Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Team Malizia (GER) won the IMOCA In-Port Race in Alicante on Sunday afternoon (8 January) after a frenetic battle to close the first day of action in The Ocean Race 2022-23 — one that saw four of the five boats…

A lunch to celebrate Donal McClement and his sailing life in Cork and beyond will be held this April at the Rochestown Park Hotel. McClement is a stalwart of the Cork sailing community, among his many achievements co-founding Cork Week in…

Mark Mansfield of Quantum Sails Ireland with five things you should consider to get you ready for the new racing season. 1. Clear out the boat It may seem straightforward, but you would be surprised by how many boats leave…

The island folklore of Oileáin Árann has been collated on a new website by residents of Inis Mór, working with a number of academic partners. Bailiúchán Béaloidis Árann, the Árainn Folklore Project, has been “more than twenty years a-growing”, according…

A team of German scientists has suggested that offshore wind farms in the North Sea could significantly impact the ecosystem. The scientists from the Helmholtz-Zentrum Hereon Research Institute used numerical modelling to show how there could be physical disruptions to…

Deep-sea mining for scarce minerals and trace elements may have a “catastrophic impact” on the ocean floor, a study by the Irish Whale and Dolphin Group warns. The International Seabed Authority (ISA), which Ireland is a member of, “lacks transparency”,…

Directors of the Schull Community Harbour Development Company Limited (SCHDC) say they have met to discuss “next actions” and “continue to consider all options available” following the expiry of planning permission for redevelopment of the West Cork harbour. In a…

Monkstown Bay Sailing Club (MBSC) Laser Winter League 2023 got off to a blustery start in Cork Harbour on Saturday, January 7th, when the scheduled third race was cancelled as gusts hit 30 knots. James Murphy's results of two and…

The opening salvos will be fired in The Ocean Race 2022-23 on Sunday (8 January) with the start of the In-Port Race Series in Alicante. As previously noted on Afloat.ie, there will be separate races for the two different classes…

The Journal has highlighted the upcoming centenary of Irish yachtsman Conor O’Brien’s pioneering circumnavigation. In June 1923, Limerick man O’Brien set off on his yacht the Saoirse — named after the then newly created Irish Free State — on the…

Following the pre-Christmas warning over an off-station marker on the Shannon Navigation, Waterways Ireland advises that a temporary red marker has now been installed in the relevant area north of Athlone. The temporary marker is in place of the port-hand…

Tony Blair’s former spin doctor has bestowed an unusual honour upon the Port of Kinsale’s special Christmas tree. Earlier this week, Alastair Campbell named the lobster pot creation by local fisherman Eamonn O’Neill has his ‘Unusual Tree of the Day’…

The selection of Howth Yacht Club as Ireland’s latest MG Motor “Sailing Club of the Year Award” represents a remarkable harmony of achievement between the competition winners and the sponsors, with Howth Yacht Club becoming “Sailing Club of the Year…

Video has recently surfaced online of ocean researchers’ encounter in the Atlantic with an abandoned Dun Laoghaire yacht — one that was the subject of headlines a decade ago. It’s nearly 10 years since Alan McGettigan and crew were rescued…

11th Hour Racing Team’s longtime sustainability manager Damian Foxall isn’t Ireland’s only connection to the IMOCA getting ready to foil around the world in The Ocean Race 2022-23 this month. Cork sailor James O’Mahony, a veteran of two previous editions…

A new permit scheme giving non-EEA migrant fishers the same rights as EU crew members has been welcomed by the Irish Fish Producers Organisation (IFPO). The Department of Justice confirmed the new arrangements this week, which provide for a “more…

Wheelchair users have highlighted accessibility issues at the newly reopened Dun Laoghaire Baths — with the current temporary ramps deemed as too steep. As The Journal reports, one accessibility advocate described the ramps to the lower-level amphitheatre as “disgraceful”. “They…

Monkstown Bay Sailing Club's Winter Laser League in Cork Harbour begins this weekend and runs for six Saturdays until February 11th. There will be an all-in start as close as possible to the village's Sand Quay at 10.12 am, with…

North Wales ISORA champion Mojito is one of the first entries into July's Volvo Dun Laoghaire Regatta.  The Pwllheli J109 of Vicky Cox and Peter Dunlop is a regular visitor to the Irish east coast and was a big winner…

The forthcoming edition of The Ocean Race, which sets sail from Alicante on 15 January, is set to feature the most ambitious and comprehensive science programme created by a sporting event. Every boat participating in the gruelling six-month around-the-world race…