Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

#Detention - Among the reasons cited for the detention of a cruiseship in Dublin Port which has remained docked for almost three weeks, Afloat can now reveal chiefly concerned the condition of the ship's lifeboats, writes Jehan Ashmore. According to…

The Dun Laoghaire Motor Yacht Club has announced the 2018 edition of its Kish Lighthouse Race will be known as “100 Boats for 100 Years”, reflecting the forthcoming commemoration of the centenary of the sinking of the RMS Leinster with…

#Angling - Nigel Greene was the big winner at the World Cup Trout Fly Angling Championships on Lough Mask over the August Bank Holiday, as Derek Evans writes for The Irish Times. The Fermanagh fly fisherman bested a field of…

#CruiseLiners - The deep blue-hulled Marco Polo, Cruise & Maritime Voyages veteran vessel as Afloat previously featured calling to Irish ports is among seven cruiseships that will use the UK Port of Hull this season, writes Jehan Ashmore. The North…

#Harbours - Works on the €23.5 million quay extension at Castletownbere Fishery Harbour Centre are due to begin by September. As previously reported on Afloat.ie, Marine Minister Michael Creed attended the signing of the contract for the 216-metre Dinish Wharf extension with…

The anticipated freshening sou’westers have been taking their toll as the Sevenstar fleet race along Ireland’s Atlantic seaboard writes W M Nixon. On-water leader Corum (Nicolas Troussel) – having been hitting speeds of 16 knots once she’d the Blaskets astern…

#RNLI - Hours after rescuing a family of five from their grounded yacht, Skerries RNLI launched to the aid of a teenager blown out to sea on a stand-up paddle board yesterday evening (Tuesday 14 August). Skerries RNLI was tasked along…

The historic 45ft ketch Aigh Vie, built in the Isle of Man in 1916 as an anonymous gift for a fishing skipper who had saved many lives after the sinking of the Transatlantic liner Lusitania in May 1915, is now…

Heading into the third night of the 1805-mile RORC Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race, Ireland’s Atlantic seaboard is starting to provide the kind of speed sailing in which the pace-setters in Class 40 excel writes W M Nixon. With…

#Coastal Rowing: The inaugural Irish Coastal Rowing Championships will take place this Saturday and Sunday, August 18th and 19th at the National Rowing Centre in Farran Wood, Cork. Clubs from all four provinces are set to compete.  Eddie Farr, chair…

The recent €1.5m into High-Performance sport has been given a broad welcome, but both sailing and rowing got a share well below their medal-winning performances in Rio. It means these sports will most likely view the announcement as the proverbial…

#Detention - A Maltese-flagged cruiseship still remains under detention in Dublin Port having arrived in the capital almost three weeks ago, writes Jehan Ashmore. Authorities, Paris MoU, the official body responsible for eliminating the operation of sub-standard ships (see list) detained…

#RNLI - Clifden RNLI’s D class lifeboat Celia Mary was on exercise at Glassilaun Beach for the annual sports day on Sunday (12 August) when it was alerted to a group of people cut off by the tide. The inshore lifeboat…

#RNLI - Last Wednesday evening (8 August), two men enjoying an evening’s fishing on their speedboat near Groomsport in Co Down hit rocks and lost their propeller. Bangor RNLI were quickly called to the scene for what was described as “a…

Tomorrow, Wednesday, 15 August, marks Gregor McGuckin’s 32nd birthday. The solo sailor is now 44 days into what could be a 270 day non-stop voyage around the globe onboard his 36ft yacht Hanley Energy Endurance. McGuckin is currently making his…

#Shipyards -  An Irish Sea based shipbuilder on Merseyside, Cammell Laird in Birkenhead has unveiled a new website for a cutting-edge warship, the 'Leander' Frigate, in a bid to capitalise on growing interest from navies around the world. The BAE…

#RNLI - A family of five were rescued by Skerries RNLI in the early hours of this morning (Tuesday 14 August) after their yacht ran aground at the North Co Dublin town’s harbour. As RTÉ News reports, the family, who are…

After the second night at sea in the RORC Sevenstar Round Britain & Ireland Race, the fleet find themselves still slugging to windward in the area west and northwest of the Isles of Scilly writes W M Nixon. They’re in…

#CoastalNotes - Eugene Garrihy a Clare businessman writes The Irish Examiner has criticised the results of a new survey that has labelled Doolin a “litter blackspot." Mr Garrihy, father of Dancing with the Stars celeb and Fair City actor Aoibheann…

#ICRA - All three boats on the podium at Cork Week last month demonstrate the benefits of not only rig tuning but also focused coaching, according to Mark Mansfield. The UK Sailmakers racing consultant and four-time Olympian, who shared a…