Four boys who ran away from the Vine Yard home in Rathdrum, Co Wicklow, on Sunday were found yesterday near Arklow.
A Garda spokesman said the boys - aged between nine and 14 - were walking towards Arklow when they were found. "They were wet but well. It was an adventure for them. There was nothing sinister involved."
The boys are in care at the Vine Yard, one of two group houses on the site of the former St Kyrnn's Orphanage, which burned down some years ago. There are 16 boys living in the two houses.
A spokeswoman for the Eastern Health Board said the boys disappeared at 9 p.m. on Sunday, taking food and clothes with them.
Asked if there had been any trouble at the home, the spokeswoman said: "There was no row. Each of them has a social worker looking after them. The social workers are visiting them today."