Sydney  - A pair of Australian sailors who accepted a lift to China on a cargo vessel after abandoning their crippled catamaran learned Friday that they might have given up hope too soon.

The yachtsmen deserted the Mai Tai last week while 800 kilometres north of Darwin on the return leg of a trip to Indonesia.

They hitched a ride on a passing China-bound cargo vessel, never expecting to see the Mai Tai again.

David Woodhouse, a fellow competitor in the Darwin-to-Ambon race, reported that their vessel fared rather well without them.

It washed up on a beach on an island west of Ambon and was being looked after by fishermen.

"It's an amazing story," Woodhouse said. "When you go to sea, you don't expect it, but these things do happen."

The pair, who were expected to return home from China next week, might now head instead to Ambon, one of Indonesia's Maluku Islands, to inspect the craft they gave up for dead. (dpa)