Icy Strait

PKZ021 · Coastal Waters Forecast, National Weather Service Juneau AK · issued Sat, Sep 26, 2:58 AM AKDT

Small Craft Advisory in force. Today: SE wind 15 kt. Gusts to 35 kt in the afternoon. Seas building to 4 ft. Rain.

Icy Strait 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

Open the live map with marine zones and buoys

Now

The nearest stations reporting each, as of Sat, Sep 26, 6:02 AM AKDT.

Wind: W 2 kt, gusts 3 kt at GUXA2
Water: 53°F at ELFA2

Alerts in force

Small Craft Advisory from Sat, Sep 26, 2:00 AM AKDT until Sun, Sep 27, 5:00 AM AKDT

Small Craft Advisory issued September 26 at 2:58AM AKDT until September 27 at 5:00AM AKDT by NWS Juneau AK

The full text

Southeast Alaska Inside Waters from Dixon Entrance to Skagway

Wind forecasts reflect the predominant speed and direction
expected. Sea forecasts represent the average of the highest
one-third of the combined windwave and swell height.

.TODAY...SE wind 15 kt. Gusts to 35 kt in the afternoon. Seas
building to 4 ft. Rain.
.TONIGHT...SE wind 25 kt. Seas 4 ft. Rain.
.SUN...SE wind 25 kt. Seas 5 ft. Rain.
.SUN NIGHT...SE wind 25 kt. Gusts to 40 kt. Seas 5 ft. Rain.
.MON...SE wind 20 kt. Seas 4 ft.
.TUE...SE wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft.
.WED...E wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft.

The forecast

Coastal Waters Forecast from National Weather Service Juneau AK, issued Sat, Sep 26, 2:58 AM AKDT, valid until Sat, Sep 26, 6:30 PM AKDT. Wind in knots, seas in feet.

SMALL CRAFT ADVISORY THIS EVENING THROUGH LATE TONIGHT

Today: SE wind 15 kt. Gusts to 35 kt in the afternoon. Seas building to 4 ft. Rain.
Tonight: SE wind 25 kt. Seas 4 ft. Rain.
Sunday: SE wind 25 kt. Seas 5 ft. Rain.
Sunday night: SE wind 25 kt. Gusts to 40 kt. Seas 5 ft. Rain.
Monday: SE wind 20 kt. Seas 4 ft.
Tuesday: SE wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft.
Wednesday: E wind 15 kt. Seas 3 ft.

Synopsis

Synopsis for southeast alaska inner channels coastal waters

A front approaching from the West is bringing elevated winds and seas Saturday morning. The strongest winds are expected near Cape Suckling due to a barrier jet, with winds increasing to 25 kts in the Northern inner channels into Sunday. A low pressure system moving from the Bering Sea into the Gulf of Alaska Monday will continue a more active weather pattern into next week.

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	10 nm	W 2 kt, gusts 3		45°F	1011.6 hPa	Sat, Sep 26, 6:02 AM AKDT
RIXA2 Rocky Island, AK	19 nm	S 3 kt, gusts 7		49°F		Sat, Sep 26, 6:02 AM AKDT
NKXA2 Naked Island, AK	22 nm	SE 8 kt, gusts 9		48°F	1012.1 hPa	Sat, Sep 26, 6:02 AM AKDT
ELFA2 9452634 - Elfin Cove, AK	23 nm		53°F			Sat, Sep 26, 5:48 AM AKDT
GEXA2 George Island, Alaska	24 nm	ENE 16 kt, gusts 18		49°F		Sat, Sep 26, 6:02 AM AKDT
PRTA2 Point Retreat, AK	24 nm	SSE 6 kt, gusts 13		48°F	1013.3 hPa	Sat, Sep 26, 5:10 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	19	Sat, Mar 7, 2026, 3:00 PM AKST
Freezing Spray Warning	1	Sat, Dec 20, 2025, 2:19 PM AKST
Special Marine Warning	1	Wed, Oct 29, 2025, 9:32 PM AKDT
Small Craft Advisory	83	Tue, Sep 22, 2026, 4:00 PM AKDT
Dense Fog Advisory	2	Thu, Feb 5, 2026, 9:46 PM 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 Sat, Sep 26, 2:58 AM 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 14:28 UTC. All public domain, from the National Weather Service.