Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

Northern Ireland surfing pro Al Mennie was among the volunteers who joined fire fighters battling a gorse blaze on Castlerock Beach in Co Derry last night (Tuesday 30 March). As the Belfast Telegraph reports, 40-year-old Mennie was out catching the…

Additional funding for a long-proposed National Surf Centre of Excellence in Strandhill has been welcomed, as the Sligo Champion reports. Fáilte Ireland has approved an additional grant of €321,468 for the project in a move hailed as positive news for…

A new documentary celebrating one of the few women big wave surfers to conquer the incredible swells at Nazaré in Portugal is screening next weekend as part of the virtual Virgin Media Dublin International Film Festival. BIGvsSMALL follows courageous Portuguese…

Portrush RNLI’s volunteers rescued two surfers who got into difficulty while surfing at Co Antrim’s East Strand earlier today (Monday 1 February). The inshore lifeboat launched before 1.30pm following a number of 999 calls to both the coastguard and the…

Saturday's strong northeasterly winds that kicked up such a storm in the south of Dublin Bay (as our photos of the Dun Laoghaire baths site showed) also presented some ideal surf conditions for Stand Up Paddleboarders (SUPs) in the north-west of…

A surfer has spoken about his rescue of an “exhausted” and “marooned” sheep at risk of drowning off Lahinch, as Farming Independent reports. Johnny Casey had been catching waves off the Co Clare town when he spotted the distressed sheep…

It was an opportunity too big to miss: the biggest waves ever seen at a spot already renowned for significant swells. But big wave surfer Conor Maguire wasn’t taking any chances, making sure to consult with the proper authorities before…

A Status Orange weather warning is in place for all Irish coastal waters and the Irish Sea as strong gales are set to develop overnight with the arrival of Storm Aiden, the first of the new storm season. Met Éireann…

Despite her move into academia, Easkey Britton says she is still “in a surfing way of life”. The Donegal-reared women’s surfing pioneer was recently profiled by BBC Sport, and explained how her experiences on the waves put her “on the…

Aberdeen’s two RNLI lifeboats launched minutes apart around 9am this morning (Sunday 27 September) to a report of two surfers in danger at the entrance to Aberdeen Harbour in Eastern Scotland. It emerged that the surfers had paddled out beyond…

Surfing schools in Ireland do a brisk trade in helping novices of all abilities to ride the waves. Putting that notion to the test recently was Irish Times columnist Joanne O’Riordan, who was born without limbs, as she discovered the…

A surfer from Northern Ireland got more than he bargained for when he was chased by a pod of killer whales off Donegal last week. As the News Letter reports, Derry man Ryan Vail was catching waves off Culdaff on…

A local surfing school instructor raced to the rescue of a teenage boy caught in a rip current off a Co Cork beach at the weekend, as CorkBeo reports. Luke Chambers of the Swell Surf School was with a surf…

How to improve surfing with “pop-up” training is one of a number of “online” activities that a north Mayo Gaeltacht outdoor pursuits centre is offering to students this summer, The Irish Independent reports. Coláiste Uisce, which teaches surfing, sailing, windsurfing…

Surfing schools have appealed to the Government to extend the Covid-19 wage subsidy scheme to their sector, as surfers return to the water. They have also called on Minister for Tourism Shane Ross to lower the VAT rate for surf…

A surfing quartet got up close with a school of basking sharks off Co Clare at the weekend, as the Irish Examiner reports. The surfers had brought a GoPro camera to video their wave-riding exploits, which came in handy to…