Walk to the Tower of Refuge set to return in May

The guided walk out to the Tower of Refuge was first held in 2012

A guided walk out to the Tower of Refuge will offer the Manx community the chance to pay tribute to the RNLI in its 200th year, organisers have said.

The trek to the Douglas Bay landmark on Conister Rock, which can only be reached on foot during very low tidal conditions, is set to return on Thursday 9 May.

The 2024 event marks the 11th time the walk, which attracted about 2,000 people last year, has been organised by Douglas City Centre Management.

City centre manager Oliver Cheshire said that the event was a "fantastic community event" and a "brilliant opportunity to visit a landmark that we see all the time".

The tower was built in 1832

Built in 1832, the tower was designed to be a shelter for the crews of vessels that were wrecked on the nearby reef, and was campaigned for by Sir William Hillary, who also founded the RNLI two years later.

Mr Cheshire said it would be a "wonderful way for us as a community to pay tribute" to the organisation and its founder, as well as the island's coastguards.

The event would hold "a couple of surprises" to mark the 200th anniversary, he said.

The walk is set to start between 18:15 and 18:30 BST, with those attending advised to wear suitable and waterproof footwear and to wrap up warm.

Access to the beach will be via the steps at the Bottle neck car park, but all other steps along Loch Promenade will also be open.

Mr Cheshire said dogs were "more than welcome to attend" but owners were asked to to keep them on leads and clean up after them.