A local paddle boarder went missing at Port Stephens on Monday morning prompting a multi-agency search operation.
The man left word that he would set out for Snapper Island from Mallabula and would be back around 9am, but the alarm was raised when he failed to return and could not be seen from shore.
Marine Rescue crews from Lemon Tree Passage and Port Stephens began to search, with Nelson Bay water police and the Westpac Rescue Helicopter called in to assist.
There was still no sign of the missing paddle boarder after an hour and concerns were growing following a recent spate of coastal drownings, when a call came in to say the man had been found.
It turned out he had been blown off course to Swan Bay, where he went to a nearby house to borrow a phone and let authorities know he was alive and well.
Image: Marine Rescue Lemon Tree Passage.