All our courses are engaging, interactive and fun! Whether formal training or simply looking to brush up, we take online learning to the next level.
Sailing EssentialsFreeA free course great for anyone who spends time on the water.
Essential Navigation & SeamanshipRYA course for beginners. Learn charts, tides, pilotage, and core seamanship with simple practice tasks.
Day Skipper TheoryMost PopularRYA course for inshore skippers. Plan day passages using chartwork, tides, weather, and COLREGs.
Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® TheoryComing SoonRYA course for advanced navigation and passage planning, secondary ports, tidal streams, and offshore weather.
SRC (VHF) Marine Radio CourseRYA Short Range Certificate radio course. Study online, then take the practical exam with an RYA assessor.Are you looking for something nautical related? Our directory is an extensive list of courses and places associated with the marine industry. Hop over and search now.
We believe every day’s a school day on a boat! That’s why we built Nautical Know-How, dedicated to answering your questions. Even better, if it can’t answer your question immediately, you can request it, and we’ll add it to our knowledge base.
Nautical Terms & TerminologyUnderstanding the language of the marine world is like trying to learn a pirate’s secret code while juggling fish. Let us explain why a sheet isn’t for your bed, why “heave ho” doesn’t mean throw up (most of the time), and why “dead reckoning” is surprisingly less ominous than it sounds.
Why do we have tides?Have you ever wondered what causes the tides? Check out this video, which introduces the forces that create the tides we experience on Earth.
What causes our weather?A video introducing the drivers behind our weather, part of our RYA Day Skipper & RYA Coastal Skipper / Yachtmaster® Offshore theory courses.
Buoyage FlashcardsFlashcards designed to help remember the buoys in the IALA system. If you want to learn them in detail, our module ‘Getting in and out of harbour‘, covers the IALA system and different buoys used.
Interactive Rule Book (COLREGs / IRPCS)Whether you’re a novice sailor or a seasoned skipper, we can help you navigate the IRPCS confidently and clearly. Our easy-to-use, easy-to-understand, plain English rule book with helpful interpretations of what each rule means.
The Salty Sea BlogFrom salty old sea dogs to fresh-faced deckhands, this blog is for anyone who finds peace, adventure, and a bit of mischief on the water. So hoist the main, set your course, and let’s sail into the stories, lessons, and musings that make life on the sea so irresistible.Understanding the language of the marine world is like trying to learn a pirate’s secret code while juggling fish. You’ll wonder why a “sheet” isn’t something you sleep under but a rope that controls a sail. “Bowsprit” sounds like a sneeze, “booby hatch” isn’t a bird’s hideout, and “port” doesn’t come in a glass—it’s just left. If someone yells, “Man overboard!” don’t ask which direction they swam. And heaven help you if you think “scuttlebutt” is gossip—well, actually, you’d be right about that one. By the time you’ve figured out that “head” means toilet and “galley” isn’t an alley with gourds, you’ve already been hit with a wave and lost your hat to the wind they call a “nor’easter.”
Let us explain why a sheet isn’t for your bed, why “heave ho” doesn’t mean throw up (most of the time), and why “dead reckoning” is surprisingly less ominous than it sounds.
A point of sail with the apparent wind between close-hauled and directly astern. A close reach has the apparent wind forward of the beam, a beam reach approximately abeam and a broad reach abaft the beam. Exact angles vary with vessel, rig, sail and whether true or apparent wind is being referenced. Reaching often allows…
A line secured at or near the bow of a dinghy or other small boat for towing or making fast. The painter provides a ready means of securing the boat to a vessel, pontoon, mooring or shore fitting and may be used for towing when the boat and attachment point are suitable. It should be…
The international radiotelephony urgency signal indicating a very urgent message concerning the safety of a vessel, aircraft, vehicle or person. The words are spoken three times and pronounced like the French word ‘panne’, followed by the called station or all stations, the caller’s identification and the urgency message under the applicable radio procedure. A digital…
The international radiotelephony spelling word for the letter P. It is used to spell call signs, identifiers and words clearly over voice radio. Its prescribed spoken form is represented as ‘PAH PAH’. The International Code of Signals assigns separate meanings to the single flag P, historically called the Blue Peter, depending on context. Those signal…
A hinged chartwork instrument used to transfer a direction across a chart while keeping the same alignment. The two straightedges remain parallel as the instrument is walked across the chart. This allows a course or bearing line to be moved to a compass rose for reading, or a direction from the rose to be transferred…
For a vessel’s bow to turn away from the wind. The expression can describe an intentional helm action or a response to wind, sails, current, waves or loss of forward speed. It is similar to bear away or fall off, although usage varies between regions and types of vessel. Paying off changes the apparent wind…
To release rope, chain, cable or wire progressively under control. Paying out increases the deployed length of an anchor rode, mooring line, towline, cable or similar item. The operation may use hands, a brake, winch, windlass, drum or capstan according to the load and equipment. Control is the defining feature: a freely running line can…
A portable 406 MHz distress beacon registered to a person and intended to alert search-and-rescue authorities through the Cospas-Sarsat satellite system. When activated, a PLB transmits a coded identity and many models include GNSS position; a low-power 121.5 MHz homing signal may help rescuers locate it nearby. It differs from an EPIRB, which is normally…
A long structural member driven or fixed vertically into the bed of a river, harbour or sea. Piles may be timber, steel, concrete or another suitable material. They support piers and pontoons, guide floating structures as the water level changes, carry navigation marks or mooring fittings, and can be grouped to form dolphins or protective…
A mariner with detailed local knowledge who advises the person navigating a vessel in pilotage waters. A maritime pilot boards or remotely assists a vessel for a port approach, river, canal or other area where specialised knowledge is required. The pilot advises on local depths, currents, traffic, tugs, berths and procedures, but the exact legal…
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
If you belive the Earth is flat, you're about to fall of the end...
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