A strong high pressure area located far northeast of the state is expected to cause the trade winds to strengthen across the island chain and the surrounding coastal waters today, the National Weather Service said.

Low clouds and showers carried by these gusty trades will mainly affect windward and mauka areas of the islands. However, the strong trades will carry some of these showers over to the leeward sections of the smaller islands through this weekend, forecasters said.

In anticipation of the expected increase in wind, the weather service issued a wind advisory across the state which will go into effect at 6 p.m. this evening and last through 6 p.m. Saturday.

The winds are expected to be especially strong and gusty in areas where the wind blows down-slope along the southwestern or leeward sides of most islands.

High winds will also be likely where local acceleration occurs through valleys, around headlands and over mountain ridges, according to the advisory.

A wind advisory means that sustained wind speeds of 30 mph with higher gusts are expected, the weather service said.

As of about 8 a.m. today, winds were beginning to pick up a bit across the state. Lihue Airport on Kauai was reporting winds out of the east at 18 mph; Honolulu International Airport 15 mph, gusting to 24 mph; Kahului Airport on Maui 15 mph, gusting to 23; and Hilo Airport on the Big Island 8 mph.

Derek Wroe, a forecaster with the National Weather Service Honolulu Forecast Office, said the winds will likely increase a bit throughout the day before starting to get much stronger over night.

"It will come up to 20 to 30 mph with higher gusts during the day today," Wroe said. "Then starting tonight through Saturday we could see gusts in the 40-50 mph range."

The strong winds are being fueled by a strong high pressure that was about 1,200 miles northeast of the state at the start of today. The high pressure area is expected to move to the west, come within about 1,000 miles of the state during the weekend and remain fairly stationary.

That will keep things breezy through the weekend until the high pressure begins to dissipate, Wroe said.

There were no reports of wind-related incidents or injuries overnight in Kaneohe and the North Shore, where wind was blustery overnight. Kahuku saw wind gusts up to 36 mph this morning and sustained winds of up to 19 mph, but most gusts on the North Shore and Windward Oahu were lower.

Small craft advisories have been posted for coastal waters in virtually all areas of the state and gale warnings are in effect for the Alenuihaha Channel, which separates Maui and the Big Island, as well as Pailolo Channel, which separates Maui from Molokai.

Meanwhile,here's a day-by-day look at what to expect as our weekend begins:

Today — Mostly sunny with isolated showers. Breezy. Highs around 78. East winds 15 to 25 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

Tonight — Partly cloudy with isolated showers. Windy. Lows 62 to 70. Northeast winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

Saturday — Mostly sunny with isolated showers. Windy. Highs around 78. East winds 20 to 30 mph with gusts to 45 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

Saturday night — Partly cloudy with isolated showers. Windy. Lows 63 to 71. Northeast winds 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

Sunday — Sunny. Isolated showers in the morning. Windy. Highs around 78. East winds 20 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.

Sunday night — Mostly clear. Isolated showers after midnight. Windy. Lows 62 to 70. Northeast winds 15 to 30 mph. Chance of rain 20 percent.