Shawano Lake — a lake in Shawano County, Wisconsin at about 244 m (801 ft) above sea level — is a classic subject for landscape photographers. It sits roughly 8.2 km (5.1 mi) ENE of Shawano.
Shawano Lake ( SHAW-noh) is a lake situated in Shawano County in northeastern Wisconsin. Shawano Lake is a hard water drainage lake with multiple inlets and one major outlet, the Wolf River. A dam on the Wolf River located in the City of Shawano raises the water levels of Shawano Lake. Shawano Lake is approximately 6,178 acres (25.00 km2), with an average depth of approximately 9 feet (2.7 m) and a maximum depth of approximately 42 feet (13 m). The shoreline length is estimated at 18 miles (29 km). The Towns of Wescott, and Washington, and the Village of Cecil border Shawano Lake.From the Wikipedia article “Shawano Lake”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Shawano Lake 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) | 6:58 AM | 90° E | 7:07 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:09 AM | 55° NE | 8:44 PM | 305° NW | 69° | 15h 36m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:42 AM | 89° E | 6:53 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:29 AM | 123° ESE | 4:17 PM | 237° WSW | 22° | 8h 47m |
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 | 6:56 AM | 7:29 AM | 8:15 AM | 3:53 PM | 4:39 PM | 5:12 PM | 9h 10m |
| February | 6:26 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:37 AM | 4:41 PM | 5:23 PM | 5:53 PM | 10h 27m |
| March | 6:38 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:46 AM | 6:21 PM | 7:00 PM | 7:29 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:40 AM | 6:10 AM | 6:50 AM | 7:00 PM | 7:39 PM | 8:10 PM | 13h 29m |
| May | 4:52 AM | 5:26 AM | 6:09 AM | 7:34 PM | 8:16 PM | 8:50 PM | 14h 50m |
| June | 4:31 AM | 5:08 AM | 5:53 AM | 7:57 PM | 8:42 PM | 9:20 PM | 15h 34m |
| July | 4:47 AM | 5:23 AM | 6:07 AM | 7:55 PM | 8:38 PM | 9:14 PM | 15h 15m |
| August | 5:25 AM | 5:57 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:22 PM | 8:02 PM | 8:34 PM | 14h 05m |
| September | 6:04 AM | 6:34 AM | 7:12 AM | 6:28 PM | 7:07 PM | 7:36 PM | 12h 33m |
| October | 6:41 AM | 7:10 AM | 7:50 AM | 5:31 PM | 6:11 PM | 6:40 PM | 11h 01m |
| November | 6:20 AM | 6:52 AM | 7:36 AM | 3:43 PM | 4:27 PM | 4:59 PM | 9h 35m |
| December | 6:52 AM | 7:26 AM | 8:14 AM | 3:26 PM | 4:15 PM | 4:48 PM | 8h 49m |
Local time (America/Chicago), 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 Shawano Lake, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through September. June gives the longest window (about 3.3 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 3 (rural sky), 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 | 4:58 AM – 5:18 AM | 0.3 | 12° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:56 AM – 4:16 AM | 1.3 | 16° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:53 AM – 3:13 AM | 2.3 | 16° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:12 PM – 2:32 AM | 3.3 | 16° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:57 PM – 1:17 AM | 2.3 | 16° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:56 PM – 11:16 PM | 1.3 | 15° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:47 PM – 9:17 PM | 0.5 | 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.32 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 July as the clearest month (about 48% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (72%). 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 | 47 | 60 | 78 | 80 | 87 | 93 | 99 | 97 | 91 | 84 | 72 | 61 |
| Low °F | -40 | -26 | -20 | 5 | 26 | 36 | 46 | 42 | 31 | 21 | 1 | -27 |
| Precip. (in) | 1.2 | 1.4 | 2.2 | 3.4 | 4.1 | 4.7 | 3.5 | 3.5 | 3.6 | 3.2 | 2.0 | 1.9 |
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 Shawano 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.