Located in Santa Cruz County, California, Hecker Pass is a mountain pass at about 410 m (1,345 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Interlaken, about 5.0 km (3.1 mi) away (Hecker Pass lies NNE of town).
Hecker Pass is a low mountain pass across the Santa Cruz Mountains of central California, connecting Watsonville on the Pacific coast to Gilroy and the Santa Clara Valley. It is traversed by Hecker Pass Road, the western part of California State Route 152, which continues east from Gilroy across Pacheco Pass and into the Central Valley. Mt. Madonna County Park lies to the north of the pass. The pass's elevation is 1,339 feet (408 m). Santa Clara County supervisor Henry Hecker, a nephew of Friedrich Hecker, became the namesake of the pass on May 27, 1928, at the opening of the "Yosemite-to-the-Sea Highway" over it. In the 1930s, flooding on creeks near the highway caused the collapse of a bridge and the closing of the pass. In 1941, a landslide closed the pass, and in 1947 and 1959, the pass was again closed because of landslides caused by earthquakes. The Hecker Strawberry, a...From the Wikipedia article “Hecker Pass”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Hecker Pass the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 60° (ENE) at the June solstice and 119° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 301° (WNW) in June to 241° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 76° in summer but only 30° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:11 AM | 90° E | 7:19 PM | 271° W | 53° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:48 AM | 60° ENE | 8:31 PM | 301° WNW | 76° | 14h 42m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:56 AM | 89° E | 7:05 PM | 271° W | 53° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:17 AM | 119° ESE | 4:54 PM | 241° WSW | 30° | 9h 37m |
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
Mountain passes sit above valleys, so they reward sunrise and sunset with layered ridges, valley fog and long shadows.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 6:51 AM | 7:20 AM | 7:59 AM | 4:35 PM | 5:14 PM | 5:42 PM | 9h 54m |
| February | 6:30 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:32 AM | 5:11 PM | 5:47 PM | 6:14 PM | 10h 51m |
| March | 6:53 AM | 7:19 AM | 7:53 AM | 6:40 PM | 7:15 PM | 7:40 PM | 11h 56m |
| April | 6:06 AM | 6:33 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:07 PM | 7:42 PM | 8:09 PM | 13h 09m |
| May | 5:31 AM | 6:00 AM | 6:37 AM | 7:32 PM | 8:09 PM | 8:38 PM | 14h 09m |
| June | 5:17 AM | 5:48 AM | 6:26 AM | 7:50 PM | 8:29 PM | 9:00 PM | 14h 41m |
| July | 5:30 AM | 6:00 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:49 PM | 8:27 PM | 8:57 PM | 14h 27m |
| August | 5:57 AM | 6:25 AM | 7:00 AM | 7:24 PM | 8:00 PM | 8:28 PM | 13h 35m |
| September | 6:24 AM | 6:50 AM | 7:24 AM | 6:42 PM | 7:16 PM | 7:42 PM | 12h 26m |
| October | 6:49 AM | 7:15 AM | 7:50 AM | 5:56 PM | 6:31 PM | 6:58 PM | 11h 16m |
| November | 6:19 AM | 6:46 AM | 7:24 AM | 4:20 PM | 4:58 PM | 5:26 PM | 10h 12m |
| December | 6:45 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:54 AM | 4:12 PM | 4:52 PM | 5:21 PM | 9h 38m |
Local time (America/Los Angeles), 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 Hecker Pass, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through October. June gives the longest window (about 5.5 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 24° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 5 (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 | — | 0° | — |
| February | 5:05 AM – 5:25 AM | 0.3 | 14° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:11 AM – 5:41 AM | 1.5 | 20° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:04 AM – 4:54 AM | 2.8 | 24° | SE → S |
| May | 12:12 AM – 4:12 AM | 4.0 | 24° | SE → SSW |
| June | 10:21 PM – 3:51 AM | 5.5 | 24° | SE → SW |
| July | 10:15 PM – 2:25 AM | 4.2 | 24° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:36 PM – 12:26 AM | 2.8 | 24° | S → SW |
| September | 8:44 PM – 10:24 PM | 1.7 | 21° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:58 PM – 8:28 PM | 0.5 | 14° | 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: 5 Bortle 5 — Suburban sky. The Milky Way is weak near the horizon and washed out overhead; long exposures pick up a sky glow. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 19.72 mag/arcsec².
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show June as the clearest month (about 26% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (49%). July is the warmest month and December 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 | 80 | 77 | 83 | 92 | 103 | 108 | 113 | 110 | 113 | 102 | 90 | 77 |
| Low °F | 20 | 26 | 28 | 30 | 37 | 42 | 47 | 48 | 44 | 36 | 27 | 24 |
| Precip. (in) | 3.4 | 3.7 | 2.9 | 1.4 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.1 | 1.0 | 1.9 | 4.1 |
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 mountain pass
- Summit pull-outs often face one direction; use the sun azimuth table to see whether sunrise or sunset suits the view.
- Wildflowers bloom late at pass elevations — often July to early August in the Rockies and Sierra.
- Check road status before driving: many high passes close seasonally or after storms.
- Look for the road itself as a leading line — switchbacks from above make strong compositions.
- Weather changes fast at elevation; carry layers even in summer.
- Bring a spare battery — cold weather and long exposures drain them fast.
Season: Summer and early autumn are the main season; winter visits depend on plowing and avalanche conditions.
Suggested gear: Telephoto lens, Tripod, Warm layers, Road-condition app. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Hecker Pass, closest first.
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National Wildlife RefugeWaterfall
State Park
State ParkFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Hecker Pass?
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Where does the sun rise and set at Hecker Pass?
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How far is Hecker Pass from Interlaken?
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.