State of tide round the island Not for navigation. Streams come from the Manx Sailing & Cruising Club sketch atlas and the Admiralty Pilot, spread between the drawn arrows and scaled for springs and neaps. Heights are astronomical predictions only; weather and surge are not included.
Tide tables, 2026 to 2076 One port, by date All ports, one day All ports, high waters All ports, low waters Download year (CSV)
From the Admiralty Pilot, chapter XV Summarised. The Pilot times streams from HW Belfast and Dover; the atlas and this map use HW Liverpool.
Point of Ayre East-going stream reaches about 3.4 kn at springs, west-going about 3.2 kn. A race forms off the point where an eddy meets the main stream, and overfalls are common along Ayre Hook when streams meet.
Spring rate 3.2–3.4 kn
Point of Ayre to Maughold Head Close in, a north-going eddy runs along the coast for about nine hours and the south-going stream for about three and a half. Neither is strong, but both run fairly hard across the entrance to Ramsey harbour.
Weak inshore; stronger near Point of Ayre
Maughold Head The in-going streams from St George’s Channel and the North Channel meet several miles off the head. Expect a westerly set towards the head where offshore streams meet and divide.
Set towards the head
Langness to Maughold Head Streams run north-east and south-west along the coast, 2 to 2.5 kn off the salient points and much less in the bays. Near the land an eddy forms during the second half of the north-east stream.
2–2.5 kn off the points
Langness Streams run strongly off the point and eddies form on both sides. Off Castletown Bay an eddy of about 2.5 kn runs east around a quarter of an hour after the west-going stream begins off the point.
Eddy about 2.5 kn
Calf of Man to Langness Near the Calf the streams run roughly north and south; round Chicken Rock they turn to run east and west between the Calf and Langness. About 4.5 kn off Chicken Rock, rising to about 5 kn off Langness. Overfalls or a race extend east from Chicken Rock on the east-going stream, and north from it on the west-going.
4.5–5 kn
Calf Sound Streams run through the sound in line with the channel at about 3.5 kn at springs. The MSCC notes put the turn about two hours before Liverpool low water on springs.
About 3.5 kn
Port St Mary and Bay ny Carrickey Streams are weak inside Port St Mary and the bay. The MSCC race-area sheets show a clockwise swing across the bay through the tide: east-going on the early flood, then west and south-west from high water.
Weak inside the bay
Contrary Head to Point of Ayre Streams follow the coast. There is little or no stream off Peel; heading north the spring rate builds to about 2 kn off Jurby Head and 3 kn towards Point of Ayre.
0 → 3 kn northwards
Contrary Head to Calf Sound Streams follow the coast and start earlier close inshore. Very weak just south of Contrary Head, building to about 1 kn towards Niarbyl. South of Niarbyl an eddy runs north during the south-going stream, so the flow is almost continuously north-going between Bradda Head and Niarbyl. Little or no stream in Port Erin.
About 1 kn
Rule of twelfths The MSCC notes use it: in each sixth of the rise or fall the tide moves 1, 2, 3, 3, 2, 1 twelfths of its range. The hour labels in the port list above follow those sixths.
