Located in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, Fairhaven Bay is a lake. It sits roughly 3.9 km (2.4 mi) S of Concord.
Fairhaven Bay is a lake located within the Sudbury river in Concord, Massachusetts, United States (US). It was frequented by Henry David Thoreau who, together with Edward Hoar, accidentally set fire to the woods near the bay in April 1844, as later described in Thoreau's journal. In 1895, George Bradford Bartlett, ”well-known in connection with the Manse boathouse”, wrote of the cliffs near Fairhaven Bay on the Sudbury River: "For more than a hundred years these cliffs have been a favorite resort for the nature lover, and the climax of many a Sunday walk or autumnal holiday trip, as no better view can be had of the waving tree-tops and gentle river". To the north, the bay is bordered by Wright Woods, owned by the Concord Land Conservation Trust. The woods, where Thoreau often walked, link the Fairhaven Bay trails and the Lincoln Conservation land with the Walden Pond State Reservation.From the Wikipedia article “Fairhaven Bay”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Fairhaven Bay the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 57° (ENE) at the June solstice and 122° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 304° (WNW) in June to 238° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 71° in summer but only 24° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:50 AM | 90° E | 6:58 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:09 AM | 57° ENE | 8:27 PM | 304° WNW | 71° | 15h 18m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:33 AM | 89° E | 6:45 PM | 271° W | 48° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:12 AM | 122° ESE | 4:16 PM | 238° WSW | 24° | 9h 04m |
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 | 6:42 AM | 7:13 AM | 7:57 AM | 3:54 PM | 4:38 PM | 5:09 PM | 9h 25m |
| February | 6:14 AM | 6:43 AM | 7:23 AM | 4:38 PM | 5:18 PM | 5:47 PM | 10h 35m |
| March | 6:30 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:36 AM | 6:15 PM | 6:52 PM | 7:20 PM | 11h 54m |
| April | 5:36 AM | 6:05 AM | 6:43 AM | 6:49 PM | 7:27 PM | 7:56 PM | 13h 22m |
| May | 4:53 AM | 5:25 AM | 6:05 AM | 7:20 PM | 8:01 PM | 8:33 PM | 14h 36m |
| June | 4:34 AM | 5:09 AM | 5:51 AM | 7:42 PM | 8:25 PM | 9:00 PM | 15h 16m |
| July | 4:49 AM | 5:22 AM | 6:04 AM | 7:40 PM | 8:22 PM | 8:55 PM | 14h 59m |
| August | 5:23 AM | 5:53 AM | 6:32 AM | 7:10 PM | 7:48 PM | 8:19 PM | 13h 55m |
| September | 5:58 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:03 AM | 6:20 PM | 6:57 PM | 7:25 PM | 12h 31m |
| October | 6:30 AM | 6:59 AM | 7:37 AM | 5:27 PM | 6:05 PM | 6:33 PM | 11h 06m |
| November | 6:07 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:19 AM | 3:43 PM | 4:25 PM | 4:55 PM | 9h 48m |
| December | 6:37 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:54 AM | 3:29 PM | 4:14 PM | 4:46 PM | 9h 05m |
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 Fairhaven Bay, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.2 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 19° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 7 (suburban / urban transition), so expect visible sky glow; drive away from towns for better results.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -3° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| March | 4:26 AM – 5:16 AM | 0.8 | 15° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:18 AM – 4:18 AM | 2.0 | 18° | SE → S |
| May | 12:29 AM – 3:19 AM | 2.8 | 19° | SSE → S |
| June | 10:40 PM – 2:50 AM | 4.2 | 19° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:29 PM – 1:29 AM | 3.0 | 19° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:36 PM – 11:26 PM | 1.8 | 18° | S → SSW |
| September | 8:33 PM – 9:23 PM | 0.8 | 15° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| 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: 7 Bortle 7 — Suburban / urban transition. The whole sky has a grey-white glow; the Milky Way is invisible to the eye. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 18.63 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 5.5+ 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 51% average cloud cover) and May as the cloudiest (64%). 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 | 64 | 65 | 75 | 86 | 89 | 93 | 98 | 100 | 97 | 86 | 72 | 67 |
| Low °F | -12 | -15 | -3 | 18 | 31 | 40 | 50 | 50 | 41 | 22 | 10 | -4 |
| Precip. (in) | 3.1 | 3.7 | 4.2 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 4.5 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 4.8 | 3.9 | 4.4 |
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
- 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.
- 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.
- Tell someone where you're going in remote areas and carry the ten essentials.
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 Fairhaven Bay, closest first.
Lake
Lake
National Wildlife Refuge
Mountain Peak
Botanical Garden
National Wildlife Refuge
Botanical Garden
Mountain Peak
State ParkFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Fairhaven Bay?
What time is golden hour at Fairhaven Bay?
Where does the sun rise and set at Fairhaven Bay?
Can you see the Milky Way from Fairhaven Bay?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Fairhaven Bay?
How far is Fairhaven Bay from Concord?
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.