Located in Yakutat City and Borough, Alaska, Mount Hubbard is a mountain peak at about 4,525 m (14,846 ft) above sea level. It is part of Kluane National Park and Reserve.
Mount Hubbard is one of the major mountains of the Saint Elias Range. It is located on the Alaska/Yukon border; the Canadian side is within Kluane National Park and Reserve, and the American side is part of Wrangell–St. Elias National Park. The mountain was named in 1890 by U.S. Geological Survey geologist Israel Russell after Gardiner Greene Hubbard, first president of the National Geographic Society, which had co-sponsored Russell's expedition. Hubbard is the highest point of a large massif with three named summits; the other two are Mount Alverstone and Mount Kennedy. Alverstone and Hubbard form a corner of the Canada–United States border: the border extends roughly south from these peaks toward the Alaska panhandle, and roughly west toward Mount Saint Elias, approximately 100 km (62 mi) away. The Hubbard Glacier separates Mount Hubbard from Mount Vancouver to the west, while the...From the Wikipedia article “Mount Hubbard”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Mount Hubbard the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 34° (NE) at the June solstice and 141° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 326° (NW) in June to 219° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 53° in summer but only 6° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:18 AM | 89° E | 7:31 PM | 272° W | 30° | 12h 13m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 3:49 AM | 34° NE | 10:49 PM | 326° NW | 53° | 19h 00m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:01 AM | 88° E | 7:18 PM | 272° W | 30° | 12h 17m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 9:22 AM | 141° SE | 3:08 PM | 219° SW | 6° | 5h 46m |
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
Summits catch first and last light — alpenglow can turn rock pink or orange minutes before sunrise and after sunset while valleys stay in shadow.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8:13 AM | 9:07 AM | 10:44 AM | 2:08 PM | 3:46 PM | 4:39 PM | 6h 39m |
| February | 7:12 AM | 7:56 AM | 9:01 AM | 4:01 PM | 5:06 PM | 5:51 PM | 9h 10m |
| March | 6:52 AM | 7:34 AM | 8:30 AM | 6:22 PM | 7:18 PM | 8:00 PM | 11h 45m |
| April | 5:12 AM | 5:59 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:38 PM | 8:35 PM | 9:22 PM | 14h 36m |
| May | 3:31 AM | 4:37 AM | 5:45 AM | 8:42 PM | 9:50 PM | 10:56 PM | 17h 14m |
| June | 1:56 AM | 3:50 AM | 5:11 AM | 9:25 PM | 10:46 PM | 12:40 AM | 18h 56m |
| July | 2:57 AM | 4:18 AM | 5:32 AM | 9:13 PM | 10:28 PM | 11:49 PM | 18h 10m |
| August | 4:38 AM | 5:30 AM | 6:31 AM | 8:12 PM | 9:13 PM | 10:05 PM | 15h 43m |
| September | 6:02 AM | 6:45 AM | 7:40 AM | 6:45 PM | 7:40 PM | 8:23 PM | 12h 55m |
| October | 7:15 AM | 7:57 AM | 8:57 AM | 5:08 PM | 6:08 PM | 6:51 PM | 10h 11m |
| November | 7:28 AM | 8:17 AM | 9:39 AM | 2:25 PM | 3:46 PM | 4:36 PM | 7h 29m |
| December | 8:19 AM | 9:18 AM | 11:32 AM | 12:53 PM | 3:07 PM | 4:06 PM | 5h 50m |
Local time (America/Yakutat), 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
The Milky Way's bright core (in Sagittarius) barely clears the southern horizon at this latitude, so focus on winter Milky Way, aurora or star trails instead.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -11° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | -6° | — |
| March | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| April | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| May | No darkness | — | — | — |
| June | No darkness | — | — | — |
| July | No darkness | — | — | — |
| August | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| September | Below 10° in darkness | — | -6° | — |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | -7° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -11° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -21° | — |
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 ≈ 21.95 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 0.0+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show March as the clearest month (about 60% average cloud cover) and August as the cloudiest (82%). July is the warmest month and March 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 | 31 | 24 | 38 | 40 | 42 | 51 | 46 | 47 | 42 | 39 | 30 | 24 |
| Low °F | -42 | -39 | -39 | -20 | -7 | 12 | 15 | 12 | 1 | -14 | -28 | -37 |
| Precip. (in) | 6.8 | 5.9 | 4.7 | 4.2 | 3.9 | 4.2 | 4.5 | 6.5 | 8.7 | 8.6 | 7.5 | 7.8 |
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 mountain peak
- Alpenglow lasts only a few minutes; set up and focus beforehand.
- Clouds around the summit add drama — a clear blue sky is often the least interesting condition.
- Photograph the peak from a lake, meadow or ridge at sunrise when the face that looks east lights up first.
- Long lenses compress ridgelines; shoot the peak from several miles away to make it look massive.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Early summer keeps snow on the peaks with green valleys below; autumn adds aspen or larch color in many ranges.
Suggested gear: Telephoto lens, Lightweight tripod, Warm layers, Microspikes in shoulder seasons. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Mount Hubbard, closest first.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Mount Hubbard?
What time is golden hour at Mount Hubbard?
Where does the sun rise and set at Mount Hubbard?
Can you see the Milky Way from Mount Hubbard?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Mount Hubbard?
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.