Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
RYA Calls For Sailors for Britain's Double-handed Olympic Mixed Offshore Keelboat
11th December 2019 Northern Ireland Waters The RYA is on the hunt for sailors and boat owners interested in the new double-handed mixed offshore event that will debut at the Paris 2024 Olympics. This exciting discipline will see mixed pairs battle it out over a 4-day…
Entry is now open for Irish Sailing’s Annual Youth National Championships, taking place 16-19 April 2020 and hosted by Howth Yacht Club in County Dublin. As Afloat reported earlier, this year, for the first time, the 29er class will be joining…
Scottish Lorry Park at Stranraer - Negotiations Should Conclude 'Very Soon'
11th December 2019 Ferry Ferry operator Stena Line has said it hopes to conclude negotiations "very soon" which could allow its old port at Stranraer to be used as a lorry park. As BBC news reports, the Scottish government revealed the plans in the…
As the main gateway for trade in and out of Ireland, 2019 has been a year of exceptional progress and growth at Dublin Port on several fronts No. 11 Liffey Ferry returns The start of 2019 saw the return of…
A cargo ship en route to Dublin Port was caught in this week's storms and lost at least 12 containers overboard. The Maritime Bulletin reports that the ship 'Elbcarrier' lost the containers in the Celtic Sea on the afternoon of…
“Stop for a quick apple and orange drink. Paddle on in flat water. Stop for cake and try throwing a lifebelt onto a beach...” “ Arrive Courtown at about 11.15 to champagne and a congratulations cake reception! A lifetime trip…
Five Injured Crew Airlifted From Irish Cargo Ship In Bay Of Biscay
11th December 2019 Ports & Shipping Five crew were evacuated from an Irish cargo vessel yesterday (Tuesday 10 December) after encountering rough seas in the Bay of Biscay, as Maritime Bulletin reports. The Arklow Day has previously left Aviles Port in northwest Spain on Monday evening…
Significant Increase in Number of Fish Kills in 2018 with More Predicted in Years to Come
10th December 2019 Inland Waterways Inland Fisheries Ireland has noted with concern the latest findings from the Water Quality in Ireland Report for the period 2013-2018, published today by the EPA. The report shows a decline in river quality and a further loss of pristine…
Artemis Technologies, the world’s leading high-performance maritime design and applied technologies company, will collaborate with Tuco Marine Group to integrate its new electric eFoiler propulsion system into an 11m carbon fibre vessel. This will serve as a demonstrator vessel as…
Protest At Leinster House Highlights Concerns Over Future Of Ireland’s Commercial Fishing
10th December 2019 Fishing Campaigners assembled at the gates of Leinster House yesterday to call for an end to overfishing in Ireland’s waters. As RTÉ News reports, the Extinction Rebellion movement teamed up with the Irish Wildlife Trust for the demonstration, which featured two…
A naval officer says it is high time that the State defends its critical national infrastructure by protecting the transatlantic cables that pass through Irish waters. As the Irish Examiner reports, Lieutenant Shane Mulcahy, attached to the Naval Operations Command…
Rip Current Possible Cause Of North Coast Drowning Tragedy
10th December 2019 Northern Ireland Waters A sudden and violent rip current may have been the cause of a tragedy at a Northern Ireland beach in which one woman drowned, an expert has said. Two women, part of a group of experienced cold water sea swimmers,…
Galway Sailors Will Give Their Own Connemara the Visitor Treatment
10th December 2019 Galway Harbour One of the great successes of the 2019 season was the Galway-Lorient Cruise-in-Company in July to celebrate the ancient seaborn links between the City of the Tribes and the historic port and Celtic centre of South Brittany on France's Biscay…
Changing The "Conversation" on the Ocean Environment - Science & Art Combined For Multi-media Exhibition
9th December 2019 Environment Combined impacts of sea-level rise, intensification of maritime transport, depletion of coastal ecosystems and deep-sea mining are the theme of a new exhibition planned for the Italian city of Venice which aims to change the conversation about the ocean environment…
New Figures Reveal RNLI Volunteers Are Busier Than Ever Over the Festive Period
28th November 2019 RNLI Lifeboats As Christmas approaches, the RNLI is issuing its own call for help as new figures show that the charity’s volunteer lifeboat crews are more than 600% busier over the festive period compared with 40 years ago. The charity is facing…
Promoted
Top Irish boat dealer MGM Boats has added the Zodiac Inflatable and Rigid Inflatable Boat marque to the range of boats offered at its Dun Laoghaire Harbour showrooms. In announcing the new distributorship, Dublin Bay-based MGM Boats has launched a promotion on the…
There’s been a ferry across the Strangford Lough Narrows between Portaferry and Strangford for four hundred years (reputed to be the oldest continuous ferry crossing in the world) but five years ago, in celebration of the Christmas season, there appeared…
Royal Cork Cruising Boat of the Year Trophy Goes to Dufour 34 for 24 Day Cruise to 12 Ports
9th December 2019 Cruising The well attended Royal Cork Yacht Club Laying Up Supper last weekend featured some important club annual awards presentations by Admiral Pat Farnan witnessed this year by special guests from the Royal Yacht Squadron in Cowes writes Bob Bateman. Neighbouring Cork…
Three ‘megamax’ quayside cranes from China destined for the Liverpool2 container terminal in UK have been delivered to the Irish Sea port. Thee cranes according to ITJ.com, are part the second phase of the terminal project to provide additional capacity…
This is my last blog as Irish Sailing President; where did that three years go? There have been both challenges and successes but what I have enjoyed most has been getting to visit sailing centres around the country and meeting…
