Menu

Ireland's sailing, boating & maritime magazine

afloat headers waterport

News on Irish Rowing, Angling, Waterskiing, Canoeing, Diving and Sea Swimming
Portaferry RNLI inshore lifeboat
Portaferry RNLI inshore lifeboat was launched on Monday evening to assist a 6-meter fishing vessel which had suffered engine failure close to the Bar Buoy at the entrance into Strangford Lough. Belfast Coastguard requested the launch of the lifeboat at…
investigative journalist Kevin Magee
A long-running dispute over fishing rights around Rockall could be resolved following fresh discussions with the Irish authorities, the Scottish Government has told TG4. In a statement to the broadcaster’s investigative series, Iniúchadh TG4, a Scottish government spokesperson said that…
File image of Henry Street Jetty on the River Erne in Enniskillen
Waterways Ireland advises masters of vessels on users of the Erne System in Northern Ireland that the downstream section of the Henry Street Floating Jetty in Enniskillen will be closed from this Sunday 21 to next Friday 26 April. This…
The remnants of the two rowing boats involved in the Corrib rowing training that went wrong
The Marine Casualty Investigation Board (MCIB) has said that a training session which went wrong on the river Corrib and resulted in the loss of two competitive rowing craft “posed a threat of death or serious injury” to those involved.…
Greek prime minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis
Greece says it plans to become the first EU state to ban bottom trawling in all of its marine protected areas (MPAs) by 2030. Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis made the announcement this week at the “Our Ocean” conference in…
Jake McCarthy (Skibbereen RC) will row for Ireland in the Lightweight Men’s Single at the 2024 European Championships in Szeged, Hungary
Rowing Ireland has announced the athletes that will represent Ireland at the European Championships. Racing will take place from the 25th April – 28th April in Szeged, Hungary. The Szeged National Canoeing and Rowing Olympic Centre has an eight-lane rowing…
An exchange programme to improve co-operation in the “fight” against illegal, unreported and unregulated (IUU) fishing has been initiated by the European Fisheries Control Agency (EFCA). The EU-funded e-FishMed project involves fisheries inspectors and operators of Fisheries Monitoring Centres (FMC)…
A key decision is awaited on plans to sink the small ship MV Shingle off the Mayo coast, creating an artificial reef for tourism. The vessel was arrested in 2014 for smuggling, had been idle in Dublin Port (as above in Afloat’s photo) for almost a decade until last year, and is currently in dry dock at New Ross Boatyard.
A tourism project in Co. Mayo is waiting to hear if a decision will lead it to receiving a licence to tow a small ship into Killala Bay as part of a plan to create an artificial reef, reports the…
Irish rowers Fiona Murtagh and Airfic Keogh, with silver medals for the Women's Pair won at the World Cup Rowing at Lago di Varese, Italy
Irish rowers Fiona Murtagh and Airfic Keogh are taking home the silver medals for the Women's Pair and the Men's Double of Philip Doyle and Daire Lynch are also coming home with silverware after winning bronze. Up against reigning World Champions…
Sanita Puspure of Old Collegians BC is back racing for medals in the Women's Single after qualifying today for the A Final
After a few miserable days in the lead-up to Rowing World Cup racing in Lago di Varese, Italy -, the sun finally shone on Lago di Varese as day two of the World Rowing Cup II got underway. The regatta…
Adrian and Diane Walsh and their son Kieran of BalllyCotton Seafood
An east Cork seafood company is to invest over a million euro in an upgrade with grant-aid from a Brexit-related capital support scheme. BalllyCotton Seafood is upgrading its production facilities and improving automation and efficiencies at its headquarters in Garryvoe.…
The Ireland Women's Four of Emily Hegarty, Natalie Long, Eimear Lambe, and Imogen Magner clinched first place in their heat at the 2024 World Cup I - Day 1 in Italy
The 2024 international rowing season has officially begun with the first World Cup in Italy, and the Irish crews have made their presence felt right from the start. The Women's Four of Emily Hegarty, Natalie Long, Eimear Lambe, and Imogen…
File image of the RV Celtic Explorer, one of the Marine Institute’s two active research vessels
Following the first and second legs in February and March, the third leg of this year’s Irish Anglerfish and Megrim Survey (IAMS 2024) is being carried out from Friday 12 to Sunday 21 April. Surveys will be conducted to the…
Pictured at the announcement of the launch of the 2024  BIM Innovation Studio are, Left to Right: Jessica Giannoumis, Aquatech Community Manager, Hatch Blue; Richard Donnelly, Director of Development and Innovation, BIM; Wayne Murphy, Co-Founder of Hatch Blue; Caroline Bocquel, CEO BIM and Colm Lynch, CEO of Aquamonitrix, winner of the 2023 BIM Aquatech Business of the Year
Aquatech businesses are urged to apply for a new mentoring programme which Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) describes as “groundbreaking”. The sector has just attracted a €15 million investment from the Ireland Strategic Investment Fund (ISIF), according to BIM. Minister for…
BIM conducts an annual online survey inviting all active vessels to submit economic, employment, and operational details for their previous year’s activity
Fishermen in Ireland have responded in record numbers to the latest National Seafood Survey for fisheries, with more than 500 surveys completed by vessel owners, more than double the survey returns from last year and the highest response rate achieved…
File image of the River Clare at Cregmore, Co Galway
Minister for Environment, Climate and Communications, Eamon Ryan has made the following order and bye-laws as of Thursday 11 April: 1. Control of Fishing for Salmon (Amendment) Order S.I. No. 81 of 2024 This order authorises the issue of commercial…

If it's happening on Irish waters we're aiming to cover it. This page covers Angling, Canoeing, Fishing, Diving, Kayaking, Kitesurfing, Open Sea Swimming Surfing, Rowing and Waterskiing. It's pretty comprehensive but we're keen on expansion!

If you have ideas for our pages we'd love to hear from you. Please email us at [email protected]