Great Pond is a lake in Rockingham County, New Hampshire. The nearest town is Kingston, about 1.8 km (1.1 mi) away (Great Pond lies SSW of town).
Great Pond is a 268-acre (1.08 km2) water body in Rockingham County in southeastern New Hampshire in the United States. The lake lies near the center of the town of Kingston. Kingston State Park, a small preserve with a swimming beach, occupies the northeastern end of the lake, near the town center. The lake is located along the Powwow River, a tributary of the Merrimack River. The lake is classified as a warmwater fishery, with observed species including smallmouth bass, largemouth bass, chain pickerel, white perch, black crappie, bluegill, yellow perch, and pumpkinseed. YMCA Camp Lincoln is on the northwest side of the lake.From the Wikipedia article “Great Pond (New Hampshire)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Great Pond the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 56° (ENE) at the June solstice and 122° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 304° (NW) 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) | 6:49 AM | 90° E | 6:57 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:06 AM | 56° ENE | 8:27 PM | 304° NW | 71° | 15h 21m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:32 AM | 89° E | 6:44 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:13 AM | 122° ESE | 4:13 PM | 238° WSW | 24° | 9h 01m |
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 | 3:51 PM | 4:35 PM | 5:07 PM | 9h 22m |
| February | 6:14 AM | 6:43 AM | 7:23 AM | 4:36 PM | 5:16 PM | 5:45 PM | 10h 33m |
| March | 6:29 AM | 6:57 AM | 7:35 AM | 6:13 PM | 6:51 PM | 7:19 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:34 AM | 6:03 AM | 6:41 AM | 6:48 PM | 7:26 PM | 7:56 PM | 13h 23m |
| May | 4:50 AM | 5:22 AM | 6:03 AM | 7:20 PM | 8:01 PM | 8:33 PM | 14h 38m |
| June | 4:30 AM | 5:06 AM | 5:49 AM | 7:42 PM | 8:25 PM | 9:01 PM | 15h 20m |
| July | 4:45 AM | 5:19 AM | 6:02 AM | 7:40 PM | 8:22 PM | 8:56 PM | 15h 03m |
| August | 5:20 AM | 5:51 AM | 6:30 AM | 7:09 PM | 7:48 PM | 8:19 PM | 13h 57m |
| September | 5:56 AM | 6:25 AM | 7:02 AM | 6:19 PM | 6:56 PM | 7:25 PM | 12h 32m |
| October | 6:30 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:37 AM | 5:25 PM | 6:03 PM | 6:32 PM | 11h 05m |
| November | 6:07 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:20 AM | 3:40 PM | 4:22 PM | 4:53 PM | 9h 45m |
| December | 6:37 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:55 AM | 3:25 PM | 4:11 PM | 4:44 PM | 9h 02m |
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 Great Pond, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.0 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 18° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 6 (bright suburban sky), 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 | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| March | 4:25 AM – 5:15 AM | 0.8 | 14° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:29 AM – 4:09 AM | 1.7 | 17° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:31 AM – 3:11 AM | 2.7 | 18° | SSE → S |
| June | 10:43 PM – 2:43 AM | 4.0 | 18° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:32 PM – 1:22 AM | 2.8 | 18° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:37 PM – 11:17 PM | 1.7 | 17° | S → SSW |
| September | 8:33 PM – 9:23 PM | 0.8 | 14° | 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: 6 Bortle 6 — Bright suburban sky. The Milky Way is only visible near the zenith; the sky glows grey-orange in photos. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 19.4 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 5.0+ 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 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
- 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 Great Pond, closest first.
State Park
Lake
Lake
Lake
Waterfall
State Park
State Park
Lighthouse
LighthouseFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Great Pond?
What time is golden hour at Great Pond?
Where does the sun rise and set at Great Pond?
Can you see the Milky Way from Great Pond?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Great Pond?
How far is Great Pond from Kingston?
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.