Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Many people have dropped by the Old Cornstore on the riverside at Oldcourt in West Cork to see work progressing on the restoration of the 1926 Conor O’Brien ketch Ilen writes WM Nixon. And naturally they’ll have the impression that…

#militaryboat - Cobh-based boatbuilding company Safehaven Marine, has revealed footage of its new Barracuda vessel undergoing a high-speed boarding trial with the Irish Navy writes the Evening Echo. The Barracuda which Afloat reported of its launch in 2015 is a high…

Bill Trafford of Alchemy Marine, hidden away in the farmland of Skenakilla west of Mitchellstown in north County Cork, has carved himself a unique reputation in recent years for successfully re-imagining glassfibre boats of a certain age, and transforming them…

When the restoration project on the 1926-built 56ft Conor O’Brien/Tom Moynihan Falkland Islands Trading Ketch got under way at two locations – Liam Hegarty’s boat-building shed in the former Cornstore at Oldcourt near Baltimore, and the Ilen Boat-building School premises…

There is something almost sacred about the arts and crafts of the boat-builder writes W M Nixon. As the warm and enthusiastic response to our recent story on Afloat.ie about the veteran Wexford boat-builder Larry Duggan reaching his ninetieth birthday…

A very pleasant nostalgia-laden party in The Oar pub in Crosshaven on Friday night honoured shipwright Willie Lee, who was retiring after fifty years with Crosshaven Boatyard writes W M Nixon. In addition to colleagues past and present, the attendance…

It’s launching time at Castlepoint Boatyard at Crosshaven in Cork Harbour where I keep SCRIBBLER II. That’s my Sigma 33, named rather appropriately for a journalist/scribe, as I’ve been told. The first SCRIBBLER was a Ruffian 23, much sailed and…

ICRA has issued a notice to all Cruiser Racers attending June's Royal Cork Yacht Club National Championships this year in Cork Harbour that full lifting facilities will be available through the following suppliers: · Salve Marine is right beside the yacht…

Now hear this, all you folk who would like to make the best of the boat-building, modifying and repair potential of the famous WEST system. A workshop is being held tomorrow in Dublin by Gary Thompson from West System International’s…

A generic guide to the important differences between marine and vehicle heater systems. At this decidedly chilly time of year, the regular use and expected performance of your boat’s marine heating system will no doubt be at the forefront of…

Putting your boat away for Winter may not be the most exciting topic of this sailing season but a few jobs done right now might save you a lot next summer. Following the devastation recently caused by the first major hurricane…

It is, in my experience, an awful thing to board your boat and see the damage which has been done to it by thieves who have broken-in. That happened to me a few years ago on my mooring at Crosshaven…

We well know from running stories now and again about the restoration of the Conor O’Brien 57ft ketch Ilen at Oldcourt near Baltimore for Limerick’s Ilen Boat-building School just what a high level of interest it arouses at home and…

With just over three weeks til the clocks go forward and with the smell of antifouling in the air at Dun Laoghaire Harbour, it can only mean one thing; the Irish summer boating season is just round the corner. Boatyards…

Fitzgerald Marine is a manufacturer and importer of fibreglass boats, with purpose built warehouses and a yard on the outskirts of Kinsale, County Cork, Ireland. Established in 1988, Fitzgerald Marine has become one of the country's top producers of small…

Crosshaven Boat Yard was established almost 60 years ago. Based in Cork Harbour, the yard has a fine tradition in boat building but with changing times there has been a change of emphasis and Crosshaven Boat Yard no longer builds…