Located in Morris County, New Jersey, Rainbow Lake is a lake at about 160 m (525 ft) above sea level. It sits roughly 2.2 km (1.4 mi) SE of Denville.
Rainbow Lake a residential, man-made, spring-fed body of water, is located in Rainbow Lakes, a private community and unincorporated area within Parsippany-Troy Hills, New Jersey, United States. It is the largest of six lakes located in the community. The lake is used exclusively by dues-paying members in good standing of the Rainbow Lakes Community Club (RLCC) for recreational activities, including: swimming, fishing, ice skating, and non-motor, non-sail boating. The Lake has a sand beach and two floating docks, which are for use by members and their guests especially throughout the summer months. The RLCC Board of Trustees owns, operates and maintains the lake, other smaller lakes and several adjacent properties available to all members of the lake community and their guests. It also provides a clubhouse, volleyball court, horseshoe pits, tennis court, and playground, and organizes...From the Wikipedia article “Rainbow Lake (New Jersey)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Rainbow Lake the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 58° (ENE) at the June solstice and 121° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 303° (WNW) in June to 239° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 73° in summer but only 26° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:02 AM | 90° E | 7:10 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:27 AM | 58° ENE | 8:34 PM | 303° WNW | 73° | 15h 07m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:46 AM | 89° E | 6:57 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:20 AM | 121° ESE | 4:34 PM | 239° WSW | 26° | 9h 14m |
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 | 6:51 AM | 7:21 AM | 8:03 AM | 4:12 PM | 4:55 PM | 5:25 PM | 9h 34m |
| February | 6:25 AM | 6:53 AM | 7:31 AM | 4:54 PM | 5:33 PM | 6:01 PM | 10h 40m |
| March | 6:43 AM | 7:11 AM | 7:47 AM | 6:28 PM | 7:05 PM | 7:32 PM | 11h 54m |
| April | 5:51 AM | 6:20 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:01 PM | 7:37 PM | 8:06 PM | 13h 18m |
| May | 5:10 AM | 5:41 AM | 6:21 AM | 7:30 PM | 8:09 PM | 8:40 PM | 14h 28m |
| June | 4:53 AM | 5:26 AM | 6:08 AM | 7:51 PM | 8:32 PM | 9:05 PM | 15h 06m |
| July | 5:07 AM | 5:40 AM | 6:20 AM | 7:49 PM | 8:29 PM | 9:02 PM | 14h 50m |
| August | 5:39 AM | 6:09 AM | 6:46 AM | 7:20 PM | 7:58 PM | 8:27 PM | 13h 49m |
| September | 6:12 AM | 6:39 AM | 7:15 AM | 6:33 PM | 7:09 PM | 7:36 PM | 12h 30m |
| October | 6:42 AM | 7:10 AM | 7:47 AM | 5:42 PM | 6:19 PM | 6:47 PM | 11h 09m |
| November | 6:16 AM | 6:46 AM | 7:27 AM | 4:00 PM | 4:41 PM | 5:10 PM | 9h 55m |
| December | 6:45 AM | 7:16 AM | 8:00 AM | 3:48 PM | 4:32 PM | 5:03 PM | 9h 15m |
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 Rainbow Lake, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.5 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 20° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 8 (city 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 | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:15 AM – 5:15 AM | 0.0 | 10° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:27 AM – 5:37 AM | 1.2 | 17° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:26 AM – 4:36 AM | 2.2 | 20° | SE → S |
| May | 12:23 AM – 3:43 AM | 3.3 | 20° | SE → S |
| June | 10:40 PM – 3:10 AM | 4.5 | 20° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:31 PM – 1:51 AM | 3.3 | 20° | S → SW |
| August | 9:42 PM – 11:52 PM | 2.2 | 20° | S → SW |
| September | 8:43 PM – 9:53 PM | 1.2 | 17° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:50 PM – 7:50 PM | 0.0 | 11° | 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: 8 Bortle 8 — City sky. Only bright constellations are visible; the sky glows orange or white. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 18.25 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 6.0+ 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 December 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 | 67 | 71 | 73 | 91 | 88 | 96 | 102 | 101 | 96 | 92 | 75 | 71 |
| Low °F | -2 | -3 | 0 | 24 | 33 | 44 | 52 | 53 | 43 | 28 | 14 | 6 |
| Precip. (in) | 3.1 | 3.4 | 3.9 | 3.9 | 3.8 | 4.7 | 4.5 | 4.4 | 3.8 | 4.4 | 3.6 | 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.
- Scout in daylight if you plan to shoot at night or before sunrise.
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 Rainbow Lake, closest first.
Canyon
Waterfall
Botanical Garden
State Park
Rock Formation
Botanical Garden
Waterfall
Lake
State ParkFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Rainbow Lake?
What time is golden hour at Rainbow Lake?
Where does the sun rise and set at Rainbow Lake?
Can you see the Milky Way from Rainbow Lake?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Rainbow Lake?
How far is Rainbow Lake from Denville?
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.