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 trade name for ultra-high-molecular-weight polyethylene fibre used in high-strength, low-stretch marine ropes and fabrics. The fibre has a high strength-to-weight ratio, floats, absorbs little water and resists many chemicals and ultraviolet exposure. Marine uses include halyards, control lines, lashings, soft shackles, standing rigging and protective textiles. Performance depends on the product grade, construction, cover,…
Electromagnetic radiation with wavelengths shorter than visible light and longer than X-rays. Solar ultraviolet radiation is commonly divided into UVA, UVB and UVC bands. The atmosphere blocks almost all UVC and much UVB, while UVA and some UVB reach the surface and can damage skin and eyes. At sea, exposure may be increased by long…
A rotating set of blades that produces thrust by accelerating water astern or ahead. Marine propellers are mounted on a shaft, saildrive, stern drive, pod or outboard gearbox. Diameter, pitch, blade area, number of blades and rotation direction are matched to the vessel, engine, gearing and intended operating conditions. Poor selection or damage can cause…
A rotating shaft that transmits torque from an engine or gearbox to a propeller. In a conventional shaft installation it passes through the hull via a stern tube and seal or stuffing box, is supported by bearings, and connects to the gearbox through a coupling. The propeller is secured at the outer end, commonly on…
A water-lubricated bearing that supports a vessel’s propeller shaft near its passage outside the hull. The bearing has longitudinal water channels and a resilient or composite bearing surface within a rigid shell. Water flowing through the grooves lubricates and cools the shaft as it rotates, and the unit is commonly fitted in a stern tube…
A propulsion arrangement in which an inboard engine turns a propeller through a shaft passing through the hull. The gearbox, coupling, shaft, bearings, stern tube, seal and propeller form the principal driveline. Depending on the installation, thrust is transmitted through the gearbox and its mounts or through a separate thrust bearing. Shaft drive is mechanically…
A marine propulsion system combining an inboard engine with a steerable geared drive unit mounted through the transom. The engine drives the external leg through a transom assembly; gears turn one or more propellers, and steering pivots the leg to direct thrust. The leg can normally be trimmed and raised for performance, shallow water or…
The horizontal direction in which a vessel’s fore-and-aft line is pointing. Heading is expressed as an angle clockwise from a stated north reference, normally true, magnetic or compass north. It may be read from a compass or heading sensor and can vary continuously as the vessel yaws. Heading is not the same as course over…
The angular error of a magnetic compass caused by magnetic influences aboard the vessel. Deviation is the difference between magnetic heading and compass heading and is named east or west. It normally changes with heading because permanent and induced magnetism in the hull, machinery, wiring and equipment affects the compass differently as the vessel turns….
A short, broad-bladed sword historically associated with sailors and naval boarding actions. A cutlass normally has a single-edged, slightly curved blade and a substantial hand guard. Its compact form suited close-quarter use aboard ships from roughly the seventeenth to nineteenth centuries. The word is unrelated to the propeller-shaft bearing often called a “cutlass bearing.” The…
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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