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.The lower edge of a sail between its tack and clew. A mainsail foot may be secured along a boom, retained only at tack and clew as a loose-footed sail, or arranged in another rig-specific way. The foot of a headsail usually spans above the deck rather than being attached to it. Outhaul and tack…
A drag device streamed from a vessel to reduce speed through the water or influence its orientation. Drogues include cones, fabric devices and series drogues and are commonly deployed from the stern to control speed in following seas, reduce the tendency to surf or broach, or slow drift during fishing or recovery work. Their behaviour…
An instrument that measures water depth by timing sound pulses reflected from the seabed. A transducer sends a pulse through the water and receives the returning echo. The instrument uses the elapsed time and an assumed speed of sound in water to calculate and display a depth, often as a numerical value and a scrolling…
A registered maritime distress beacon that transmits a 406 MHz alert for detection through the Cospas-Sarsat satellite system. Usually abbreviated EPIRB, it sends a digitally coded identity and may transmit encoded position from an internal or connected navigation receiver. The alert is routed through the international system to the appropriate rescue coordination authorities; a separate…
A fore-and-aft trim condition in which a vessel’s draught is the same forward and aft at the specified reference points. A vessel trimmed by the bow or stern is not on an even keel. The expression concerns longitudinal trim and does not by itself mean that the vessel has no list, that the deck or…
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…
Favourable or clear when describing weather, and smooth or continuously shaped when describing a vessel’s surface or line. A fair wind assists the intended passage or sailing direction, while fair weather generally means settled or suitable conditions in the stated context. Neither expression defines a wind force, visibility or sea-state threshold. In boatbuilding, to fair…
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 tapered tool used to open rope strands and assist with splicing and ropework. A traditional fid is commonly wood or metal and is pushed between the strands of laid rope without cutting or damaging them. It creates space for another strand to be tucked during an eye splice, short splice or similar work. Modern…
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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