Afloat – Ireland's Sailing and Boating Magazine
The start of the ARC+ 2026 transatlantic cruising rally, which includes Ireland's Cara of the South, has been postponed by three days after forecasts of strong south-westerly winds and possible gales around the Canary Islands prompted organisers to delay the…
French skipper Corentin Horeau has extended his lead in the 21-boat IMOCA fleet on the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe, but a succession of Atlantic depressions threatens to complicate the solo race to Pointe-à-Pitre. Horeau, sailing MACSF and known…
Wicklow RNLI volunteers launched both the inshore and all-weather lifeboats on Sunday morning (1 November) following reports of two swimmers in difficulty at Blainroe, south of Wicklow Head. The Irish Coast Guard helicopter Rescue 116 from Dublin, the National Ambulance…
Youghal RNLI was involved in a multi-agency rescue on Thursday morning (5 November) after a car got into difficulty on the Waterford side of Youghal Bridge. The volunteer crew were requested to launch their inshore lifeboat at 9.04am. The lifeboat,…
The Irish Marine Federation (IMF) has met Irish Members of the European Parliament, European Commission officials and industry representatives in Brussels to ensure that Ireland's leisure marine sector is represented in the development of European policy. The meetings took place…
“What the Sea Is Telling Us” is the theme of a discussion at this weekend’s Dublin Book Festival as part of Science Week. Surfer, scientist and author Easkey Britton, novelist Roisin Maguire and writer and broadcaster Eoin Warner will join…
The Sea-Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) has issued a safety advisory identifying the reported positions of nine limestone boulders placed on the seabed in the southern North Sea by Greenpeace. The advisory, issued on Wednesday, 4th November, follows Greenpeace's deployment of…
Italy’s Andrea Rossi and his Mela crew have won the 2026 RS21 World Championship in Cannes, France, following four days of closely contested racing from 28 to 31 October. The Yacht Club de Cannes hosted a fleet described by organisers as 40 teams from…
The European Commission's new EU Sustainable Tourism Strategy has been welcomed by the European Boating Industry (EBI), which says the proposals represent significant progress on two longstanding issues for recreational boating: the mutual recognition of boating licences and investment in marina infrastructure. Published…
The RS200 class has returned to the Royal North of Ireland Yacht Club's Frostie Series as the popular winter dinghy racing event celebrates its 20th year. After numbers fell away following Covid, the RS200 fleet in Northern Ireland has shown signs of…
French skipper Damien Guillou has become the first competitor in the 2026 Golden Globe Race to pass the longitude of the Cape of Good Hope, as a succession of powerful storms and further withdrawals underline the demands facing the solo…
More than 60,000 lobsters, with a combined weight of almost 39 tonnes, were returned to Irish waters under a Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM) conservation programme in 2025 – the highest number recorded since legislation protecting V-notched lobsters was introduced 30 years ago.…
The Villa Vie Odyssey cruise ship has departed Cambodia after around 200 passengers, who had paid thousands of dollars to live aboard the vessel for several years, were ordered off following the suspension of operations by its operator, Florida-based Villa Vie Residences.…
Ireland is hosting an international meeting in Dublin this week to discuss issues of global importance for underwater cultural heritage. The National Monuments Service of the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage is hosting the Group I Regional Meeting…
Eighty Years of IDRA 14 Dinghy Celebrated in 1838-founded Royal St George Yacht Club
4th November 2026 IDRA 14
The IDRA 14 Class’s 80th year of Celebrations draw to a close with a dinner at the Royal St George Yacht Club in Dun Laoghaire last Friday (30th October). Ninety attendees made up from current sailors, former sailors, boat owners,…
French solo sailor Armel Le Cléac'h has been rescued by a Panamanian cargo ship after his giant trimaran, Maxi Banque Populaire XI, capsized in the Atlantic during the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe. Le Cléac'h was lying second in…
Armel Le Cléac’h’s Maxi Banque Populaire XI has capsized approximately 550 nautical miles north-west of the Azores during the Route du Rhum – Destination Guadeloupe, triggering an emergency rescue operation in the Atlantic. The Ultim trimaran overturned at approximately 5.30am…
Brendan Foley's Impala 28 Running Wild won the opening race of the 2026 AIB Dublin Bay Sailing Club Turkey Shoot on Sunday, 1 November, as 58 boats finished a course around the Muglins in north-westerly winds of 10–13 knots. The…
The Shackleton Experience in Athy, County Kildare, has been named Best Europe Tourism Project 2026 at the British Guild of Travel Writers International Tourism Awards, bringing international recognition to the attraction dedicated to Irish polar explorer Sir Ernest Shackleton. The Guild…
Christian Beck's 100-foot supermaxi InfoTrack, formerly LawConnect, will return to the Rolex Sydney Hobart Yacht Race under its former sponsor's name this December, seeking a third consecutive line honours victory for Beck's team. The technology company has reclaimed naming rights after four…
