Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Sport NI’s COVID Recovery Programme for Sports Organisations is now open for applications with a closing date of noon on Friday 28 January. The programme will support eligible organisations in Northern Ireland which have been negatively affected by the COVID…

As part of the Loughs Agency’s annual redd counting on the River Roe and its tributaries in Northern Ireland, underwater cameras were successfully deployed and have captured footage of salmon spawning activity. Mark McCauley, freshwater fisheries biologist with the agency,…

Northern Ireland campaigners are mounting a legal challenge over a Stormont minister’s approval for a gas storage project in Islandmagee near a key Game of Thrones filming location, according to BelfastLive. InfraStrata’s long-gestating plans to carve salt caves for gas…

Lee Maginnis notes the 200th anniversary of the great granite Haulbowline Lighthouse on the County Louth coast will be in 2024 Haulbowline Lighthouse, that feat of granite engineering sitting on a wave-washed rock in the mouth of Carlingford Lough. Northern…

Enthusiasts of surfing, sea kayaking and coasteering are being asked to contribute to a project collecting data about Northern Ireland’s marine wildlife. As the Coleraine Chronicle reports, National Museums NI’s Centre for Environmental Data and Recording (CEDaR) hopes that the North…

The Community Rescue Service (CRS) is a charitable search and rescue organisation operated by volunteers from communities across Northern Ireland and in the Queen’s New Year Honours the Regional Commander, Sean McCarry, from Co. Antrim, has been made an OBE…

Topper racer Connie Wilson, who sails out of East Antrim Boat Club in Northern Ireland, is one of 14 young sailors across the UK who have been awarded their own boats and boards donated by the John Merricks Sailing Trust.…

Carrickfergus sailor Bob Harper has stepped down from his role of RYA Northern Ireland sailability coordinator. Harper took up the role in 2003 and over the last 18 years he has worked with clubs and centres across Northern Ireland as…

Between 2012 and 2014, each spring the Loughs Agency — in partnership with Woodland Trust and with the agreement of local landowners — planted 10,000 mixed-species native trees along both banks of the River Roe in Northern Ireland. This section…

A combination of rain, mist and flat calm meant a 30-minute postponement by Race Officer Richard Doig for the East Antrim Boat Club Christmas Regatta yesterday (27th). But that didn’t dampen the enthusiasm of the 37 starters. As forecast, the…

Two open water swimmers who got into difficulty during their Christmas Day swim near Bangor in Northern Ireland have been praised for wearing kit that made it easier to find them. The pair were reported to be having problems in…

Great patience was required from the 44 youngsters competing in the 39 dinghies at the Ballyholme Yacht Club Cadet Christmas Regatta as wind was scarce on Belfast Lough. But persist they did in a variety of dinghies – Toppers, Picos,…

Gone are the days when sail racing was a summer sport and regattas only ran in the warmer months on Belfast Lough. Now even young sailors are afloat virtually all year. Forty-six entered Part One of the Junior Icebreaker series…

Santa Claus had to make his own way back from Rathlin Island yesterday afternoon (Sunday 19 December) after the volunteer lifeboat crew from Red Bay RNLI were diverted to go to the aid of a fishing trawler. The 25-metre trawler…

Investment in a two-mile stretch of Bangor Waterfront on Belfast Lough is part of the recently announced £1billion Belfast City Deal funding. Plans already published for Bangor Waterfront aim to “reconnect the town with the sea through a range of…

Ards and North Down Council has warned the public that Hemlock Water Dropwort, also known as ‘Poisonous Parsnip’ has washed up on Groomsport beach where it was seen and reported by a member of the public. Groomsport is about two…