Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
First Ever Direct Ireland-Continental Europe Ferry Service Launched Half A Century Ago
17th May 2018 Ferry
#FerryNews - The first ever direct Ireland-mainland continental Europe ferry service began on this date 50 years ago when on 17 May, 1968, M.V. Leopard made a historic crossing from Rosslare to Le Havre, France, writes Jehan Ashmore. The pioneering…
Seven Beaches In Dublin & Galway Rated ‘Poor’ In Annual Bathing Water Report
17th May 2018 Coastal Notes
#CoastalNotes - Seven beaches in Dublin and Galway have failed to meet the EU’s minimum standards for bathing water quality. That’s according to the latest Bathing Water Quality in Ireland report from the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which identifies Sandymount…
If you’re refreshing your boat for the summer sailing and cruising season, look no further than Viking Marine and their new range of paints, varnish and antifoul treatments. AkzoNobel’s International Cruise 250 is a polishing antifouling gloss paint providing quality…
Ballyholme Yacht Club to Host First Flying Fifteen East Coast Championships for Many Years
17th May 2018 Flying Fifteen
Excitement is building for the first regional event of the season for the ever popular Flying Fifteen class. With good numbers turning out at club level in Dublin and Strangford Lough in particular they now take to the road and…
The Irish GP14 dinghy fleet returned to Donaghadee in County Down, Northern Ireland for the 2018 Ulster Championships on a sunny Saturday afternoon last weekend. The OOD Ruan O’Tiarnaigh got the first race off at 12pm in a moderate breeze. Ger…
Marine Notice: Nearshore Technical Survey For ‘Celtic Interconnector’ Off East Cork
17th May 2018 Coastal Notes
#MarineNotice - The Sandpiper jack-up platform is conducting nearshore geotechnical survey operations associated with the proposed Celtic Interconnector on behalf of EirGrid south of East Cork. Similar to last autumn’s nearshore survey, the operations are taking place at three coastal…
Dun Laoghaire Coastguard Rescues Dog Walker Cut Off By Tide On Merrion Strand
17th May 2018 Dun Laoghaire Harbour News
#Coastguard - Dun Laoghaire Coast Guard was alerted at 10am yesterday morning (Wednesday 16 May) to respond to a woman and her dog who were cut off by the tide on Merrion Strand, near the seaward side of the Dublin…
Galway Mayor Says Bonham Docks Development Would Represent Major Step Forward for City
17th May 2018 Waterfront Property
#WaterfrontProperty - Mayor of Galway councillor Pearce Flannery, says the proposed €100 million development at the Docks would be a major step forward for the city. His observation writes Galway Bay FM, was made at day two of the oral…
#FerryNews - The Manx public should have the chance to share in the fortunes of the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company in the years to come. That's the view of Ramsey Member of the House of Keys (MHK) Lawrie…
#CruiseLiners - Ultra-luxury expedition cruiseship, Silver Cloud anchored in Galway Bay recently as part of clockwise tour of Ireland and where today the ship is docked in Killybegs, writes Jehan Ashmore. The call off the Port of Galway on Tuesday was…
After much debate at World Sailing’s Mid-Year Meeting, a new program of ten Events have been confirmed. While 7 Events at Tokyo 2020 will continue, there are three new events but little other detail, according to Craig Leweck in Scuttlebutt. …
Why do Irish Sailors Ignore a Free Irish-Developed Safety Rescue System?
17th May 2018 Tom MacSweeney
Why would anyone ignore an offer of a free system that can make sailing, boating, kayaking, canoeing and other water-based activities safer? I don’t know the answer to that, but maybe there is some reader of Afloat.ie who will tell…
#Rowing: The Coupe de la Jeunesse will be hosted by Ireland this year. Young rowers from Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Great Britain, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, Portugal, Spain, Switzerland and all across Ireland will compete at the…
#OurOceanWealth - Optimising, commercialising, managing and protecting Ireland’s multi-billion-euro ’blue economy’ is the focus of the 2018 Our Ocean Wealth Summit in Galway on 28-29 June. Speaking at the launch of the Our Ocean Wealth Summit, this year under the…
Deeper Water Dumping Might Be Solution To Dublin Bay Dredging Issues Says Diver
16th May 2018 Dredging
#DublinBay - The dumping of sewage sludge in deeper waters beyond the Kish Bank “might well serve as a model” for the current dredging of Dublin Port. In a letter to The Irish Times earlier this week, Cormac F Lowth,…
UK's Largest Cruiseport of Southampton Home to First 'Carbon Neutral' Cruise Terminal
16th May 2018 Cruise Liners
#CruiseLiners - The UK's main cruiseport Associated British Ports (ABP) Southampton, annually handles 1.7m passengers, has completed a major milestone in a programme to invest more than £1 million in solar energy on ABP-owned buildings. According to ABP Ports, this…
Workshops Begin Next Week On Developing The Royal Canal As A Destination
16th May 2018 Inland Waterways
#InlandWaters - Tourism and activity providers along with local communities along the route are invited to attend a series of workshops aimed at developing the Royal Canal as an attraction for domestic tourism and visitors from abroad. Coming ahead of…
Was it luck or destiny that the weather finally, finally provided a break and the sun shone on the Mayo Sailing Club’s recent Open Day at Rosmoney near Westport? Members arrived early to mount flags and banners, stoke up the…
#RNLI - Ballyglass RNLI’s lifeboat crew had an unusual callout on Monday evening (14 May) when they were launched to recover a runaway barge that had drifted to the Mayo coast across the Atlantic from Canada more than 3,000km away. The…
#FerryNews - Tynwald, the Manx Parliament made history as it voted to take the Isle of Man Steam Packet into public ownership. According to IOM Today, following a three hour debate, Tynwald voted by 23 votes to one in the…
