Yahtse Glacier is a glacier in Yakutat City and Borough, Alaska at about 1,213 m (3,980 ft) above sea level. It is part of Wrangell–St. Elias National Park and Preserve.
Yahtse Glacier is a 40-mile-long (64 km) glacier in the U.S. state of Alaska. It begins on the southeast slope of Mount Miller and trends southeast along the north border of Guyot Glacier to Icy Bay, just east of Guyot Hills and 70 miles (110 km) northwest of Yakutat. The western extent is an icefield. The name derives from the Yahtse River and was adopted after the retreat of Guyot Glacier resulted in a separate branch.From the Wikipedia article “Yahtse Glacier”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Yahtse Glacier the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 34° (NE) at the June solstice and 141° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 326° (NW) in June to 219° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 53° in summer but only 6° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:29 AM | 89° E | 7:41 PM | 272° W | 30° | 12h 13m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 4:00 AM | 34° NE | 10:59 PM | 326° NW | 53° | 18h 59m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:12 AM | 88° E | 7:29 PM | 272° W | 30° | 12h 17m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 9:33 AM | 141° SE | 3:19 PM | 219° SW | 6° | 5h 46m |
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
Ice shows its blue best under overcast skies or in shade; bright sun turns glaciers white and flat.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8:24 AM | 9:17 AM | 10:55 AM | 2:19 PM | 3:56 PM | 4:50 PM | 6h 39m |
| February | 7:22 AM | 8:07 AM | 9:12 AM | 4:12 PM | 5:17 PM | 6:02 PM | 9h 10m |
| March | 7:02 AM | 7:44 AM | 8:40 AM | 6:33 PM | 7:29 PM | 8:11 PM | 11h 45m |
| April | 5:22 AM | 6:09 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:46 PM | 9:33 PM | 14h 36m |
| May | 3:42 AM | 4:47 AM | 5:55 AM | 8:53 PM | 10:01 PM | 11:06 PM | 17h 14m |
| June | 2:07 AM | 4:00 AM | 5:21 AM | 9:35 PM | 10:56 PM | 12:50 AM | 18h 56m |
| July | 3:07 AM | 4:29 AM | 5:43 AM | 9:24 PM | 10:38 PM | 12:00 AM | 18h 10m |
| August | 4:49 AM | 5:41 AM | 6:42 AM | 8:23 PM | 9:24 PM | 10:16 PM | 15h 43m |
| September | 6:13 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:51 AM | 6:55 PM | 7:50 PM | 8:33 PM | 12h 55m |
| October | 7:25 AM | 8:08 AM | 9:08 AM | 5:19 PM | 6:19 PM | 7:01 PM | 10h 11m |
| November | 7:38 AM | 8:28 AM | 9:49 AM | 2:36 PM | 3:57 PM | 4:47 PM | 7h 29m |
| December | 8:30 AM | 9:28 AM | 11:42 AM | 1:04 PM | 3:18 PM | 4:16 PM | 5h 50m |
Local time (America/Anchorage), 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
The Milky Way's bright core (in Sagittarius) barely clears the southern horizon at this latitude, so focus on winter Milky Way, aurora or star trails instead.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -11° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | -6° | — |
| March | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| April | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| May | No darkness | — | — | — |
| June | No darkness | — | — | — |
| July | No darkness | — | — | — |
| August | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| September | Below 10° in darkness | — | -6° | — |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -11° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -21° | — |
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 ≈ 21.95 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 0.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show March as the clearest month (about 64% average cloud cover) and August as the cloudiest (87%). July is the warmest month and March 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 | 28 | 25 | 36 | 41 | 41 | 48 | 48 | 48 | 41 | 38 | 31 | 26 |
| Low °F | -28 | -28 | -33 | -18 | -3 | 12 | 19 | 15 | 5 | -17 | -21 | -27 |
| Precip. (in) | 9.5 | 8.4 | 6.6 | 5.0 | 4.5 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 8.6 | 12.4 | 11.8 | 10.8 | 11.1 |
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 glacier
- Boat tours to tidewater glaciers offer calving shots; use fast shutter speeds and a telephoto.
- Never walk on a glacier without training and gear; crevasses hide under snow bridges.
- Expose carefully: ice and snow fool meters into underexposure, so add +1 to +2 stops.
- A polarizer deepens the blue of glacial ice and the turquoise of meltwater lakes.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Summer offers access; late summer exposes the most bare ice before new snow.
Suggested gear: Telephoto lens, Polarizer, Waterproof shell, Spare batteries (cold drains them). Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Yahtse Glacier?
What time is golden hour at Yahtse Glacier?
Where does the sun rise and set at Yahtse Glacier?
Can you see the Milky Way from Yahtse Glacier?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Yahtse Glacier?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, USGS GNIS / GeoNames, 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.