Located in Oxford County, Maine, Parmachenee Lake is a lake at about 494 m (1,621 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Colebrook, about 49 km (31 mi) away (Parmachenee Lake lies NE of town).
Parmachenee Lake is on the Magalloway River near the Canadian border on the western edge of Maine. The lake was named after the daughter of Native American chief Metalluk, and is best known for the Gilded Age Parmachenee Club. The Magalloway River head-waters enter the north end of the lake in Parmachenee township, and the lake extends south into Lynchtown township where it overflows 2 miles (3.2 km) upstream of Aziscohos Reservoir.From the Wikipedia article “Parmachenee Lake”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Parmachenee Lake the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 55° (NE) at the June solstice and 124° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 306° (NW) in June to 237° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 68° in summer but only 21° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:48 AM | 90° E | 6:56 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 4:57 AM | 55° NE | 8:36 PM | 306° NW | 68° | 15h 38m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:32 AM | 89° E | 6:43 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:20 AM | 124° ESE | 4:05 PM | 237° WSW | 21° | 8h 45m |
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 | 6:47 AM | 7:20 AM | 8:07 AM | 3:41 PM | 4:28 PM | 5:01 PM | 9h 08m |
| February | 6:16 AM | 6:46 AM | 7:28 AM | 4:30 PM | 5:12 PM | 5:42 PM | 10h 26m |
| March | 6:28 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:36 AM | 6:11 PM | 6:50 PM | 7:19 PM | 11h 52m |
| April | 5:29 AM | 6:00 AM | 6:39 AM | 6:50 PM | 7:29 PM | 8:00 PM | 13h 30m |
| May | 4:41 AM | 5:15 AM | 5:58 AM | 7:24 PM | 8:07 PM | 8:41 PM | 14h 52m |
| June | 4:19 AM | 4:57 AM | 5:42 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:34 PM | 9:11 PM | 15h 37m |
| July | 4:35 AM | 5:12 AM | 5:56 AM | 7:45 PM | 8:29 PM | 9:05 PM | 15h 18m |
| August | 5:14 AM | 5:46 AM | 6:27 AM | 7:12 PM | 7:53 PM | 8:25 PM | 14h 07m |
| September | 5:54 AM | 6:23 AM | 7:02 AM | 6:18 PM | 6:57 PM | 7:27 PM | 12h 34m |
| October | 6:31 AM | 7:00 AM | 7:40 AM | 5:20 PM | 6:00 PM | 6:30 PM | 11h 00m |
| November | 6:11 AM | 6:43 AM | 7:27 AM | 3:31 PM | 4:16 PM | 4:48 PM | 9h 33m |
| December | 6:43 AM | 7:17 AM | 8:06 AM | 3:14 PM | 4:03 PM | 4:37 PM | 8h 46m |
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 Parmachenee Lake, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 3.2 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 16° 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 | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| March | 4:49 AM – 5:09 AM | 0.3 | 12° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:48 AM – 4:08 AM | 1.3 | 15° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:47 AM – 2:57 AM | 2.2 | 16° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:09 PM – 2:19 AM | 3.2 | 16° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:52 PM – 1:02 AM | 2.2 | 16° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:49 PM – 10:59 PM | 1.2 | 15° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:38 PM – 8:58 PM | 0.3 | 12° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -3° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -20° | — |
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 ≈ 21.9 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 4.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show September as the clearest month (about 57% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (77%). 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 | 49 | 54 | 68 | 74 | 83 | 86 | 85 | 83 | 82 | 74 | 65 | 55 |
| Low °F | -32 | -32 | -21 | 0 | 23 | 33 | 42 | 40 | 27 | 15 | -5 | -21 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.4 | 2.6 | 2.8 | 3.6 | 3.9 | 5.0 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.5 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 3.8 |
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 lake
- Mist often lifts off lakes on cold mornings after warm days, especially in autumn.
- Include shoreline rocks, reeds or a log as foreground to give the reflection depth.
- Expose for the brighter sky; reflections are typically half a stop to a stop darker.
- After sunset, long exposures smooth wind ripples into glass.
- Bring a spare battery — cold weather and long exposures drain them fast.
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 Parmachenee Lake, closest first.
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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.