Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe was rescued by the Coast Guard after becoming lost on his kayak in Huntington Bay

Oscar-winning actor Russell Crowe was rescued by the Coast Guard after becoming lost on his kayak in Huntington Bay, Long Island Sound

The 48-year-old actor was kayaking with a friend and launched from Cold Spring Harbor Saturday afternoon on New York’s Long Island Sound, Coast Guard Petty Officer Robert Swieciki told the Associated Press.

As it got dark, the two got lost and eventually headed for shore, beaching their kayaks in Huntington Bay nearly 10 miles east from where they had set out.

The Coast Guard was patrolling the area and heard Crowe call out to them from the shore about 10 p.m., Swieciki said. The “Gladiator” actor and his friend, who Swieciki didn’t recognize, paddled over to the boat. The Coast Guard officers pulled them up and, along with their kayaks, gave them a ride to Huntington Harbor.

“He just needed a little bit of help. He just got a little lost,” Swieciki told the AP. “It wasn’t really a rescue, really, more of just giving someone a lift.”

Swieicki said no one was injured, and the two men were wearing life vests. He said the actor, who was grateful and friendly, seemed as if he was a fairly experienced kayaker.

“It is common for the Coast Guard to assist boaters like this, but it was very cool to help Russell Crowe and his friend,” Swieciki, the boat coxswain for the case, said in a press release.

Crowe sent a Twitter message about 1:30 a.m. Sunday thanking the officers and saying he was out on the water 4-1/2 hours.

"Thanks to Seth and the boys from the US Coast Guard for guiding the way...4 hrs 30 mins, 7m(11.2km)," he wrote.

Crowe is on Long Island filming a new movie called “Noah” in Oyster Bay. The biblical epic is directed by Darren Aronofsky and scheduled for release in 2014. Crowe won an Academy Award for best actor for his role as a Roman soldier named Maximus in “Gladiator.”

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