Lake Champlain is a lake in Essex County, New York. The nearest town is Burlington, about 11.1 km (6.9 mi) away (Lake Champlain lies WNW of town).
Lake Champlain ( sham-PLAYN; French: Lac Champlain, pronounced [lak ʃɑ̃plɛ̃] ) is a large natural freshwater lake in North America. With a length of 107 mi (172 km) and surface area over 500 sq mi (1,295 km2), it lies mostly between the U.S. states of New York and Vermont, but also extends north into the Canadian province of Quebec. Burlington, Vermont, and Plattsburgh, New York, are the largest settlements on the lake, and towards the south lies the historic Fort Ticonderoga in New York. The Quebec portion is in the regional county municipalities of Le Haut-Richelieu and Brome-Missisquoi. There are numerous islands in the lake; the largest include Grand Isle, Isle La Motte and North Hero: all part of Grand Isle County, Vermont. Because of its connections both to the St. Lawrence Seaway via the Richelieu River, and to the Hudson River via the Champlain Canal, Lake Champlain is...From the Wikipedia article “Lake Champlain”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Lake Champlain the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 55° (NE) at the June solstice and 123° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 305° (NW) in June to 237° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 69° in summer but only 22° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:57 AM | 90° E | 7:06 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:09 AM | 55° NE | 8:43 PM | 305° NW | 69° | 15h 33m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:41 AM | 89° E | 6:53 PM | 271° W | 46° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:28 AM | 123° ESE | 4:17 PM | 237° WSW | 22° | 8h 49m |
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 | 6:55 AM | 7:27 AM | 8:13 AM | 3:53 PM | 4:39 PM | 5:12 PM | 9h 12m |
| February | 6:25 AM | 6:55 AM | 7:36 AM | 4:41 PM | 5:22 PM | 5:52 PM | 10h 28m |
| March | 6:38 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:45 AM | 6:21 PM | 6:59 PM | 7:28 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:40 AM | 6:10 AM | 6:49 AM | 6:59 PM | 7:38 PM | 8:08 PM | 13h 28m |
| May | 4:53 AM | 5:27 AM | 6:09 AM | 7:32 PM | 8:14 PM | 8:48 PM | 14h 48m |
| June | 4:32 AM | 5:09 AM | 5:53 AM | 7:56 PM | 8:41 PM | 9:17 PM | 15h 32m |
| July | 4:48 AM | 5:23 AM | 6:07 AM | 7:53 PM | 8:37 PM | 9:12 PM | 15h 14m |
| August | 5:25 AM | 5:57 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:20 PM | 8:01 PM | 8:32 PM | 14h 04m |
| September | 6:04 AM | 6:33 AM | 7:11 AM | 6:28 PM | 7:06 PM | 7:35 PM | 12h 33m |
| October | 6:40 AM | 7:09 AM | 7:49 AM | 5:31 PM | 6:11 PM | 6:40 PM | 11h 02m |
| November | 6:19 AM | 6:50 AM | 7:35 AM | 3:43 PM | 4:27 PM | 4:59 PM | 9h 37m |
| December | 6:50 AM | 7:24 AM | 8:12 AM | 3:27 PM | 4:15 PM | 4:48 PM | 8h 51m |
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 Lake Champlain, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 3.5 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 17° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 4 (rural / suburban transition), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| March | 4:46 AM – 5:26 AM | 0.7 | 13° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:44 AM – 4:14 AM | 1.5 | 16° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:50 AM – 3:10 AM | 2.3 | 17° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:08 PM – 2:38 AM | 3.5 | 17° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:54 PM – 1:14 AM | 2.3 | 17° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:54 PM – 11:14 PM | 1.3 | 16° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:45 PM – 9:15 PM | 0.5 | 13° | 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: 4 Bortle 4 — Rural / suburban transition. Light domes are visible in several directions; the Milky Way is clear but lacks detail near the horizon. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 20.82 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 4.5+ 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 56% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (80%). 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 | 55 | 63 | 74 | 79 | 86 | 88 | 90 | 88 | 91 | 79 | 70 | 60 |
| Low °F | -29 | -27 | -18 | 8 | 27 | 36 | 43 | 45 | 32 | 23 | -7 | -21 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.2 | 2.3 | 2.5 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 5.0 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.5 | 4.3 | 2.9 | 3.0 |
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.
- Check road and trail conditions with the managing agency before you go.
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 Lake Champlain, closest first.
Lighthouse
Lighthouse
Waterfall
Canyon
LighthouseWaterfallWaterfallWaterfall
State ParkFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Lake Champlain?
What time is golden hour at Lake Champlain?
Where does the sun rise and set at Lake Champlain?
Can you see the Milky Way from Lake Champlain?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Lake Champlain?
How far is Lake Champlain from Burlington?
Sources
Location data: Wikidata, 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.