Small Craft Advisories keep Arctic and Northwestern Alaska coastal waters rough through Friday

Small Craft Advisories issued by NWS Fairbanks are in effect for Arctic Alaska and Northwestern Alaska coastal waters out 100 nautical miles, though the two zones carry different advisory periods. The Northwestern Alaska advisory runs through 5 p.m. AKDT Friday, July 3, while the most recent Arctic Alaska advisory ran through 5 p.m. AKDT Thursday, July 2. North winds are forecast at 25 knots with seas running 4 to 7 feet through Friday night for Northwestern Alaska coastal waters.

Back-to-back advisories for Northwestern Alaska coastal waters have run since July 1. For Arctic Alaska coastal waters, NWS Fairbanks issued an advisory July 1 effective through July 2 at 5 p.m. AKDT. The July 2 advisory covering waters through July 3 at 5 p.m. AKDT was issued for Northwestern Alaska coastal waters. Earlier forecasts in the series projected rougher conditions, with Northwestern Alaska coastal waters forecast to reach 9-foot seas and 30-knot winds on Friday. The most recent NWS Fairbanks update revised those figures to 25 knots and 6-foot seas for Friday.

The two zones carry different forecast sea heights in the latest notices. Arctic Alaska coastal waters are forecast at 4 to 5 feet through Friday. Northwestern Alaska coastal waters are forecast at 6 to 7 feet. NWS Fairbanks notes that sea forecasts represent the average of the highest one-third of combined wind-wave and swell height, meaning individual waves will be larger than the forecast figures.

A Small Craft Advisory is not a prohibition on travel. The advisories cover waters used by subsistence fishers, hunters, and commercial operators during the summer season. Subsistence users and commercial operators in these zones have noted that advisory-level conditions affect decisions on when to travel, reach fishing and hunting grounds, and schedule trips around rough weather.

Conditions are forecast to ease significantly by Sunday. Both zones are forecast to drop to 10-knot winds and 2-foot seas by Sunday. NWS Fairbanks recommends checking the latest marine forecast before departure, as earlier forecasts in this series were revised downward from initially higher projections.