Isle of Man-Castletown and Derby Haven
At a Glance
Harbour Keeper VHF 12 tel no +44 (0) 1624 833205 (0900 to
1630)
mobile (Southern duty
Officer) 07624 451503
Marine Operations Centre (out of hours) 01624 686612
Like all the harbours in the Isle of Mann it is run from a central office and there is a "Harbour Keeper" who may cover several small harbours or, in the case of the larger harbours, just the one.
In the case of Castletown the "Souther duty officer" covers Derby Haven, Casteltown, Port St Mary and Port Erin. If he is unavailable for any reason his mobile will be diverted to the Marine Ops Centre.
Castletown has a long history reaching back in the times of the
Vikings and has a medieval castle which was once the home of kings
and the centre of government on the Isle of Man. It was mainly a
fishing and commercial port in better times, but the commercial
activity is no more and there is only a small fishing fleet.
The harbour is situated in the North Western corner of the bay
and consists of several parts ; an outer harbour which extends
back as far as a swinging footbridge and is protected by a
breakwater (the South Pier) along its south side and divided by a
short pier with a small lighthouse at its end; the middle harbour
beyond the swinging footbridge and further in, behind a fixed
bridge, there is the inner harbour suitable for small motor boats
that can get under the bridge (about 1.5m air draft). The various
quays all have different names as shown on our chartlet. All of
these harbours dry so are no use to you if you cannot take the
ground. In any weather from the SW through to the SE this is not a
good place to be.
Castletown is what some people might call "quaint"; its streets
were formed long before the motor car happened and so are narrow
and windy (It used to be a brilliant stage on the Isle of Man Car
Rally!!). The whole of the harbour area is dominated by the
Castle, the quaysides are narrow, the whole atmosphere is very olde
worlde and, on a sunny day, an absolute delight. Trouble is that it
is such a lovely spot you may have to share it with a lot of other
people on a summer's weekend.
You would think that the close proximity of the Airport would be
a draw back but in fact most of the traffic is turbo prop and
passes over the fields to the North of the town and as you are
unlikely to be there in southerly winds you won't be troubled by
climb-outs from their southerly runway (RW 21 for the
aficionados)
Derby Haven round the corner from Castletown is a shallow bay which
is unprotected from the SE through to the north via East but holds
no problems in settled weather. There is a breakwater across the
middle of the bay with a light on its SW end and a red perch a bit
to the left of that which marks the channel into the area behind
the breakwater which is only suitable for twin keelers that can
take the ground. There is room to anchor in the middle of the bay
on a line between St Michaels Island and the NE end of the
breakwater.
There is an IOM harbour information website which lists all the
IOM harbours and a whole raft of downloadable docs (most of which
do not apply to cruising skippers) at:-
Isle of Man Government - Harbours
Information
Isle of Man Government - Castletown
harbour
Isle of Man-Castletown and Derby Haven
Approach
The tidal streams close in around the IOM do
not follow those depicted in the UKHO tidal Atlas; there are often
counter currents. For close-in information you can access the
IOM's own tidal streams info at
tidal_streams.pdf
(gov.im)
tidal_streams_2.pdf (gov.im)
We suggest that if you are spending any time in the Irish sea with regular visits to the IOM you visit those two internet pages, print and add them to your Pilot Book.
If you intend to enter Castletown harbour and take the ground you need
..... to be here two & a half hours either side of HW and if
you are deep keeled probably best to get here dead on HW. Whatever
your intentions it would be a good idea to contact the Harbour
Keeper well before arrival to arrange a berth. (He only listens out
on VHF if he's expecting a vessel)
If approaching from around Dreswick Point stay tight in (a cable
and a half from the high tide mark will keep you clear of the
rocks) and in that way you'll be inside the rough stuff around that
head; if you are unhappy doing that then you will have to stand off
by a good mile and a half to clear the overfalls.
Coming in from the SW just watch out for "The Stack". (it's not a
hazard but you can go in nice and close for a photo!!)
From either direction make for the red can buoy in the middle of
the bay and leave it to port (of course, who wouldn't?) If you
shape your course for the Red and White Light on the end of the
South Pier that'll keep you clear of Boe Norris. At night the
visibility of the "rear" pier light (Oc R 4s) is 142° to 322°
which, if you can keep it just in sight to the left of the front
light will give you a good line to follow in. At night the aero
light on the top of the King William College building in line with
the red can buoy (017°T) will make a good line to run into the bay
but be sure you identify the correct aero light as the airport will
have others.
The approach to Derby Haven is without problems; the ruined tower
on St Michaels Island and the light tower on the breakwater are
conspicuous; just be aware that the rocks around both headlands
extend out a little into entrance of the bay
£ GMT
Waypoint
Charts
Rules & Regs
Hazards
Tides
Berthing
If you are able to take the ground you will be spoiled for choice
,.......though naturally the presence of other boats may limit
this (doesn't it always?). Both walls are available in the outer
harbour as is Irish Quay and the Steam Packet Quay and all have
ladders. In the Middle Harbour again all walls are available and
have ladders but most berths seem to be occupied by local boats.
Favourite would be the far end of the Customs Quay, just outside
the pub, but, and yes you've guessed it, one of the locals has
that!! A night in the harbour will cost a 10m boat £25 (that
includes VAT at 20%)
Other than that you can anchor in the Bay just SE of the Harbour
and land your dinghy on the slip inside the outer harbour.
Anchoring in Derby Haven depends entirely on your type of boat and
its draft. If you are twinned keeled and can take the ground you
can proceed in past the breakwater (when there is enough depth) and
anchor with the other boats there; otherwise you will have to
anchor further out near the entrance to the bay. If you pick a spot
close to the SE shore of the bay there's a small slip there to land
your dinghy and the Castletown Golf links Hotel is nearby. If you
choose to land near the village remember that you will have a fair
old way to haul your dinghy from the waterline.
Facilities
At Castletown there is water at taps on the quays and shore
power at some of them. Toilets & showers are ashore. Diesel
& petrol is available at the local garage about quarter of a
mile away. There are several small supermarkets and loads of other
shops including hardware shops and chemists.
There are no facilities at Derby Haven as the village consists
mainly of residential properties; it's about a mile's walk to
Castletown from the middle of the village.
What to Do
There is a wealth of pubs, restaurants and fast food outlets in
Castletown. The Castle itself is very much worth a visit and is
steeped in history. Castletown is also a stop on the Manx Steam
Railway with its four times a day service to Port Erin or Douglas.
Transport links from here to the rest of the Island make it the
ideal place to choose as a base to explore the Island; a sort of
"where shall we go today" place to return to for a pleasant evening
ashore before turning in.
Bus & train time tables https://www.gov.im/categories/travel-traffic-and-motoring/bus-and-rail
History
Local Business
Marine-Electrics
Bevan Ltd
Unit 2 Brickworks
Mill Road
Peel
Isle of Man
IM5 1TB
Outboard-Sales-and-Service
Bottom Line Ltd Unit 8
Side Road
Middle River Industrial Estate
Douglas
Isle of Man
IM2 1AL
MJS Mobile Marine Services
Balthane Industrial Estate
Ballasalla
Isle of Man
IM9 2AL
Uncategorised
Bevan Ltd
Unit 2 Brickworks
Mill Road
Peel
Isle of Man
IM5 1TB
Bottom Line Ltd Unit 8
Side Road
Middle River Industrial Estate
Douglas
Isle of Man
IM2 1AL
MJS Mobile Marine Services
Balthane Industrial Estate
Ballasalla
Isle of Man
IM9 2AL
Tide Information for iom-castletown
Tidal Information