Abandoned Sydney to Hobart yacht salvaged from Tasmanian beach will be restored, owners say

The owners of a Sydney to Hobart yacht salvaged from a remote Tasmanian island after it was abandoned during the race have vowed to restore the vessel.

Huntress was recovered from Christmas Beach on Cape Barren Island in Bass Strait on Sunday, 11 days after it ran into trouble.

Huntress, which was left to drift at sea before it beached last week, is now safely tied up in northern Tasmania.

After the salvage, the Aboriginal Land Council of Tasmania said the yacht should not have been removed from the beach, as it belonged to Indigenous people.

The ALCT chairman, Michael Mansell, said there was an Aboriginal law on Cape Barren Island, also known as truwana, preventing the yacht from being removed unless a portion of its value was paid or ownership was given to the Indigenous population.

Huntress also failed to complete the Sydney to Hobart race in 2021 when it was forced to retire with mainsail damage.