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.A loop formed in the end of a rope by splicing the rope back into its standing part. In laid rope, individual strands are tucked in a prescribed sequence; braided, double-braid and high-modulus ropes use construction-specific methods. The eye may be formed around a thimble to protect it and maintain bend radius at a shackle…
A fitting that guides a rope, wire or cable along a required lead or through a change of direction. Fairleads include smooth eyes, horns, rollers and specialised deck or bulwark fittings used for mooring lines, sheets, control cables and other running systems. Their shape, strength and alignment must suit the line material, diameter, load and…
A resilient buffer placed between a vessel and a berth or another vessel to reduce contact damage. Portable fenders may be inflatable, foam-filled, cylindrical, spherical or flat and are suspended at the expected contact points and heights. Fixed berth fender systems serve the same broad purpose on quays and pontoons but are engineered for their…
A broad pointed part of an anchor designed to penetrate or bear against the seabed. The number, area, angle and freedom of movement of flukes vary between anchor patterns. In suitable ground they develop holding resistance by burying and mobilising the surrounding seabed rather than by surface area alone. No single fluke shape is best…
An isolated marine structure used for mooring, berthing guidance or protection. A dolphin may be formed from a group of piles, a rigid column or a caisson. Mooring dolphins carry fittings to which lines are secured, while breasting dolphins provide a contact face that helps position a vessel alongside a berth. Protective dolphins can shield…
To add mooring lines or duplicate selected leads to increase security or redundancy. A vessel may double up before strong wind, heavy wash, a long unattended period or another expected increase in load. Additional lines can share loads and provide backup if a line chafes, slips or parts, provided they lead to suitable vessel and…
To move across the seabed because an anchor is no longer holding the vessel securely. An anchor may drag because it has not set, the holding ground is poor, insufficient scope has been used, or wind, current and wave loads exceed the holding available. Dragging can be gradual and may not be obvious from the…
A fitting shaped to secure or control a line. A horn cleat has two projecting horns around which a line can be made fast, commonly with a cleat hitch. It may be fitted to a vessel, pontoon or quay. Cam and jam cleats grip a line differently and are generally used to hold running rigging…
A proprietary plough-pattern anchor with a hinged shank. The name is commonly pronounced “secure”. Its weighted plough-shaped fluke is intended to turn and dig into suitable seabeds as load is applied, while the hinge allows the shank to change angle relative to the fluke. Setting and holding depend on anchor size, seabed, scope, deployment and…
To release a mooring, towing or other securing line from its fitting. The expression is commonly used when a vessel leaves a berth, buoy, rafted position or tow. A line may be cast off from aboard, released ashore and recovered, or slipped so that it can run free without someone remaining on the berth. 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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