Concerns about a boat anchored 100m off the channel in Otago Harbour in rough conditions resulted in a Coastguard callout on Tuesday.
After attempts to contact the skipper failed, the Coastguard went out and discovered the man asleep in the front of the boat, Coastguard member Lox Kellas said.
It appeared the 5.5m runabout had lost power in the channel the previous night after the man had visited friends on Otago Peninsula so he had put down the anchor and stayed put.
There were gale force conditions in the harbour so it was not ideal, especially given the man was not wearing a life jacket, he said.
