Coast and Sea

Inshore waters and strong winds


General situation

Strong winds in the far north at first will ease with light or moderate winds across much of the United Kingdom. However northeasterly winds will then gradually strengthen during the weekend across many central and southern coastlines, especially on Sunday in the south.

Issued at: .

For coastal areas up to 12 miles offshore for the period 18:00 (UTC) on Fri 8 May 2026 to 18:00 (UTC) on Sat 9 May 2026

Inshore waters and strong winds map


Cape Wrath to Rattray Head including Orkney (1)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Westerly or northwesterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first in north, becoming variable 2 to 4 later in Moray Firth.
Sea state
Moderate or rough to the north and west of Orkney, smooth or slight in Moray Firth, slight or moderate elsewhere.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Variable 2 to 4 at first in Moray Firth, otherwise westerly or northwesterly, veering northerly later, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Moderate or rough at first to the north and west of Orkney and smooth or slight in Moray Firth, otherwise slight or moderate.
Weather
Showers, rain later.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor later.

Rattray Head to Berwick upon Tweed (2)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming north or northeast 4 or 5.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally moderate later in far north and far south.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, fair later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast backing northwest, then west or southwest later, 3 to 5.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in far north and far south.
Weather
Fair then showers, rain later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate later.

Berwick upon Tweed to Whitby (3)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight, becoming moderate later.
Weather
Rain at times.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Northeast backing north or northwest, then southwest later, 3 to 5.
Sea state
Moderate becoming slight.
Weather
Rain at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate at first.

Whitby to Gibraltar Point (4)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
East or southeast 3 or 4, becoming variable 3 or less, then northeast 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, becoming moderate later in north.
Weather
Occasional rain in north.
Visibility
Moderate or good, occasionally poor later in north.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast 4 to 6, decreasing 2 to 4 later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate.
Weather
Rain at first.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Gibraltar Point to North Foreland (5)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 2 to 4, occasionally 5 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, increasing 5 or 6, occasionally 7 later in south.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming moderate, occasionally rough later near North Foreland.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

North Foreland to Selsey Bill (6)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later in southeast.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in south.
Weather
Showers later.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 4 to 6, increasing 6 or 7, perhaps gale 8 later in east.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough later.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Selsey Bill to Lyme Regis (7)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
East or northeast 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Showers later.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming northeast 5 to 7.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, fair later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Lyme Regis to Lands End including the Isles of Scilly (8)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Easterly or northeasterly 4 or 5, occasionally 6 in west and 3 at first elsewhere.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally smooth at first, becoming moderate at times in west.
Weather
Fair then showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Northeasterly 4 or 6, occasionally 3 at first, then increasing 7 at times.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, becoming rough at times in far west.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, fair later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Lands End to St Davids Head including the Bristol Channel (9)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Variable 2 to 4, becoming east or northeast 3 to 5, backing north 4 to 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, becoming slight or moderate in west, occasionally rough later near St Davids Head.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 7 near Lands End and St Davids Head.
Sea state
Smooth or slight until later in east, otherwise slight or moderate, occasionally rough in far west.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers, fair later.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

St Davids Head to Great Orme Head, including St Georges Channel (10)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
North or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6 later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate, occasionally rough later near St Davids Head.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast 4 to 6, occasionally 7 near St Davids Head.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in Cardigan Bay and rough at first near St Davids Head.
Weather
Showers at first.
Visibility
Good.

Great Orme Head to the Mull of Galloway (11)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Northwest veering north or northeast, 3 to 5, increasing 6 at times later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate later in south.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, backing northwest later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate in south.
Weather
Fair.
Visibility
Good.

Isle of Man (12)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Northerly or northeasterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in west.
Sea state
Smooth or slight becoming slight or moderate.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Northerly or northeasterly, backing northwesterly later, 3 to 5.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally moderate at first.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Lough Foyle to Carlingford Lough (13)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
North or northeast 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight occasionally moderate.
Weather
Showers at first.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northeast 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, backing northwest later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, becoming smooth or slight.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Mull of Galloway to Mull of Kintyre including the Firth of Clyde and North Channel (14)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Northwesterly 3 to 5, veering northerly 4 to 6, then becoming variable 2 to 4 later east of arran and near Mull of Galloway.
Sea state
Slight, occasionally moderate in North Channel and smooth elsewhere.
Weather
Showers at first.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Cyclonic 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first, becoming northwesterly later.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, occasionally moderate at first in the North Channel.
Weather
Mainly fair.
Visibility
Good.

Mull of Kintyre to Ardnamurchan Point (15)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Northwesterly veering northerly, 3 to 5, occasionally 6 in south.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough at first in far northwest.
Weather
Showers at first.
Visibility
Good.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Northerly or northwesterly 3 to 5, occasionally 6 at first in south, backing westerly later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally smooth in east.
Weather
Showers later.
Visibility
Good.

The Minch (16)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
North or northwest 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 for a time later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate, occasionally rough near northern entrance, becoming smooth or slight except in north.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northwest, backing west for a time, 3 to 5, occasionally 2 at first.
Sea state
Moderate in northeast, otherwise smooth or slight.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Ardnamurchan Point to Cape Wrath (17)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
North or northwest 3 to 5, becoming variable 2 to 4 for a time later.
Sea state
Slight or moderate between barra and canna, moderate or rough elsewhere.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
North or northwest, backing west for a time, 3 to 5, occasionally 2 at first.
Sea state
Moderate, occasionally slight in south and rough later in northwest.
Weather
Occasional rain or showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally poor.

Shetland Isles (18)

Strong winds are forecast

24 hour forecast:

Wind
Southwest veering west or northwest, 4 to 6.
Sea state
Slight or moderate in sheltered east, otherwise rough, occasionally very rough in northwest.
Weather
Showers.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate.

For Coastal areas up to 60 nautical miles from Lerwick, Shetland (18)

Valid Friday 08 May 2026 at 1800 UTC until Saturday 09 May 2026 at 0600 UTC

General situation

Atlantic low near the Faeroes will drift northeast with a showery airstream feeding into Shetland Waters.

Forecast

Wind
Southwest veering west or northwest, 5 to 7
Sea state
Rough, becoming very rough in north, but moderate southeast of shetland
Weather
Showers
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate

Outlook for 12 Hours from 0600 UTC on Saturday 09 May until 1800 UTC on Saturday 09 May

Wind
West or northwest 5 to 7 decreasing 4 or 5
Sea state
Rough, very rough in north at first, but moderate southeast of shetland, and slight in lee shelter just east of shetland
Weather
Showers
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate

Channel Islands (19)

24 hour forecast:

Wind
East to northeast 4 to 5, occasionally 3.
Sea state
Smooth or slight.
Weather
Rain or showers, perhaps thundery, in the south of the area after midnight, spreading north.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate, perhaps locally poor.

Outlook for the following 24 hours:

Wind
Northeast 4 to 5, increasing 6 to 7 after midnight.
Sea state
Smooth or slight, increasing slight to moderate in the evening, further increasing rather rough to rough in the north and west later.
Weather
Rain or showers, perhaps thundery.
Visibility
Good, occasionally moderate, perhaps locally poor.

Inshore waters forecast information

Forecasts for UK inshore waters are issued four times a day and cover a period of 24 hours from 0000, 0600, 1200 and 1800 UTC.

The coastal waters around the British Isles are divided into 19 areas which extend up to 12 nautical miles offshore.

The forecast contains details of wind direction and force, sea state, weather and visibility.

Strong coastal winds (force 6 or more) are displayed for the first 24 hours of the inshore waters forecast.

Marine forecasts disclaimer

In the UK, the Maritime & Coastguard Agency (MCA) is responsible for the provision of Maritime Safety Information (MSI) to ships at sea, which includes the broadcast of warnings and forecasts. The Met Office initiates warnings and prepares routine forecasts for dissemination on behalf of the MCA.

Caution: The internet is not part of the Maritime Safety Information system and should never be relied upon as the only means to obtain the latest forecast and warning information. Access to the service may be interrupted or delayed from time to time, updates may also be delayed.

Please refer to GMDSS services, INMARSAT SafetyNET or international NAVTEX for the latest information. When using these web pages, always check that the page on your screen is not from your cache. Use the Refresh or Reload button if in any doubt.