#maritimefestival – There will be a number of maritime themed events at the 2014 West Cork Literary Festival in Bantry, Co. Cork which runs from Monday, July 7th to Friday, July 11th with many free events.

On Friday July 11th in Bantry Library Rose George, the winner of the 2013 Mountbatten Maritime Award for Best Literary Contribution, will give a free talk about her fascinating journey into the hidden world of shipping. Her pursuit of the shadowy truths behind the industry that brings us almost everything we eat, wear, and work with, took her across the globe. "Deep Sea and Foreign Going: Inside Shipping, the Invisible Industry that Brings You 90% of Everything" is essential reading for anyone curious about the complex systems behind our convenient modern world. She follows the routes travelled by mercantile and naval fleets, pirate gangs, and illegal floating factories.

Philip Hoare will read from his yearlong adventure through the world's oceans. "The Sea Inside" on Thursday, July 10th. In colourful prose and lively line drawings, he sets out to rediscover the sea and its islands, birds, and beasts. Starting at his home on the shores of Britain's Southampton Water and moving in ever widening circles—like the migration patterns of whales—Hoare explores London, the Isle of Wight, the Azores, Sri Lanka, Tasmania, and New Zealand. Philip, winner of the 2009 Samuel Johnson Prize for non-fiction, is a broadcaster and author, he wrote and presented the BBC Arena film, "The Hunt for Moby-Dick", and directed three films for BBC's Whale Night.

On Saturday, July 12th there will be a special event on Whiddy Island, starting with the ferry across we celebrate Bantry Bay, the sea beyond and the lore and poetry of West Cork. John Mack, author of "The Sea: A Cultural History" draws on histories, maritime archaeology, art history and great literature to provide an innovative account of the great blue yonder and his own love for Whiddy. Philip Hoare will read from "Leviathan or, The Whale" his award winning book and film, which is also the story of our own obsessions. Leanne O'Sullivan from the Beara Peninsula will read from her poetry collections "Cailleach, The Hag of Beara" and "The Mining Road". She is the recipient of The Rooney Ireland Chair of Poetry Bursary and Lawrence O'Shaughnessy Awards.

Of course, younger readers are looked after too with the interactive Monster Sea Doodle! Travel 50 leagues under the sea with Captain Olivia Golden, illustrator extraordinaire, and learn how to draw some of the creatures that tickle, wriggle and swim in the salt water off the Bantry coast. Monster Sea Doodle! Takes place on Tuesday, July 8th, in St Brendan's School Hall

Ben Okri, Jonathan Miller, Blake Morrison, Karen Joy Fowler and Jennifer Johnston are just some of the guests announced for the renowned West Cork Literary Festival this July. The West Cork Literary Festival runs from July 6th to 12th and is generously supported by The Arts Council, Cork County Library and Arts Service and Fáilte Ireland. Booking on www.westcorkliteraryfestival.ie, Telephone: 027 52788/9 

#MarineWildlife - A tip of the hat to @BestBaltimore on Twitter for this video of a dolphin 'superpod' that congregated outside Baltimore Harbour in West Cork yesterday (Thursday 15 May).

Such superpods can comprise as many as 1,000 or more dolphins - so the vast numbers seen here breaching the surface may only have been a fraction of a much larger group.

Early last year researchers captured video of a superpod hundreds of dolphins strong in the Irish Sea, with one describing the scene as "boiling" with the gregarious marine mammals.

#calvesweek – Schull Harbour Sailing Club has opened entries for the 30th Cork Dry Gin Calves Week and will formally launch this year's regatta next week at Blackrock Castle in Cork. A regatta entry form is downloadable below as a pdf file.

Well known as a hybrid of high quality cruiser racing and shorebased family-oriented festival in the first week of August, Cork Dry Gin Calves Week has worked hard to sustain its high level of entries particularly for travelling boats over the last few years.

Club Commodore Tadhg Dwyer said that to maintain participation in the regatta over the last few years, the Club had taken the decision to rework the racing timetable in 2011. "In the end simple changes to the racing schedule meant that travelling crews are now able to sail in the same number of high quality races and get back to their home base after one week. We were also very conscious that the old format caused problems with families finding renting houses for more than 1 week very expensive and, for an event that is as much about bringing the family and enjoying all West Cork has to offer, that was a big concern. With simple changes to the overall timetable, we were able to address that."

This year, Schull Harbour Sailing Club is working to bring more travelling boats down for the week. "We have always had a mix of travelling and local boats. It would be great to get the message out to crews that might travel from clubs around the coast about the mix of both racing and on shore entertainment.

Cork Dry Gin Calves Week is great for amateur cruiser crews who want to test their racing skills against a bigger fleet and boats from around the coast. "We want to get the message out that if you come, you will have good quality racing without facing the pressure and costs of the bigger events."

For boats travelling from the South Coast, the offshore race from Crosshaven to Schull and the Calves Week Fastnet Race also forms part of the annual Scora Championship calendar.

The core format is now a four-day regatta from Tuesday to Friday of the 1st week in August, using both laid marks and the islands of Roaringwater Bay, including a race around the iconic Fastnet Rock.

As it is centred around the traditional village of Schull, there is also evening events and live entertainment around the village for both adults and children.

Dwyer noted that this year will be particularly special because it will be the 130th Schull Regatta on the Sunday after Calves Week. "There are very few sailing or sporting events in Ireland that can trace an unbroken lineage back to 1884. The Club is working with the local committee in Schull to mark this very historical event. So the week in Schull this year promises to be very, very special indeed."

Cork Dry Gin Calves Week 2014 will be announced at a reception to be held at Blackrock Castle on Wednesday the 8th of May from 6.00pm to 7.30pm. Registration forms are available on www.shsc.com.

#baltimoresc – West Cork's Baltimore Sailing Club has been redeveloped over the winter months thanks to the support of the West Cork Development Partnership and the generosity of members and local businesses. 

The new club house and Comoodore Joan Collins welcomed its first event at the weekend when regular visitors, the Irish Laser Class sailed for Munster honours.

Commenting on the first event in the newly renovated facilities, Commodore Collins said: 'We are delighted to host the Lasers again. The Easter weekend in Baltimore is a stable in the Laser calendar for over 20 years and sailors of all ages from all over Ireland congregate here this weekend every year.

All the contractors worked hard to ensure that the new clubhouse was finished in time and I would like to thank Danske Bank for supporting us in our inaugural event in our new clubhouse. We look forward to welcoming more National and International events to Baltimore over the coming years.'

#lifeboat – On a sunny Easter Sunday Morning, 20th April 2014, both the all weather lifeboat and inshore lifeboat were called upon to give assistance. A yacht had grounded on rocks at a treacherous stretch between Cunnamore Pier and Heir Island in West Cork on a falling tide. The 35ft yacht had 4 people on board at the time. The yacht was well aground when the lifeboats arrived.
The inshore lifeboat RIB crew went aboard the stricken vessel first. A line was secured to the yacht's stern and another line to the masthead. Helm Tadhg Collins on the inshore lifeboat RIB pulled on the masthead line, heeling the yacht over to reduce her draught. Then Coxswain Aidan Bushe on the allweather lifeboat towed the yacht astern to release her from the rocks on which she was wedged.The lifeboat established a tow to bring the yacht to safety. There were no injuries. Winds were fresh North North Easterly.

On the allweather lifeboat Coxswain Aidan Bushe, Mechanic Cathal Cottrell, Eoin Ryan, Ronnie Carthy, Brian MacSweeny, Sean McCarthy, Jerry Smith

On the inshore lifeboat Helm:Tadhg Collins, John Kearney, Jason Pavry

#dancingRNLI – Despite its battering at the hands of the winter storms Baltimore's maritime community made the best of things by producing an upbeat video to show how resilient the little village is.Filmed on 16th February 2014 hours after storms had ravaged West Cork - this coastal community turned out to dance. Look out for a cast of familiar faces, including a dancing RNLI Lifeboat crew. 

#Search - The Irish Times reports that the body recovered off Sheep's Head in West Cork earlier this week has been identified as 33-year-old Othman Rahmouni, as the search was expected to resume this morning for his friend Roland Deckers (31).

The two men, who were friends from Amsterdam, went missing almost a week ago on Saturday 8 February from the Deckers family's holiday home on the peninsula as Force 11 winds and heavy waves swept in from the Atlantic.

Emergency teams on Monday discovered a body in an inlet of the peninsula, but search efforts for the second man were hampered during the week by persistent storm conditions.

Today's break in the weather will allow for a further sweep of the northern coastline, helped by a low tide expected before noon.

The Irish Times has more on the story HERE.

#Search - The Irish Examiner reports that a postmortem was due yesterday on the as-yet unidentified body recovered off Sheep's Head in Co Cork in the search for two men missing since the weekend.

Meanwhile an extreme weather warning for Cork and Kerry is hampering the search effort for the second of the pair, one of whom has been named as 31-year-old Dutch national Roland Deckers, whose family owns a holiday home in the area.

The other has been named by RTÉ News as 33-year-old Othman Rahmouni, a resident near Amsterdam.

Weather conditions yesterday were judged not suitable for diving, ruling out a search below the rising waves on the West Cork peninsula, and the operation has been stood down till conditions improve.

"We'd hope to get a window in the next few days, but it's not looking great weather-wise," said Valentia coastguard spokesperson John Draper.

#Search - BreakingNews.ie reports that a body has been found in the search for two men missing on Sheep's Head in West Cork.

The remains have not yet been identified, but are believed to be one of two visitors - a Dutch national whose family have a home near Kilcrohane, and his German national friend - who went missing on Saturday 8 February after informing family back home they were going for a walk to a nearby lighthouse.

Weather conditions on the day deteriorated quickly as Met Eireann issued one of an extended series of warnings for coastal areas.

The search continues for the second missing man, with operations co-ordinated by Naval Service vessel LE Emer, according to RTÉ News.

#WhiddyIsland - Thirty-five years on from the disaster at the Whiddy Island oil terminal in Bantry Bay, one of those who survived the incident has told The Irish Times how the tragedy still resonates throughout West Cork.

"The joy of Christmas doesn’t exist for me anymore," said then Gulf Oil pumpman Brian McGee, who admits he "can still vividly recall images from that night" in the early hours of 8 January 1979.

Fire broke out on board the berthed Total oil tanker Betelgeuse, causing an explosion that claimed the lives of 50 people - including locals Charlie Brennan, Tim Kingston, Denis O’Leary, Neilly O’Shea, Jimmy O’Sullivan and David Warner.

The Irish Times has much more on the story HERE.