Cape Mendocino to Point Arena CA from 10 NM to 60 NM Marine Forecast
| Today...Nw Wind 15 To 20 Kt, Becoming Sw 10 To 15 Kt This Afternoon. Seas 16 Ft. Wave Detail: Nw 7 Ft At 7 Seconds And Nw 15 Ft At 13 Seconds. Showers. |
| Tonight...W Wind 20 To 25 Kt. Seas 12 Ft. Wave Detail: Nw 12 Ft At 13 Seconds. Showers. |
| Thu...Nw Wind 25 Kt With Gusts Up To 35 Kt. Seas 11 Ft. Wave Detail: Nw 9 Ft At 8 Seconds And Nw 8 Ft At 11 Seconds. Showers. |
| Thu Night...Nw Wind 20 To 25 Kt. Seas 14 Ft. Wave Detail: Nw 10 Ft At 10 Seconds. Showers Likely. |
| Fri...Sw Wind 10 To 15 Kt. Seas 9 Ft. Wave Detail: Nw 5 Ft At 5 Seconds And Nw 8 Ft At 10 Seconds. A Chance Of Showers. |
| Fri Night...S Wind 25 To 30 Kt With Gusts Up To 40 Kt. Seas Around 6 Ft. Wave Detail: S 3 Ft At 5 Seconds And Nw 6 Ft At 9 Seconds. Showers. |
| Sat...Se Wind 35 To 45 Kt. Seas 8 Ft. Wave Detail: S 8 Ft At 7 Seconds And Nw 3 Ft At 9 Seconds. Showers. |
| Sat Night...Se Wind 35 To 45 Kt. Seas 14 Ft. Wave Detail: S 14 Ft At 11 Seconds. Showers. |
| Sun...S Wind 30 To 35 Kt. Seas 20 Ft. Wave Detail: S 20 Ft At 12 Seconds And W 4 Ft At 12 Seconds. Showers. |
| Sun Night...S Wind 25 To 30 Kt. Seas 16 Ft. Wave Detail: S 15 Ft At 10 Seconds And Nw 5 Ft At 14 Seconds. Showers. |
| Area Forecast Discussion National Weather Service Eureka CA 1254am PST Wednesday Feb 18 2026 Synopsis Snow, small hail and rain showers continue across the area into early Wednesday. A short break in the weather is expected Wednesday as the showers become more scattered. Rain and low elevation snow are expected to return Wednesday evening and continue through Thursday morning. Another break in the precipitation is expected Thursday afternoon through Friday before another strong storm system moves in for the weekend bringing rain, snow, and strong wind. KEY MESSAGES: * Through tonight, heavy wet snow will result in dangerous travel conditions, downed trees and possible power outages. Heavy wet snow will impact travel on highways 199, 299, 36, 101 and 3. * Small hail accumulation expected for lower elevations along the NW California Coast with heavy showers through tonight. * After a brief break in the rain and snow, additional periods of rain with low elevation snow are expected tonight through Thursday morning. * Heavy rain with higher snow levels and strong gusty winds possible next weekend. Flooding is possible in Mendocino and Lake counties. The cold upper level trough is continuing to bring showers to the area this evening. Many of these contain small hail as snow levels still hover around 1500 feet. late tonight, some of the snow levels may even drop down to sea level. A few flakes are even possible at the coast, although no accumulation is forecasted. Snow levels may drop to 500 or 1000 feet, although less precipitation and lighter snowfall amounts expected. Showers are expected to taper off this morning with a general break in the hazardous weather through much of the day. Late this afternoon/evening another wave of frontal energy should drop down from the northwest bringing more rain and snow. Snow levels are expected to be around 1500 to 2000 feet over the areas with levels as low as 500-1000ft for interior Del Norte, Trinity, and N. Humboldt Counties. There remains the potential for small hail along the coast. Thursday afternoon shows diminishing showers and slightly higher snow levels before giving way to drier weather Thursday night and Friday. The dry airmass will be very cold, yet how much this is felt at surface will depend on the extend of cloud coverage. Overnight low temperatures may end up warmer than expected if there are more low clouds. A cold weather advisory may be needed for this time period when it gets closer. Friday through early next week, models show a series strong weather systems moving through the area. Snow levels may start off around 1500 to 2000 feet and are expected to rise as it goes through the day on Saturday as heavier precipitation moves in. That said, snow levels often rise slower than the models predict so this will need to be watched over the next couple of days. Through the weekend, this event will be full of rain and possible flooding for Mendocino and Lake counties. The ensembles are showing higher IVT's with a 75% chance of exceeding 250 kg/m/s, however very little chance for over 500 kg/m/s. While this is not particularly strong, it looks like there will be multiple quick impulses that may overwhelm the rivers and streams. The exact timing of the breaks in rain will be a big factor in the level of impacts. Strong southerly winds are also expected with the strongest through Saturday night. The mean NBM 24 hour max gust shows around 40 to 50 mph at the lower elevations and the higher elevation wind gusts are showing over 70 mph. Marine A large, steep, northwest swell is forecast through Wed. As of Tuesday evening, seas were still around 14 to 16 ft at 13 seconds which is borderline for a warning for seas. Winds shift to southerly or westerly on Wednesday and could gusts to 20-25 kt in the afternoon. A west wind surge is forecast to develop again after frontal passage Wednesday night, followed by periodic gale force N wind gusts for mostly the outer waters on Thu. Conditions settle down on Fri before a series of powerful frontal systems bring a moderate to high risk for gale or storm force winds Fri night through Sun night. Coastal Flooding High astronomical tides resulted in minor coastal flooding at high tide Tuesday, with the tide reaching 8.81 ft above MLLW with a surge around 1.5 feet. Applying the same anomaly for high tide Wednesday results in a tide of 8.6 to 8.7 ft MLLW at 11:45am at the North Spit tide gauge. Should the tide exceed 8.8 ft MLLW, minor coastal flooding is possible around Humboldt Bay, including the Arcata Bottoms and in King Salmon. JB .EKA WATCHES/WARNINGS/ADVISORIES... CA... Winter Weather Advisory until 4pm PST this afternoon for CAZ101-103. Winter Storm Warning until 6am PST Thursday for CAZ102- 104>108-110-111-114-115. Cold Weather Advisory until 7am PST this morning for CAZ113-115. NORTHWEST CALIFORNIA COASTAL WATERS... Small Craft Advisory until 10pm PST this evening for PZZ450. Small Craft Advisory until 3am PST Thursday for PZZ455-470- 475. Gale Watch from late tonight through Thursday evening for PZZ470-475. For forecast zone information see the forecast zone map online: https://www.weather.gov/images/eka/zonemap.png |
Eureka CA Radar
Pacific Southwest Radar