Anyone heading out on the coast between Falmouth and Helford can now get up-to-the-minute weather reports thanks to a new free information service from the 'eyes along the coast'.

This is the motto of the National Coastwatch Institution (NCI), which has volunteers at stations up and down the country keep a close eye on people using the coastline and on the water.

Now the station at Nare Point - based out of a former Ministry of Defence torpedo tracking station at Gillan, near St Keverne on the Lizard Peninsula - has begun sharing the data from its Davis weather station online, as of Wednesday this week.

This is a new service for those on the water in Falmouth Bay and the Helford, the coverage area spanned by the Nare station.

A visit to the station’s website www.nci.org.uk/stations/weather-conditions-nare-point-station provides real-time weather conditions at the entrance to the river Helford and the western edge of Falmouth Bay.

Information includes wind direction and strength, temperature, including wind chill, air pressure and current rainfall. The data can also be accessed on a phone using the Weatherlink App.

Nare Point is only the third NCI station in England and Wales to communicate its weather data on its station website, with the organisation hoping that eventually all stations will be doing this.

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Station manager Don Garman said: “We hope this free information will help those who wish to use the marine environment to plan their activities with up to the minute data.”

Watch keepers will continue to broadcast current weather and sea conditions on VHF Channel 65 three times a day at 10.40am, 1.40pm and during the summer also at 4.40pm. Vessels can also call “Nare Point NCI” on Channel 65 to obtain a weather and sea condition update.

NCI Nare Point opened in 2007 and can be found on the south side of the Helford entrance. It is one of 56 around the coasts of England and Wales, with watch keepers referring any incidents to HM Coastguard at Falmouth.

Watchers also keep an eye on those using the South West Coastal Path that passes the station's door and record significant wildlife sightings, which are transferred to the Cornwall Wildlife Trust.

The station currently has a team of 60 qualified volunteer watch keepers, with four in training. It is currently open from 8am to 4pm, seven days a week, with hours increasing over the summer.