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.To secure a line or object so that it remains held in the required position. A line may be made fast to a cleat, bollard, bitt, samson post or other suitable fitting using the appropriate turns, hitch, splice or hardware. The instruction can also apply to securing a vessel, fender, tender or item of equipment….
To move or turn a vessel by hauling towards an anchor or other secure point laid away from it. The anchor may be carried out by a boat, deployed from the vessel or set by another suitable method, after which a windlass, capstan, winch or tackle hauls the vessel along the rode. Repeating the process…
An anchor carried or laid away from a vessel so that hauling on its rode can move, turn or assist the vessel. A kedge is often smaller and easier to transport than the main bower anchor, but small or lightweight is not its defining property. It may be used for kedging, warping off a grounding,…
A rope fastening formed around or to an object, another rope or its own standing part. Unlike a knot formed primarily within the rope itself, a hitch normally depends on the object or standing part around which it is tied. Common examples include the clove hitch, rolling hitch, round turn and two half hitches, each…
The exposed deck area in the forward part of a vessel. Its extent and equipment depend on vessel design. It may carry anchoring and mooring gear, hatches, headsail controls, deck fittings or working space, but these are common uses rather than part of the definition. The foredeck is particularly exposed to spray, breaking water, pitching…
An anchor that is entangled, obstructed or unable to work or recover normally. The anchor may be fouled by its own cable, another line or chain, wreckage, rock, debris or seabed obstruction. Fouling can prevent it setting, reduce holding power or make recovery difficult, and the symptoms depend on how and where it is caught….
Moving a vessel stern-first through the water or applying astern propulsion. Applying astern power does not always produce immediate sternway because the vessel may still carry forward momentum. Once moving astern, many vessels steer less predictably than ahead, and propeller side force, wind, current, hull form and rudder arrangement can strongly affect the motion. Astern…
The anchor, cable and associated equipment used to secure a vessel to the seabed. Ground tackle includes the anchor and its chain, rope or combination cable, together with connecting shackles, swivels where used and the equipment needed to deploy, recover and secure it. The term may refer to one anchoring arrangement or collectively to the…
To let out a loaded line or control gradually while maintaining control of it. A sheet is eased to allow a sail to move farther from the centreline or to reduce load, while a mooring line may be eased to change the vessel’s position or share load with another line. The amount and rate depend…
The predicted date and time at which a vessel will reach a stated position, destination or operational point. Usually abbreviated ETA, it is calculated from remaining distance and expected progress, with allowances for route, speed changes, weather, current, traffic, pilotage, locks, port instructions and other foreseeable delays. The stated time zone and the point that…
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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