Located in Pershing County, Nevada, Unionville is a ghost town. It sits roughly 42 km (26 mi) NE of Lovelock.
Unionville is a census-designated place in Pershing County, Nevada, located south of Interstate 80 and just west of State Route 400 on Unionville Road, with the population as of the 2020 census being 27. The town's best years were during the 1870s, when it was an active mining and prospecting town serving the surrounding hilly region. For a brief time, Samuel Langhorne Clemens (better known as Mark Twain) lived there and prospected, but left without having had much success. Currently, the hamlet consists of a single business – a tourist inn – and a few small houses clustered along or near the gravel roadway which permits vehicular ingress and egress. The nearest paved road, an extension of this gravel road, is about 7 miles (11 km) to the east. The nearest services of any sort, other than those available at the inn, are approximately one hour's drive away.From the Wikipedia article “Unionville, Nevada”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Unionville the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 58° (ENE) at the June solstice and 121° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 303° (WNW) in June to 239° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 73° in summer but only 26° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:57 AM | 90° E | 7:05 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:23 AM | 58° ENE | 8:27 PM | 303° WNW | 73° | 15h 04m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:41 AM | 89° E | 6:51 PM | 271° W | 50° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:13 AM | 121° ESE | 4:30 PM | 239° WSW | 26° | 9h 17m |
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
Weathered wood and rusted metal show texture best in low-angle light; overcast skies suit interiors and moody black-and-white work.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6:44 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:56 AM | 4:09 PM | 4:51 PM | 5:21 PM | 9h 36m |
| February | 6:19 AM | 6:47 AM | 7:25 AM | 4:50 PM | 5:28 PM | 5:56 PM | 10h 41m |
| March | 6:38 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:41 AM | 6:24 PM | 7:00 PM | 7:27 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 5:46 AM | 6:15 AM | 6:51 AM | 6:55 PM | 7:32 PM | 8:00 PM | 13h 17m |
| May | 5:06 AM | 5:37 AM | 6:16 AM | 7:23 PM | 8:02 PM | 8:33 PM | 14h 26m |
| June | 4:49 AM | 5:22 AM | 6:03 AM | 7:44 PM | 8:25 PM | 8:58 PM | 15h 03m |
| July | 5:03 AM | 5:36 AM | 6:16 AM | 7:42 PM | 8:23 PM | 8:55 PM | 14h 47m |
| August | 5:35 AM | 6:04 AM | 6:42 AM | 7:14 PM | 7:52 PM | 8:21 PM | 13h 47m |
| September | 6:07 AM | 6:34 AM | 7:10 AM | 6:27 PM | 7:03 PM | 7:30 PM | 12h 29m |
| October | 6:37 AM | 7:04 AM | 7:41 AM | 5:37 PM | 6:14 PM | 6:41 PM | 11h 10m |
| November | 6:10 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:20 AM | 3:56 PM | 4:36 PM | 5:06 PM | 9h 57m |
| December | 6:39 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:53 AM | 3:44 PM | 4:28 PM | 4:58 PM | 9h 18m |
Local time (America/Los Angeles), 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 Unionville, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.7 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 21° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 1 (excellent dark-sky site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:09 AM – 5:09 AM | 0.0 | 11° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:20 AM – 5:30 AM | 1.2 | 17° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:19 AM – 4:29 AM | 2.2 | 20° | SE → S |
| May | 12:14 AM – 3:34 AM | 3.3 | 21° | SE → S |
| June | 10:30 PM – 3:10 AM | 4.7 | 21° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:21 PM – 1:51 AM | 3.5 | 21° | S → SW |
| August | 9:34 PM – 11:44 PM | 2.2 | 20° | S → SW |
| September | 8:35 PM – 9:45 PM | 1.2 | 17° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:44 PM – 7:44 PM | 0.0 | 11° | 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: 1 Bortle 1 — Excellent dark-sky site. The Milky Way casts faint shadows; zodiacal light and airglow are obvious. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.93 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 August as the clearest month (about 24% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (65%). July is the warmest month and December 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 | 65 | 67 | 77 | 85 | 97 | 103 | 107 | 102 | 100 | 89 | 72 | 57 |
| Low °F | 1 | 9 | 18 | 21 | 24 | 30 | 46 | 46 | 32 | 19 | 10 | 5 |
| Precip. (in) | 0.7 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.6 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.1 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.6 | 0.8 |
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 ghost town
- Respect private property and closures: many ghost towns are on private land or protected historic sites — never enter unstable buildings.
- For interiors with windows, blend two exposures (one for inside, one for the view) instead of relying on HDR alone.
- Old buildings under the Milky Way make strong night images in dark rural skies.
- Look for details: door hinges, faded signs, square nails and window frames tell the story.
- Scout in daylight if you plan to shoot at night or before sunrise.
Season: High-elevation mining towns are reachable mostly from June to October; desert ghost towns are best in spring and autumn.
Suggested gear: Wide-angle lens, Tripod, Headlamp, Sturdy boots. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Permits, drones & access
Private property: Many ghost towns sit on private land or protected historic sites. Respect signs, never enter unstable buildings and leave artifacts in place.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Unionville, closest first.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Unionville?
What time is golden hour at Unionville?
Where does the sun rise and set at Unionville?
Can you see the Milky Way from Unionville?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Unionville?
How far is Unionville from Lovelock?
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.