These were the dramatic scenes as a lifeboat crew rescued the six crew of a charter yacht after it became stranded in Loch Ness today.

The vessel was forced onto a spit by strong winds during the Bank Holiday sailing.

An RNLI lifeboat crew made up of volunteers from Drumnadrochit, Inverness-shire, were paged to rescue the charter yacht and it's six crew when strong winds forced the craft onto a spit.

The crew, two women and a man, rode the waves in the Atlantic 75 class lifeboat shortly after 1.30pm before one of the team, Joy Cameron, went aboard the yacht.

After confirming its crew were uninjured and that the vessel was not taking on water, a tow line was thrown to the casualty vessel and it was secured.

Towed into deep water, the yacht was able to restart it's engines and the lifeboat team then escorted it back into the safe waters of moorings at Fort Augustus.

Nobody was injured in the incident.

The incident was among a number of lifeboat call-outs around Scotland's coastline over the Easter holiday, as people took to the waters in the good weather.

RNLI Loch Ness lifeboat volunteer Jacqui MacFeat said: "This was my first rescue as a member of the team and it was good to feel confident that our training and skills can make such a difference when people are in peril".

Fort Augustus Coastguard Rescue Officers were on hand to assist with berthing and to offer advice to the yacht's crew.

The whole operation was coordinated by the duty watch team in Aberdeen Coastguard Centre.