A naked woman was found three miles off a beach in California but officials do not know how she got there.

The 28-year-old was shouting for help when she was found by kayakers at around 10am Sunday.

The woman, who was not wearing a bathing suit or any clothes, said she had swam out from the shore the evening before and was was swept out out to sea.

A naked woman was found three miles out to sea from Newport Beach, California, and coastguards do not know how she got there

But officials said this was impossible as even the strongest currents only pull for 500 to 600ft - not the three miles she had traveled down the coast.

Sergeant DJ Haldeman, from Orange County Sheriff's Department Harbor Patrol, told the Daily Pilot that the woman was found without a boat, inflatable or even a bikini.

'She was completely naked,' he said.

The woman claimed she took off her bathing suit during the 16-hour swim 'so it wouldn't restrict her in her abilities to swim,' Sgt Haldeman said.

The 28-year-old was found by kayakers near Newport Beach (file picture) at around 10am Sunday after shouting for help

Officers who brought the adventurous swimmer to shore were expecting her to be suffering from hypothermia but she was fine.

Jennifer Manzella, from Newport Beach police and fire departments, said they were double-checking the nude woman's story to ensure they had not missed her the night before.

No lifeguards saw her enter the water and the belongings the woman claimed she had left on the beach were gone. Had they been found the evening before then the coastguard would have investigated.