Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

The old minesweeper HMS Enterprise has all but submerged in Kilkeel Harbour in Northern Ireland, as Afloat.ie reader Lee Maginnis has shared with his. His recent images of the vessel show a significant degradation from the last update in autumn…

For less than the price of a modest Dublin home, you might get to own your very own private island on Lough Erne, as BelfastLive reports. Long Island — which lies just minutes by boat from Lough Erne Yacht Club…

The North West Angling Fair will host to some of the world’s finest fly casters at this year’s event, taking place at the Melvin Sport Complex in Strabane, Co Tyrone on the weekend of 1-2 April with free admission. Names…

A pilot scheme on Strangford Lough, which is trying to stimulate seagrass growth on the seabed by testing alternative mooring systems, has been reported by BBC News NI. Last April, Afloat highlighted a project initiated by the Strangford and Lecale…

Four sailors have been inducted into RYA Northern Ireland’s Hall of Fame at a special gathering in Belfast. Sailors, club members, and sports representatives from right across NI joined together in Belfast for its first-ever Hall of Fame and the launch of…

The sport of sailing in County Antrim is in fine form, with two sailors winning awards at the Sportsperson of the Year event run by the Mid and East Antrim Council. Calum Pollard from County Antrim Yacht Club in Whitehead…

Leading high-performance maritime design and applied technologies company, Artemis Technologies, has been named among the winners at the prestigious 2023 Maritime UK Awards.   Beating stiff competition from UK counterparts, the Belfast-based company received the Innovation award in front of 400 people at a ceremony…

Four Short Stories is Tom Jobling’s latest book. In it, he has moved a little way from his usual nautical fiction but still delivers a character-driven book of cringe-worthy humour balanced by tales perhaps too close to be comfortable. From…

A public consultation on the Loughs Agency’s angling and fisheries improvement strategy and action plans for Foyle and Carlingford has been launched. The consultation, which will run for a period of eight weeks, will provide members of the public with…

Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels and waterways users on the Erne System that water-based activities will take place at the Fermanagh Lakeland Forum area of Broadmeadow, Enniskillen on St Patrick’s Day this Friday 17 March. Boat trips, canoeing, water…

Race Officer Gerry Reid and the race team at RNIYC must be on good terms with the weather Gods as the snow melted away to leave a dry, almost balmy ten degrees and a steady(ish) force three building to a…

Water quality activists have alleged that people are “getting ill” after swimming at beaches in Northern Ireland, as BelfastLive reports. Campaign group Surfers Against Sewage suggests that the public is being let down by NI’s water testing system, which currently…

The Antrim Boat Club Winter Series in north east Lough Neagh has been the premier event for the Club since 1969 and this year, with the blessing of the late Pat Kelly’s family, the club will award the Pat Kelly…

The 14-foot clinker-built dinghy has XIV on the stern, and it was sold to Paddy Prunty, ex Manager of Kinnego Marina on Lough Neagh, as a Ballyholme Insect class dinghy. In 1953, Mantis was listed as number 14 in the…

On Sunday, 05 March, Donaghadee RNLI Lifeboat volunteers were called out on service during their training exercise. The crew were completing their Sunday morning training exercise onboard the recently received relief lifeboat Macquarie when they were contacted by His Majesty's…

The Turkey/Syria Earthquake Appeal prompted Bangor Marina on Belfast Lough in Northern Ireland to engage in a fund-raising effort by organising a raffle. The ticket holders proved very generous, and Harbour Master Kevin Baird was delighted with the response. "We're…