Glacier Bay

PKZ011 · Coastal Waters Forecast, National Weather Service Juneau AK · issued Mon, Sep 28, 2:47 PM AKDT

Tonight: SE wind 10 kt. Seas 2 ft or less. Rain showers.

Glacier Bay on the map

The zone and the zones around it, tinted where a marine warning or advisory is in force. Tap a neighboring zone to open its forecast.

Small Craft Advisory

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Now

The nearest stations reporting each, as of Tue, Sep 29, 12:02 AM AKDT.

Wind: Calm, gusts 1 kt at GUXA2
Water: 52°F at ELFA2

Alerts in force

No marine warning or advisory is in force for this zone.

What is normally issued here: in the past year NWS Juneau issued 15 Gale Warnings, 10 Freezing Spray Warnings, 2 Special Marine Warnings, 1 Storm Warning for this zone.

The forecast

Coastal Waters Forecast from National Weather Service Juneau AK, issued Mon, Sep 28, 2:47 PM AKDT, valid until Tue, Sep 29, 7:15 AM AKDT. Wind in knots, seas in feet.

Tonight: SE wind 10 kt. Seas 2 ft or less. Rain showers.
Tuesday: E wind 10 kt. Seas 2 ft or less. Rain showers.
Tuesday night: NE wind 10 kt in the evening becoming light. Seas 2 ft or less.
Wednesday: SE wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft. Rain showers.
Wednesday night: SE wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft. Rain showers.
Thursday: SE wind 10 kt. Seas 2 ft or less.
Friday: E wind 10 kt. Seas 2 ft or less.
Saturday: E wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft.

Synopsis

Synopsis for southeast alaska inner channels coastal waters

A weakening 992 mb low in the northern gulf will shift eastward through Tuesday. Westerly 20 kt winds and seas of 8 to 10 feet persist in the Gulf of Alaska Monday, steadily decreasing Tuesday. 15 to 20 kt S winds are also blowing through the northern and central inner channels, shifting southeastward into the southern inner channels Tuesday morning. A brief break is expected Tuesday night before the next system approaches the panhandle Wednesday, increasing winds and seas again.

Buoys and stations nearby

The latest report from each station within reach of the zone, nearest first. Distances in nautical miles from the middle of the zone.

Station	Distance	Wind	Water	Air	Pressure	Reported
GUXA2 Gustavus Dock, AK	26 nm	Calm		47°F	998.0 hPa	Tue, Sep 29, 12:02 AM AKDT
GEXA2 George Island, Alaska	31 nm	ENE 11 kt, gusts 14		47°F		Tue, Sep 29, 12:02 AM AKDT
ELFA2 9452634 - Elfin Cove, AK	33 nm		52°F			Mon, Sep 28, 11:48 PM AKDT
CSPA2 Cape Spencer, AK	34 nm	Calm		46°F	997.4 hPa	Mon, Sep 28, 11:10 PM AKDT
CSXA2 Cape Spencer WX	34 nm	E 10 kt, gusts 14				Tue, Sep 29, 12:02 AM AKDT
ERXA2 Eldred Rock MXAK, AK	36 nm	SSW 16 kt, gusts 21		47°F	997.3 hPa	Tue, Sep 29, 12:02 AM AKDT

The past year

Warnings, watches and advisories the National Weather Service issued for this zone over the past 12 months, from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet’s archive.

Product	Issued	Most recent
Gale Warning	15	Sat, Mar 7, 2026, 2:52 PM AKST
Freezing Spray Warning	10	Sun, Mar 1, 2026, 9:00 PM AKST
Special Marine Warning	2	Sun, Sep 20, 2026, 10:26 AM AKDT
Storm Warning	1	Wed, Jan 14, 2026, 12:00 AM AKST
Small Craft Advisory	58	Sun, Sep 20, 2026, 7:00 AM AKDT
Dense Fog Advisory	1	Mon, Jan 19, 2026, 7:21 AM AKST

What this means

Marine forecasts give wind in knots (1 knot is 1.15 mph) and seas in feet, except the high seas forecasts, which give seas in meters. Seas are the significant wave height, the average of the highest third of the waves; individual waves may be more than twice that. On the Great Lakes the forecast gives waves, not seas. "Wave Detail" splits the seas into the wind waves and each swell, with its direction and period.

Each coastal office writes a Coastal Waters Forecast for the bays, sounds and ocean out to 20 to 60 nautical miles, or on the Great Lakes a Nearshore Marine Forecast within 5 nautical miles of shore; the Open Lakes Forecast covers the rest of each lake. The Ocean Prediction Center and the National Hurricane Center write the Offshore Waters Forecasts out to about 250 nautical miles, and the High Seas Forecasts beyond. Forecasts are issued at least twice a day and updated when they go wrong.

Small Craft Advisory: Winds or conditions hazardous to small boats. The thresholds are set by each NWS region: typically sustained winds or frequent gusts of 20 to 25 knots up to 33 knots, and seas of 5 to 7 feet or more.
Gale Warning: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 34 to 47 knots, not from a tropical cyclone.
Storm Warning: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 48 to 63 knots, not from a tropical cyclone.
Hurricane Force Wind Warning: Sustained winds or frequent gusts of 64 knots or more, not from a tropical cyclone.
Special Marine Warning: A thunderstorm or squall over the water with winds or gusts of 34 knots or more, hail of 3/4 inch or more, or a waterspout, for up to two hours.
Hazardous Seas Warning: Wave heights or steepness at or above the office’s warning threshold, when the wind alone does not warrant a warning.
Heavy Freezing Spray Warning: Spray freezing on a vessel at 2 cm (3/4 inch) an hour or more.
Tropical Storm and Hurricane Warnings: Tropical storm (34 to 63 knots) or hurricane (64 knots or more) conditions expected within 36 hours. Watches: possible within 48 hours.

Nearby

Open the live map with marine zones and buoys The hour-by-hour forecast for the middle of the zone Every Alaska zone

Sources

Coastal Waters Forecast CWFAJK from National Weather Service Juneau AK, issued Mon, Sep 28, 2:47 PM AKDT. Original at NWS. Buoy reports from the National Data Buoy Center. Past products from the Iowa Environmental Mesonet. Zone outlines from the NWS marine and offshore zone boundaries. Warnings and advisories from the NWS API, read 08:58 UTC. All public domain, from the National Weather Service.