Located in Lamoille County, Vermont, Smugglers Notch is a mountain pass at about 661 m (2,169 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Johnson, about 12.8 km (8.0 mi) away (Smugglers Notch lies SW of town).
Smugglers Notch (alternatively Smugglers' , Smuggler's or Smuggs) is a mountain pass in Lamoille County, Vermont. The notch separates Mount Mansfield, the highest peak of the Green Mountains, from Spruce Peak and the Sterling Range. Most of the notch is in Mount Mansfield State Forest. North of the height of land, Smugglers Notch is drained by the Brewster River, which drains into the Lamoille River, and into Lake Champlain. To the south, the notch is drained by the West Branch Waterbury River, then into the Little River, the Winooski River, and into Lake Champlain.From the Wikipedia article “Smugglers Notch”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Smugglers Notch 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) | 6:55 AM | 90° E | 7:04 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:07 AM | 55° NE | 8:41 PM | 305° NW | 69° | 15h 34m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:39 AM | 89° E | 6:51 PM | 271° W | 46° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:26 AM | 123° ESE | 4:15 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
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 | 6:53 AM | 7:25 AM | 8:11 AM | 3:51 PM | 4:37 PM | 5:10 PM | 9h 12m |
| February | 6:23 AM | 6:52 AM | 7:34 AM | 4:39 PM | 5:20 PM | 5:50 PM | 10h 28m |
| March | 6:36 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:43 AM | 6:19 PM | 6:57 PM | 7:26 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:37 AM | 6:08 AM | 6:47 AM | 6:57 PM | 7:36 PM | 8:06 PM | 13h 28m |
| May | 4:51 AM | 5:24 AM | 6:07 AM | 7:30 PM | 8:12 PM | 8:46 PM | 14h 48m |
| June | 4:30 AM | 5:06 AM | 5:51 AM | 7:54 PM | 8:39 PM | 9:15 PM | 15h 32m |
| July | 4:45 AM | 5:21 AM | 6:04 AM | 7:51 PM | 8:35 PM | 9:10 PM | 15h 14m |
| August | 5:23 AM | 5:55 AM | 6:35 AM | 7:18 PM | 7:59 PM | 8:30 PM | 14h 04m |
| September | 6:02 AM | 6:31 AM | 7:09 AM | 6:26 PM | 7:04 PM | 7:33 PM | 12h 33m |
| October | 6:37 AM | 7:07 AM | 7:47 AM | 5:29 PM | 6:08 PM | 6:38 PM | 11h 02m |
| November | 6:17 AM | 6:48 AM | 7:33 AM | 3:41 PM | 4:25 PM | 4:56 PM | 9h 37m |
| December | 6:48 AM | 7:22 AM | 8:10 AM | 3:25 PM | 4:13 PM | 4:46 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 Smugglers Notch, 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 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 | 4:44 AM – 5:24 AM | 0.7 | 13° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:42 AM – 4:12 AM | 1.5 | 16° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:48 AM – 3:08 AM | 2.3 | 17° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:06 PM – 2:36 AM | 3.5 | 17° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:52 PM – 1:12 AM | 2.3 | 17° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:52 PM – 11:12 PM | 1.3 | 16° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:43 PM – 9:13 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.54 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 57% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (81%). 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 | 65 | 72 | 79 | 84 | 88 | 102 | 87 | 89 | 76 | 66 | 62 |
| Low °F | -31 | -31 | -23 | 9 | 24 | 33 | 43 | 41 | 28 | 20 | -1 | -24 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.4 | 2.8 | 2.9 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 5.3 | 4.5 | 4.2 | 3.6 | 4.7 | 3.4 | 3.6 |
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
- 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.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
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 Smugglers Notch, closest first.
State Park
Waterfall
Mountain Peak
State Park
Covered Bridge
Covered Bridge
Covered Bridge
Covered Bridge
Covered BridgeFAQ
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How far is Smugglers Notch from Johnson?
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.