Instow Coastguard is primarily a Mud Rescue unit, with a specialised team of 11 officers all of whom are trained specifically in the techniques of extracting a casualty from soft mud and recovering them to the shore. The unit has responsibility for the majority of the Taw/Torridge estuary from Barnstaple Long Bridge to Bideford Steel Bridge. Instow are the only unit with Mud Rescue capability in the sector and therefore may be called upon to assist neighbouring cliff rescue teams at Croyde and Westward Ho! where their guard areas include the Rivers Taw and Torridge. The unit also has initial response and search capability, working with other coastguard rescue teams as back up where necessary. Operations in the Bideford sector are co-ordinated from the Swansea Maritime Rescue Co-ordination Centre at Mumbles.

The Taw/Torridge estuary includes areas of mud flats, salt marshes and sand banks, some of which may become isolated by a flooding tide. Both the mud flats and marshes contain areas of soft mud which can quickly trap a person or animal and these areas are liable to shift position with the seasons, the height of the tide or with the amount of fresh water flow in the river. Our guard also covers the Tarka trail where it follows the river estuary, including several sites of outstanding natural beauty and historical interest.The village of Instow itself stands at the confluence of the two rivers and possesses a long sandy beach which runs from the old Instow Quay into the river Taw as far as the Yelland Jetty. The beach and promenade provide outstanding views across the river mouth to Appledore.