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 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 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…
Short, steep and closely spaced waves that create an irregular, uncomfortable sea. Chop often develops when wind acts over a limited fetch, when wind opposes a tidal stream or current, or when waves are reflected and disturbed around a headland, harbour entrance or sea wall. It may be locally severe even when the individual waves…
To overturn a vessel beyond its normal stable operating attitude, potentially onto its side or fully inverted. Capsize can result from excessive wind or wave force, loss of stability, flooding, shifting load, collision or handling error. The outcome differs greatly between a self-righting yacht, recoverable dinghy, multihull, open powerboat and larger vessel. A knockdown from…
A sudden, largely uncontrolled turn that leaves a vessel sharply across its intended course. A sailing yacht may broach when overpowered while reaching or running, causing rapid heel and loss of rudder effectiveness as it turns towards the wind. A power-driven vessel can broach when overtaken or slewed by a following sea, particularly while descending…
A numbered scale from 0 to 12 that relates wind-force descriptions to defined wind-speed ranges and observable effects. Force 0 is calm and force 12 is hurricane force, with named forces and speed bands between them. Descriptions of effects on the sea or land allow wind force to be estimated when a reliable instrument reading…
To become less intense or severe, especially when describing wind, sea or weather. A forecast, log or report may state that a gale, swell or storm is abating when its strength is decreasing. The word describes a trend rather than a particular force, wave height or rate of change. Abating conditions have not necessarily ended…
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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