drifting sailing boat which had encountered engine problems.
The Mallaig lifeboat was launched at around 5.30am after the 98ft sailing boat in Loch Ness radioed Stornoway Coastguard for help.
A coastguard spokesman said: “The intention was to bring it under tow into Mallaig but it is quite a large boat so it was taken to a point where it could drop anchor instead.”
The crew of the sailing boat were uninjured and remained aboard their ship.
The lifeboat crew had returned to base by 6.25am.
Invergordon lifeboat was also in service overnight, after being called out just after 2am after a reported sighting of a red emergency flare somewhere in the Cromarty Firth area.
A spokeswoman for Aberdeen Coastguard said that an “extensive search” of the area had been carried out by the crew but no sign of any emergency could be found.
The lifeboat was returned to Invergordon and ready for service again by 4.30am.
North lifeboat recovers broken down yacht overnight
