Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

#loophead – Former RTE newsreader and lighthouse enthusiast, Anne Doyle was in West Clare today where she joined Councillor John Crowe, Cathaoirleach of Clare County Council, in launching Loop Head Lighthouse's 2015 tourist season. The historic landmark commenced its 5th…

#isaf – The ISAF Sailing World Championships in Aarhus in 2018 will be the biggest World Championships ever. This was the message when the contract was signed today between the organisers and the International Sailing Federation, ISAF. It will be…

#Nepal - A British woman who previously raced SB3s on the Irish sailing circuit has spoken of her miracle escape from an avalanche at Mount Everest during last weekend's Nepal earthquake disaster. As the Daily Telegraph reports, Selina Dicker from…

#ports – Minister for Transport, Tourism & Sport, Paschal Donohoe TD will shortly publish a new Bill to provide for the transfer to local authority control of the five Ports of Regional Significance – Drogheda, Dún Laoghaire, Galway, New Ross and…

#dbscfireball – Six Fireballs rocked up for the first DBSC Tuesday race last night and were treated to two snappy W–L races in the harbour writes Frank Miller. Earlier the signs were not looking good, the day was very gusty…

#DublinBay - Dublin Bay was we know it today looked very different three centuries ago, as TheJournal.ie highlights with a selection of enlightening historical maps. As reported yesterday on Afloat.ie, this week marks the 300th anniversary of the decision to…

#GalwayBay - A new mackerel-themed maritime festival has been proposed for Galway Bay this autumn – as the latest industry figures show tourism in the region is heavily concentrated in the summer months. The Connacht Tribune reports on the 'Mackerel…

#dbsclaser – The first DBSC Tuesday Laser dinghy race drew a really encouraging turnout of 15 boats, 14 of which were Full rigs (more Radials expected post exams). Race Officer Ian Matthews wisely kept the fleet inside Dun Laoghaire Harbour…

#dbsc – CRUISERS 3 Tuesday - 1. Wynward (W McCormack), 2. Grasshopper II (K & J Glynn), 3. Pamafe (M Costello) Ensign - 1. INSS (K Rumball), 2. INSS 2 (G Williams), 3. INSS 2 () FIREBALL Race 1- 1.…

#Rio2016 - Annalise Murphy, James Espey, Ryan Seaton and Matt McGovern are already Rio-bound - but could their sailing venue at the 2016 Olympics be moved out of Guanabara Bay? That's what the sport's world governing body has threatened to…

#CoastalNotes - The video above is not a coastal distress flare, but a 'fireball' from space burning up as it enters the atmosphere far above Ireland. A flurry of reports from concerned members of the public received by the Irish…

#biodiversity – Students from Kilfinane National School gathered along the banks of the River Loobagh in Limerick yesterday (Monday) as part of a new environmental education initiative being administered by Limerick City & County Council. 'StreamScapes Loobagh' is aimed at…

#ConferenceKetch – The Irish Whale & Dolphin Group's ketch, Celtic Mist previously owned by former Taoiseach Charles Haughey is to call to Dublin quays tomorrow as part of the Dublin Bay Conference, writes Jehan Ashmore. Three hundred years ago this…

#hyc – The 2015 sailing of Howth Yacht Club's one-hundred-and-eleven-year-old annual Lambay Race will see a new major sponsor in the form of Davy Stockbrokers. And for the first time in many years, its date of Saturday 6th June has…

#lambayrace – Howth Yacht Club's annual Lambay Race has developed over the years into the premier sailing celebration of the coast of Fingal writes W M Nixon. Indeed, there are few places in Ireland which can offer such a beautifully straightforward…

#LondonGatewayUASC – The London Gateway, the UK's newest deep-sea hub port as previously reported on Afloat.ie, has this month seen the United Arab Shipping Company (UASC) start services on the South America 2 service (SAM2). The UASC offering is part…

#DublinPort - Three hundred years ago this week, the decision was made by the Dublin City Assembly to build an embankment from Ringsend into Dublin Bay, in an effort to solve the centuries-old problem of silting in the main channels…

#gp14 – The GP14's kicked off the season with the Riocard O'Tiarnaigh Challenge sailed at Swords Sailing Club on the weekend of the 18th and 19th of April. A total of 20 boats turned up to compete for the championship…

#sb20 – There was not much enthusiasm on the SB20 dock Saturday morning due to the wet and dreary climate. The breeze of 20 to 25 knots in the first race soon brightened up everybody's mood once the kites went…

#sb20 – Stephen Lee (SB20 - 3484) went overboard at the SB20 sportsboat Eastern championships in Howth at the weekend. Here he describes the lessons learnt from his early season 'salt water bath' on Saturday. Firstly, let me make it absolutely…