'Ghost ship' causing problems floating off NH waters

HAMPTON, N.H. (MyFoxBoston.com) -- A mystery is afloat in the waters off Hampton, N.H., involving a boat, but no crew.

The boat, named the "Guest List," has been floating around aimlessly, there's not a soul on board, and the owner is missing. At this point, it's all a mystery.

The abandoned boat, which is no dinghy, is causing problems for locals like Alicia Preston.

"This is a 75-foot mammoth boat," Preston said. "This thing is huge."

Preston should know. The boat's been visible, floating around just outside her Hampton harbor home for months.

"Last fall the boat appeared under the bridge between Hampton and Seabrook, [it] broke from its mooring," she said.

It came dangerously close to Preston's house during winter storms, and now it's stuck, just sitting in the marsh.

The small ship somehow washed ashore, "Gilligan's Island"-style.

The only thing uncharted in this case, however, is the boat's owner. And rumors abound on that aspect of this mystery.

"It was supposedly blown up in a Denzel Washington movie, another rumor is it was used as a porno place but the reality is it was a boat bought by a Brazilian."

But just who is that? The Guest List is registered in Newburyport. The owner is reportedly back in Brazil, and residents say that local officials want no part of it.

Preston says officials say the boat is not in their jurisdiction.

"Not their problem," she said. "I'd like to know whose problem it is."

In the meantime, the guest list will wait by the water's edge. By night its decks are now a popular late night partying spot.

By day it draws tourists who imagine sailing the seven seas on their own yacht. They, like nearby residents, wish this ship would set sail, but for different reasons.

There are rumblings the boat could be salvaged in early June.

Newburyport is the only local port with the equipment to haul the 75-foot vessel from the marsh. It is also the only local port with enough space to store the big boat, though it's unclear who would pay for all that.

Cox Media Group