Located in Mono County, California, Peeler Lake is a lake at about 2,892 m (9,488 ft) above sea level. It sits roughly 43 km (27 mi) NNE of Yosemite Valley.
Peeler Lake is a California landform within the Toiyabe National Forest and on the west edge of the Hoover Wilderness. One of the few bodies of water on the Great Basin Divide, Peeler Lake's inflow is sufficient for outlet streams over 2 Sierra Crest sills of similar elevation to respectively drain westward to the Pacific Ocean (Rancheria Creek, Tuolumne & San Joaquin Rivers, and Suisun & San Francisco Bays) and eastward into the Great Basin (Robinson Creek, East Walker & Walker Rivers, Walker Lake sink). Peeler Lake's saddle area is a mountain pass between the west Sierra slope (Tuolumne County) and the Sierra Escarpment (Mono County) to the east, and the lake level of 9,488 ft (2,892 m) is over 1,000 ft (300 m) below the summits of Cirque Mountain (north) and Crown Point (south). The namesake Peeler Lake Trail of 1.5 mi (2.4 km) from the east reaches the lake from the Robinson...From the Wikipedia article “Peeler Lake”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Peeler Lake 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 75° in summer but only 28° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:02 AM | 90° E | 7:10 PM | 271° W | 52° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:36 AM | 59° ENE | 8:25 PM | 301° WNW | 75° | 14h 49m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:46 AM | 89° E | 6:56 PM | 271° W | 52° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:11 AM | 120° ESE | 4:42 PM | 241° WSW | 28° | 9h 31m |
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
Lakes reflect best in calm air — usually the first hour after sunrise, before breezes ripple the surface.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6:45 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:54 AM | 4:22 PM | 5:02 PM | 5:31 PM | 9h 49m |
| February | 6:22 AM | 6:49 AM | 7:26 AM | 5:00 PM | 5:37 PM | 6:04 PM | 10h 48m |
| March | 6:44 AM | 7:10 AM | 7:45 AM | 6:31 PM | 7:05 PM | 7:32 PM | 11h 56m |
| April | 5:56 AM | 6:23 AM | 6:58 AM | 6:59 PM | 7:34 PM | 8:01 PM | 13h 11m |
| May | 5:18 AM | 5:48 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:25 PM | 8:02 PM | 8:32 PM | 14h 14m |
| June | 5:04 AM | 5:35 AM | 6:15 AM | 7:44 PM | 8:23 PM | 8:55 PM | 14h 48m |
| July | 5:17 AM | 5:48 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:43 PM | 8:21 PM | 8:52 PM | 14h 34m |
| August | 5:46 AM | 6:14 AM | 6:50 AM | 7:17 PM | 7:53 PM | 8:21 PM | 13h 39m |
| September | 6:14 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:15 AM | 6:33 PM | 7:08 PM | 7:34 PM | 12h 27m |
| October | 6:41 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:43 AM | 5:46 PM | 6:21 PM | 6:48 PM | 11h 14m |
| November | 6:12 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:18 AM | 4:08 PM | 4:47 PM | 5:15 PM | 10h 07m |
| December | 6:38 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:49 AM | 3:59 PM | 4:40 PM | 5:09 PM | 9h 32m |
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 Peeler Lake, 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 | 4:56 AM – 5:16 AM | 0.3 | 13° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:03 AM – 5:33 AM | 1.5 | 19° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:08 AM – 4:48 AM | 2.7 | 23° | SE → S |
| May | 12:07 AM – 3:57 AM | 3.8 | 23° | SE → S |
| June | 10:19 PM – 3:39 AM | 5.3 | 23° | SE → SW |
| July | 10:12 PM – 2:12 AM | 4.0 | 23° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:31 PM – 12:11 AM | 2.7 | 23° | S → SW |
| September | 8:37 PM – 10:07 PM | 1.5 | 20° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:49 PM – 8:09 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 ≈ 21.72 mag/arcsec².
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show August as the clearest month (about 20% average cloud cover) and March as the cloudiest (60%). 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 | 61 | 66 | 71 | 78 | 85 | 94 | 98 | 93 | 92 | 83 | 71 | 62 |
| Low °F | -3 | -6 | 2 | 11 | 19 | 22 | 37 | 34 | 23 | 17 | 2 | 1 |
| Precip. (in) | 1.8 | 1.8 | 1.4 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.7 | 1.1 | 1.9 |
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 lake
- Expose for the brighter sky; reflections are typically half a stop to a stop darker.
- After sunset, long exposures smooth wind ripples into glass.
- For mirror reflections, get low and close to the water; the reflection grows with a lower camera.
- A polarizer can remove reflections to show the lakebed — or keep them, depending on rotation.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Autumn mornings bring mist and fall color; high-elevation lakes are usually ice-free only from early summer to mid-autumn.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Circular polarizer, Wide-angle lens, Waterproof boots. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Peeler Lake, closest first.
Mountain Pass
Waterfall
Wilderness Area
Mountain Peak
Mountain PeakWaterfall
Mountain Peak
Hot SpringWaterfallCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Lower Twin Lakes At Bridgeport13.3 km (8.3 mi) · reservable
- Paha14.1 km (8.8 mi) · reservable
- Robinson Creek North15.0 km (9.3 mi) · reservable
- Robinson Creek South15.0 km (9.3 mi) · reservable
- Crags Campground15.5 km (9.6 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Peeler Lake?
What time is golden hour at Peeler Lake?
Where does the sun rise and set at Peeler Lake?
Can you see the Milky Way from Peeler Lake?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Peeler Lake?
How far is Peeler Lake from Yosemite Valley?
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.