Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

At the height of their fame, the unrestricted Sydney Harbour 18-footers worked on the theory that the more sail you could carry, then the faster you’d go writes W M Nixon. With serious betting going on among spectator crowds following…

One of the most unusual achievements of 2018’s Irish sailing season was the veteran gaff-rigged ketch Maybird’s completion of the Volvo Round Ireland Race writes W M Nixon. Built by Tyrrell of Arklow in 1937, the 43ft Maybird was superbly…

After an eleven year rebuild, last Saturday offered a first opportunity for sending up ‘Ilen’s’ entire suit of sails, save her square sail - a headwind at Limerick Docks precluded its participation. It might be observed how ‘Ilen’ seems to…

Dublin Bay has an unrivalled continuous history of One-Design sailing and racing writes W M Nixon. It runs in a golden thread all the way back to 1887, when Ben Middleton launched his little class of Water Wag dinghies to…

A new community heritage project in Co Fermanagh focuses on raising awareness and preserving the heritage of traditional boat building and the cultural heritage of the people who lived on and around the shores of Lough Erne. The ERNE Programme,…

Yachts are marvels of engineering…. So I have been told – many times – at boat shows; by designers; builders; by sales staff; by sailors, amateur and professional; by proud owners….. Yachts are also nice to look at … I’ve…

Joseph Conrad wrote many stories and novels with a nautical setting, based on his time in the British and French merchant marine and in the old sailing ships. They depict trials of the human spirit and one of his memorable…

Tim Magennis, the doyen of the traditional and classic boat movement on Ireland’s east coast, and one of the main movers in many significant historic sailing events in Ireland and the Irish Sea, was acclaimed with elevation to Honorary Life…

#historicboats - A plan to turn a former Irish Sea passenger ferry in north Wales along the Flintshire coast into a zombie attraction have been postponed. The Duke of Lancaster ship in the Dee estuary writes BBC News has been…

#OnTV - A new four-part documentary series on the people of Ireland’s west who keep the Galway Hooker sailing tradition alive behind tomorrow night (Thursday 10 January) at 8pm on TG4. Bádóirí provides an insight into seven Connemara families, part of…

The Cork Harbour based Community based boatyard 'Meitheal Mara' is seeking applications for the position of Marketing, PR and Programme Coordinator plus a Maritime Event Coordinator for the 2019 Cork Harbour Festival. These are temporary positions and full details are given…

In ancient Greece, the Halcyon Days were a mythological seven day period of calm clear weather at the mid-winter Solstice writes W M Nixon. Down Limerick way, they’ve been making the best of the Halcyon Days, with the blue River…

Darryl Hughes is so completely identified with his classic 43ft 1937 Tyrrell-built ketch Maybird (whose superb restoration he project-managed himself) that, as Maybird shares her home port between Crosshaven in Cork and Poolbeg in Dublin, both places can claim this…

Darryl Hughes’ renowned 43ft ketch Maybird, built by Tyrrell of Arklow in 1937 and superbly restored in substantial works project-managed by the owner himself in 2009-2011, has had – at 81 years old - probably her best year ever for…

#HistoricBoats - As the trumpeter sounded the Last Post reports the Evening Echo, it was an emotional time as those attendent and sang ‘Abide With Me’, while the names of five men who died in Cork Harbour just before Christmas…

#HistoricShips - One of Liverpool’s most significant historic vessels will have a more secure future thanks to a donation from the the operator of the UK north-west port, the Peel Ports Group. The safeguarding of the steam-powered former tug Daniel…