Crisp Point Light — a lighthouse in Luce County, Michigan at about 186 m (610 ft) above sea level — is a rewarding subject for landscape photographers. It sits roughly 48 km (30 mi) NNE of Newberry. Its recorded tower height is about 18 m (59 ft).
Crisp Point was one of five U.S. Life-Saving Service Stations along the coast of Lake Superior between Munising and Whitefish Point in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The lighthouse is within McMillan Township in Luce County. Located about 14 miles (23 km) west of Whitefish Point, in 1876 it became Life Saving Station Number Ten, of the U.S. Life-Saving Service District 10 (later part of District 11). Crisp Point is named from one of the Life Saving Station keepers, Christopher Crisp, who is said to have been "an iron-willed boatman." Surfmen were stationed there to aid mariners and ships in distress. The station, along with the rest of the United States Life-Saving Service, was integrated into the United States Coast Guard in 1915. (In 1939 the U.S. Lighthouse Service also merged under the control of the Coast Guard). Because the US Life-Saving Service and the US Lighthouse...From the Wikipedia article “Crisp Point Light”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Crisp Point Light the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 54° (NE) at the June solstice and 125° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 307° (NW) in June to 236° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 67° in summer but only 20° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:45 AM | 90° E | 7:54 PM | 271° W | 43° | 12h 09m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:48 AM | 54° NE | 9:39 PM | 307° NW | 67° | 15h 52m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:29 AM | 89° E | 7:41 PM | 271° W | 44° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 8:24 AM | 125° SE | 4:56 PM | 236° SW | 20° | 8h 32m |
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
Lighthouses work at both ends of the day: blue hour when the beacon is lit, and golden hour when white towers take on warm tones.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:48 AM | 8:22 AM | 9:11 AM | 4:31 PM | 5:20 PM | 5:54 PM | 8h 58m |
| February | 7:15 AM | 7:46 AM | 8:29 AM | 5:23 PM | 6:06 PM | 6:37 PM | 10h 20m |
| March | 7:25 AM | 7:55 AM | 8:35 AM | 7:07 PM | 7:47 PM | 8:17 PM | 11h 52m |
| April | 6:23 AM | 6:54 AM | 7:35 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:29 PM | 9:01 PM | 13h 35m |
| May | 5:32 AM | 6:07 AM | 6:52 AM | 8:25 PM | 9:09 PM | 9:45 PM | 15h 02m |
| June | 5:08 AM | 5:47 AM | 6:34 AM | 8:50 PM | 9:37 PM | 10:17 PM | 15h 50m |
| July | 5:25 AM | 6:03 AM | 6:48 AM | 8:47 PM | 9:32 PM | 10:10 PM | 15h 30m |
| August | 6:06 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:22 AM | 8:11 PM | 8:53 PM | 9:27 PM | 14h 14m |
| September | 6:49 AM | 7:20 AM | 7:59 AM | 7:15 PM | 7:55 PM | 8:25 PM | 12h 35m |
| October | 7:29 AM | 7:59 AM | 8:41 AM | 6:14 PM | 6:56 PM | 7:26 PM | 10h 56m |
| November | 7:11 AM | 7:44 AM | 8:31 AM | 4:22 PM | 5:09 PM | 5:42 PM | 9h 24m |
| December | 7:45 AM | 8:20 AM | 9:11 AM | 4:03 PM | 4:54 PM | 5:29 PM | 8h 34m |
Local time (America/Detroit), 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 Crisp Point Light, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 2.3 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 14° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 1 (excellent dark-sky site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -5° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| March | 5:58 AM – 6:08 AM | 0.2 | 11° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 4:01 AM – 4:51 AM | 0.8 | 13° | SSE → SSE |
| May | 2:07 AM – 3:47 AM | 1.7 | 14° | SSE → S |
| June | 12:29 AM – 2:49 AM | 2.3 | 14° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 12:06 AM – 1:46 AM | 1.7 | 14° | S → SSW |
| August | 10:54 PM – 11:44 PM | 0.8 | 13° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 9:39 PM – 9:39 PM | 0.0 | 10° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| 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: 1 Bortle 1 — Excellent dark-sky site. The Milky Way casts faint shadows; zodiacal light and airglow are obvious. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.94 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 3.5+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show August as the clearest month (about 66% average cloud cover) and November as the cloudiest (82%). August is the warmest month and February 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 | 40 | 44 | 68 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 92 | 86 | 82 | 77 | 65 | 54 |
| Low °F | -11 | -16 | -14 | 6 | 27 | 32 | 38 | 44 | 35 | 24 | 4 | -9 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 3.1 | 2.8 |
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 lighthouse
- During blue hour, use 5–15 second exposures to capture the beam; check whether the light is still active.
- Shoot from the beach or a jetty to place the tower against open sky and sea.
- Stormy weather and crashing surf add drama; keep a safe distance from waves on rocks and piers.
- A telephoto from across a bay compresses the tower against cliffs or the moon.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Summer brings open towers and tours; autumn and winter offer storms, fewer crowds and lower sun angles.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Telephoto lens, ND filter for smooth water, Rain cover. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Crisp Point Light, closest first.
Sand Dunes
Waterfall
Waterfall
State ParkSand DunesSand DunesWaterfallSand Dunes
LighthouseFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Crisp Point Light?
What time is golden hour at Crisp Point Light?
Where does the sun rise and set at Crisp Point Light?
Can you see the Milky Way from Crisp Point Light?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Crisp Point Light?
How far is Crisp Point Light from Newberry?
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.