Located in Monroe County, West Virginia, Haynes Cave is a cave. The nearest town is Ronceverte, about 7.1 km (4.4 mi) away (Haynes Cave lies SSW of town).
Haynes Cave is a cave within the Greenbrier River watershed in West Virginia. It sits within the complex hydrology of the historic Second Creek watershed in Monroe County. Haynes Cave has been the only contender against Organ Cave as the discovery site for Thomas Jefferson's famous fossil of Megalonyx jeffersonii ("Jefferson's ground sloth"). The lack of accurate records and the vagueness of the locality description left much doubt about the original location of the sloth skeleton. It was known that the saltpeter miners in the cave were using one of the sloth's leg-bones to prop up a saltpeter vat to aid in the process of manufacturing gunpowder niter, but this leg was lost to time. Both Thomas Jefferson and the initial discoverer, Colonel John Stuart, hoped to find the skull of the beast, for the teeth would reveal its proper identity as a carnivore or herbivore.From the Wikipedia article “Haynes Cave”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Haynes Cave the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 59° (ENE) at the June solstice and 120° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 301° (WNW) in June to 241° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 76° in summer but only 29° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:26 AM | 90° E | 7:34 PM | 271° W | 52° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 6:01 AM | 59° ENE | 8:48 PM | 301° WNW | 76° | 14h 46m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:10 AM | 89° E | 7:21 PM | 271° W | 53° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:34 AM | 120° ESE | 5:07 PM | 241° WSW | 29° | 9h 33m |
Azimuth is measured clockwise from true north (90° = east, 270° = west). Computed for 2026; values change by less than a degree from year to year.
Golden hour & blue hour by month
Caves are lit artificially — show caves have fixed lighting, so a fast lens and high ISO beat flash, which flattens formations.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:08 AM | 7:37 AM | 8:16 AM | 4:48 PM | 5:27 PM | 5:56 PM | 9h 51m |
| February | 6:46 AM | 7:13 AM | 7:49 AM | 5:25 PM | 6:01 PM | 6:28 PM | 10h 49m |
| March | 7:08 AM | 7:34 AM | 8:09 AM | 6:55 PM | 7:29 PM | 7:56 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 6:21 AM | 6:48 AM | 7:23 AM | 7:22 PM | 7:58 PM | 8:25 PM | 13h 10m |
| May | 5:44 AM | 6:13 AM | 6:51 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:25 PM | 8:54 PM | 14h 12m |
| June | 5:29 AM | 6:01 AM | 6:40 AM | 8:07 PM | 8:46 PM | 9:17 PM | 14h 45m |
| July | 5:42 AM | 6:13 AM | 6:51 AM | 8:06 PM | 8:44 PM | 9:15 PM | 14h 31m |
| August | 6:10 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:40 PM | 8:16 PM | 8:44 PM | 13h 38m |
| September | 6:38 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:39 AM | 6:57 PM | 7:32 PM | 7:58 PM | 12h 27m |
| October | 7:04 AM | 7:31 AM | 8:06 AM | 6:11 PM | 6:46 PM | 7:12 PM | 11h 15m |
| November | 6:35 AM | 7:03 AM | 7:41 AM | 4:34 PM | 5:12 PM | 5:40 PM | 10h 09m |
| December | 7:01 AM | 7:31 AM | 8:12 AM | 4:24 PM | 5:05 PM | 5:34 PM | 9h 34m |
Local time (America/New York), including daylight saving time. Golden hour runs from about −4° to +6° solar altitude, so the morning golden hour begins during blue hour, before sunrise.
Milky Way & night sky
From Haynes Cave, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 5.3 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 23° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 2 (typical truly dark site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -1° | — |
| February | 5:19 AM – 5:39 AM | 0.3 | 13° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:27 AM – 5:57 AM | 1.5 | 20° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:31 AM – 5:11 AM | 2.7 | 23° | SE → S |
| May | 12:30 AM – 4:20 AM | 3.8 | 23° | SE → S |
| June | 10:41 PM – 4:01 AM | 5.3 | 23° | SE → SSW |
| July | 10:35 PM – 2:35 AM | 4.0 | 23° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:54 PM – 12:34 AM | 2.7 | 23° | S → SW |
| September | 9:01 PM – 10:31 PM | 1.5 | 20° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:13 PM – 8:33 PM | 0.3 | 13° | SW → SW |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | 1° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -19° | — |
Window when the galactic core is at least 10° high during astronomical darkness on the 15th of each month. Pick nights within a few days of the new moon. Plan exact nights with the Milky Way planner.
Estimated sky darkness: 2 Bortle 2 — Typical truly dark site. The summer Milky Way shows rich structure; clouds look like black holes in the stars. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.7 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 8.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show October as the clearest month (about 54% average cloud cover) and February as the cloudiest (69%). July is the warmest month and January the coldest, which matters for gear, snow access and how long batteries last at night.
Average cloud cover (%)
| Jan | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jun | Jul | Aug | Sep | Oct | Nov | Dec | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| High °F | 70 | 72 | 78 | 82 | 92 | 95 | 96 | 97 | 95 | 93 | 78 | 75 |
| Low °F | -5 | -3 | -5 | 20 | 28 | 38 | 49 | 44 | 33 | 23 | 10 | 1 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.6 | 3.2 | 3.2 | 4.1 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 3.2 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.9 | 3.2 |
Monthly climatology for the surrounding 1° grid cell from NASA POWER (MERRA-2). Mountain sites can be colder and cloudier than the cell average.
Photography tips for this cave
- Use manual focus with focus peaking in low light.
- Never touch formations — skin oils stop their growth.
- Follow White-nose Syndrome decontamination rules where posted to protect bats.
- Many show caves restrict tripods on tours; ask in advance or bring a small beanbag.
- Check road and trail conditions with the managing agency before you go.
Season: Cave interiors stay at a constant temperature year-round; summer tours fill up, so book ahead.
Suggested gear: Fast lens (f/1.8–f/2.8), High-ISO camera, Small beanbag. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Haynes Cave, closest first.
Covered Bridge
Cave
Ghost Town
State Park
Scenic Viewpoint
Covered Bridge
Cave
Covered Bridge
Covered BridgeCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Haynes Cave?
What time is golden hour at Haynes Cave?
Where does the sun rise and set at Haynes Cave?
Can you see the Milky Way from Haynes Cave?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Haynes Cave?
How far is Haynes Cave from Ronceverte?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, Wikipedia. Sun, moon and Milky Way times are computed by LWPhoto Atlas for 2026. Climate: NASA POWER. Sky darkness is a population-based estimate (Walker's law), not a measurement. See data sources & licenses.