Visiting Sitka by yacht

When to come to Sitka by yacht, where vessels anchor, and how the approaches and the ferry link to the harbors.

Picture made with AI. It shows the place but is not a photograph.

Climate

When to come

Months	Mean high	Rain per month	Notes
December to February	5 C	151 to 214 mm	Winter
March to April	6 to 9 C	109 to 142 mm	Spring
May to August	12 to 17 C	74 to 184 mm	Driest and warmest months
September to November	7 to 14 C	252 to 299 mm	Wettest months

Source: NOAA NCEI 1991 to 2020 monthly normals, Sitka Airport. Season bands are our own estimate.

Anchorages

Where yachts anchor

Eastern Anchorage

About 0.4 mile southwest of the entrance to Jamestown Bay, in 5 to 25 fathoms, mud bottom. The swell makes it uneasy in south weather. Winter northeast gales can make it rather unsafe (NOAA Coast Pilot 8).

Western Anchorage

East of Channel Rock, just inside the lighted breakwaters, in 5 to 7 fathoms, mud bottom (NOAA Coast Pilot 8).

Whiting Harbor

West of Japonski Island, in about 10 to 12 fathoms, mud bottom. It is exposed to west and northwest winds and swells and is seldom used (NOAA Coast Pilot 8).

Jamestown Bay

About 1.5 miles east of Sitka, in 8 to 13 fathoms, mud bottom (NOAA Coast Pilot 8).

Getting here

By water

Eastern Channel

NOAA Coast Pilot 8 says Eastern Channel is the widest and main entrance to Sitka Harbor. Three detached breakwaters enclose the harbor. A federal project provides for a channel 22 feet deep and 150 feet wide on the east side of Harbor Rock. The deepest draft of a vessel calling at the port was 32 feet in 2002.

Ferry

Alaska Marine Highway

NOAA Coast Pilot 8 says the Alaska Marine Highway System operates from Starrigavan Bay, about 5 miles north of the city, with daily summer service to Juneau and other ports. The schedule is less frequent in winter.

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