Mundesley - QAVS

Welcome to NCI Mundesley lookout station

On 19th May 1995 the country’s second NCI station at Mundesley was launched. The station had a humble beginning with just a few volunteers and very basic equipment, but despite the sparse resources available to them, the National Coastwatch volunteers at Mundesley were on watch 365 days a year.

Mundesley may have been the second National Coastwatch Institution station to open but in 2009 it was the first NCI station to receive the Queens Award for Voluntary Service, a very proud moment in its history.

The original building was probably a wooden construction, replaced in time by more permanent structures. The present brick building, now rendered white, was erected in 1928 by HM Coastguard, the organisation formed by the amalgamation of the Preventative Water Guard and Riding Officers, and manned by them until the 1980s. Mundesley Parish Council leased the now redundant Watch House from North Norfolk District Council, and were planning to re-open it as a museum. The use of the upstairs room was offered for the purpose for which it was originally built. Today, the tower is owned by the parish council and the watch room is still manned by unpaid volunteers and equipped with VHF radios, a shore station radio for Channel 65, computer, automatic identification system and radar. This of course is underpinned by that most valuable tool of all - the eyes of a trained watchkeeper!

The lookout station overlooks the famous “Devils Throat”, a term attributed to Daniel Defoe for this notorious area of the North Sea. Owing to the treacherous sandbanks there are at least 53 marked wreck sites where vessels have come to grief. This busy seaway holds many dangers for shipping: sand banks, oil rigs, gas platforms and wind farms. All the traffic from the North East and Eastern Ports on transit to Europe and beyond pass our station.

This North Norfolk coastline is also a busy tourist location. From our position above Mundesley beach, towering thirty metres above the North Sea, the watch room has a visual scope of 180 square miles over the beach and the sea. We watch out for those getting into difficulties on the beach and in the water as well as the far reaching watch towards the Haisborough Sands.

We are supported entirely by voluntary contributions. Please scan the QR code or click here if you wish to make a donation to our station - any amount is very gratefully received!        

Visitor Policy
Whilst visitors to the watch room are always welcome, visiting is restricted to times when the Museum is open during the summer and provided that there are two watchkeepers on duty. Under 18s must be accompanied by an adult and only two visitors are allowed at any time. Entry is entirely at the duty watchkeeper’s discretion.
Access

The station operates from the Old Coastguard Lookout, now the Mundesley Maritime Museum, located on the cliff top along Beach Road. The watch room is accessed by a narrow spiral staircase and sensible footwear must be worn.

 

Local Hazards
Haisborough sand bank, gas platforms, wind farms, coastal erosion and coast defence improvement works (starting late 2023).
Operational capability
This station has Declared Facility Status
This station reports to MRCC Humber
Current weather and sea conditions are available by telephone or Channel 65 during watch hours
Defibrillator Available: 
Mounted externally available 24 x7 call number displayed on unit for instructions
Station Telephone: 
01263 722399
Visual Watch: 
Yes
Radar Watch: 
Yes
NAVTEX: 
No
AIS Watch: 
Yes
DSC Watch: 
Yes
Radio: Listening watch on channels: 
16
63
64
67
Radio: Channels in use (call direct not via ch 16): 
65
Radio: Channel 00: 
Listening watch and ready to transmit as authorised by Coastguard
Station Call Sign: 
Mundesley NCI
Other Watch Information: 
Radio: Listening Watch on Channel 37 (M1); (Mundesley Inshore Lifeboat)
Visual Horizon: 
11.5 nautical miles
Radar Horizon: 
32 nautical miles

Station Info

Station Address
Beach Road
Mundesley
Norfolk
NR11 8BG
Station telephone number
01263 722399
Station email address
Station contact
Andy Potter
Station contact role
Station Manager
07790 492493
Station website
Summer opening
Open from: 
09:00
Open until: 
18:00
Days: 
Every Day
From: 
Friday, April 7, 2023
Until: 
Saturday, October 28, 2023
Notes: 
Summer watches are kept from the start of BST.
Winter opening
Open from: 
10:00
Open until: 
16:00
Days: 
Every Day
From: 
Sunday, October 29, 2023
Until: 
Saturday, March 30, 2024
Notes: 
From the end of BST. Close 16:00 hours or dusk Closed on Christmas Day
Location
Latitude: 
52°52.69'N
Longitude: 
001°26.27'E
OS Reference: 
TG 314 367
Station Elevation: 
100'/30.50 metres
what3words: 
crisp.resonated.cobbled
Visual features of station
The Station is an old coastguard lookout on the second floor of what became a two-storey brick-built museum, now rendered white.

About

Currently almost 60 National Coastwatch stations are operational and manned by over 2600 volunteer watchkeepers around the British Isles from Fleetwood in the North West, through Wales, to the South and East of England to Filey in North Yorkshire. 

National Coastwatch watchkeepers provide the eyes and ears along the coast, monitoring radio channels and providing a listening watch in poor visibility. They are trained to deal with emergencies offering a variety of skills and experience, and full training by the National Coastwatch ensures that high standards are met.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The words National Coastwatch Institution and Eyes Along the Coast and the NCI logos are Registered Trademarks of NCI.

Contact


General enquiries
0300 111 1202

Media enquiries
0845 460 1202


[email protected]


17 Dean Street, Liskeard,
Cornwall, PL14 4AB