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 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 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…
Pyrotechnic signals used to indicate distress, attract attention or help rescuers locate people or a vessel. Rocket parachute flares provide a high, long-range red light; red hand flares provide a shorter-range locating signal; and orange smoke signals aid daytime location. The correct signal depends on whether distant alerting or close-range location is required and on…
The people assigned to operate, maintain or serve aboard a vessel. Crew can include the master or skipper, deck and engineering personnel, watchkeepers, catering staff and specialists, with roles determined by vessel type, size, operation and regulation. On a small craft, one person may perform several functions and an owner or guest may also act…
The shortest lateral distance from a vessel’s position to its active intended track line. Usually abbreviated XTE or XTD, it is calculated by a navigation system relative to the selected route leg and may be given a port or starboard sign. It is a distance, not a rate of drift, and depends on how the…
A slender, upright floating marker used to make a position conspicuous on the water. A dan buoy typically has a weighted or ballasted lower section and a pole carrying a flag, light or reflective material. Fishing versions mark gear; emergency versions can be deployed near a person-overboard position and may incorporate flotation or other recovery…
A lifting appliance fitted to a vessel or structure for lowering and recovering a boat or other load. Davits commonly handle lifeboats, rescue boats, tenders, liferafts and operational equipment. Designs include radial, luffing, gravity and articulated systems and may use one arm or a matched pair with falls, winches and release arrangements. The appliance, foundations,…
An area of relatively low atmospheric pressure, usually associated with cyclonic circulation and unsettled weather. In the Northern Hemisphere the circulation is anticlockwise around the low; in the Southern Hemisphere it is clockwise. Mid-latitude depressions commonly include warm and cold fronts and can bring changing wind, rain, squalls, reduced visibility and altered sea state as…
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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