There's a mystery unfolding on a remote shoreline in eastern Cape Breton. A sailboat is grounded on rocks — and there's no sign of the skipper, or anyone else who might have been on board.

Tim Menk, a resident of Gabarus, N.S., said someone in the village noticed the boat a week ago. They found it washed up on a rocky beach a couple of kilometres south of the community.

Last month, the Canadian Coast Guard towed Liberty, with the owner and his dog on board, to safety in Sydney harbour after the vessel ran into trouble in a storm. (Norma Jean MacPhee/CBC)

Menk ventured out to look Tuesday and said the boat is in rough shape. "It's in a shambles fetched up in a rocky shore," he said.

Debris is strewn in the flooded cockpit, he said, and the hull appears to be damaged. The name Liberty is painted on the hull.

A sailboat under the same name and hull number is registered to Andrew Bunn of West Bend, Wis.

Last month, the Canadian Coast Guard towed Liberty, with Bunn and his dog Atticus on board, to safety in Sydney harbour after the vessel ran into trouble in a storm off Cape Breton.

The sailboat's name and hull number show it is registered to Andrew Bunn of West Bend, Wis. (Norma Jean MacPhee/CBC)

Bunn told CBC News at the time that he had set sail from the Great Lakes en route to the Caribbean. He said he planned to get some repairs done in Sydney and head to the United States for more extensive work.

Menk said several residents saw a man and a dog walking in the Gabarus area soon after the boat was spotted on the shore last week. But the duo haven't been seen since.

"Nobody knows for sure whether the person that was seen that day walking out of town with a dog and a backpack was indeed Mr. Bunn," said Menk.

The sailboat Liberty in Sydney harbour in September, after it was towed there by the Coast Guard. (Holly Conners/CBC)

There doesn't appear to have been a distress call from the sailboat.

CBC News was unable to reach Bunn, but a man with the same name has posted on social media that he's back in the United States.

The person who wrote the post said Canadian Border Services "kicked me out."

The Canadian Border Services Agency is not commenting on the specifics of the case.

But in an email to CBC News, an agency spokesperson said that it processed a private marine vessel under the Immigration and Refugees Protection Act and the Customs Act, when it was escorted by the Coast Guard into Sydney Harbour last month.

The agency goes on to say that all persons seeking entry to Canada must present themselves to the CBSA and may be subject to a more in-depth exam, and must demonstrate they meet the requirements to enter and/or stay in Canada.

Pollution risk explored

Another resident of Gabarus, Grant Dickie, said people in the community are concerned about fuel that may be leaking from the vessel, and noted that some debris has washed ashore, including rope, fishing line and buoys. Dickie said the shoreline is in a designated wilderness area.

A spokesperson for the Joint Rescue Coordination Centre in Halifax said neither the coast guard nor the military was involved in any mission involving the vessel.

Bunn's dog, Atticus, on the ship in Sydney harbour in September. (CBC)



An official with the Cape Breton Regional Police said the Canada Border Services Agency asked them to check on the boat, but there is no active police investigation. An official with the Cape Breton Regional Police said the Canada Border Services Agency asked them to check on the boat, but there is no active police investigation.

A spokesperson for the Canadian Coast Guard said officials will be on scene to assess the vessel for any pollution risk.

With files from Cape Breton's Information Morning.