Twin Buttes — a mountain peak in Shasta County, California at about 1,484 m (4,869 ft) above sea level — is a rewarding subject for landscape photographers. The nearest town is Burney, about 13.1 km (8.1 mi) away (Twin Buttes lies SSE of town).
The Twin Buttes are two volcanic cinder cones located in the Cascade Range in Shasta County, California. They are part of the Bidwell Spring chain and lie within a region that was active in the Quaternary. Formed during the Pleistocene between 25,000 and 15,000 years ago, the volcanoes erupted lava flows that coursed toward the Burney Mountain lava dome. These lava flows cover an area of 3.9 square miles (10.1 km2) and are made of basalt and dacite. The volcanoes also erupted cinder and volcanic ash that reached eastward. As of 2012, the Twin Buttes were still monitored by the United States Geological Survey for deformation, an indicator of pre-eruptive activity. However, they are considered to have "low to very low" threat potential for future eruptive activity.From the Wikipedia article “Twin Buttes (California)”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Twin Buttes the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 58° (ENE) at the June solstice and 121° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 303° (WNW) in June to 239° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 73° in summer but only 26° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:11 AM | 90° E | 7:19 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:36 AM | 58° ENE | 8:42 PM | 303° WNW | 73° | 15h 06m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:55 AM | 89° E | 7:05 PM | 271° W | 49° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:28 AM | 121° ESE | 4:43 PM | 239° WSW | 26° | 9h 15m |
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 | 6:59 AM | 7:29 AM | 8:11 AM | 4:22 PM | 5:04 PM | 5:34 PM | 9h 35m |
| February | 6:33 AM | 7:01 AM | 7:40 AM | 5:03 PM | 5:42 PM | 6:10 PM | 10h 40m |
| March | 6:52 AM | 7:19 AM | 7:55 AM | 6:37 PM | 7:13 PM | 7:41 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 6:00 AM | 6:28 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:09 PM | 7:46 PM | 8:14 PM | 13h 18m |
| May | 5:19 AM | 5:50 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:38 PM | 8:17 PM | 8:48 PM | 14h 27m |
| June | 5:02 AM | 5:35 AM | 6:17 AM | 7:59 PM | 8:40 PM | 9:14 PM | 15h 05m |
| July | 5:16 AM | 5:48 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:57 PM | 8:37 PM | 9:10 PM | 14h 49m |
| August | 5:48 AM | 6:17 AM | 6:55 AM | 7:28 PM | 8:06 PM | 8:35 PM | 13h 49m |
| September | 6:20 AM | 6:48 AM | 7:24 AM | 6:41 PM | 7:17 PM | 7:45 PM | 12h 29m |
| October | 6:51 AM | 7:18 AM | 7:55 AM | 5:50 PM | 6:27 PM | 6:55 PM | 11h 09m |
| November | 6:25 AM | 6:54 AM | 7:35 AM | 4:09 PM | 4:50 PM | 5:19 PM | 9h 55m |
| December | 6:53 AM | 7:24 AM | 8:08 AM | 3:57 PM | 4:40 PM | 5:11 PM | 9h 16m |
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 Twin Buttes, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.7 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 20° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 2 (typical truly dark site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:23 AM – 5:23 AM | 0.0 | 11° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:34 AM – 5:44 AM | 1.2 | 17° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:34 AM – 4:44 AM | 2.2 | 20° | SE → S |
| May | 12:30 AM – 3:50 AM | 3.3 | 20° | SE → S |
| June | 10:46 PM – 3:26 AM | 4.7 | 20° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:37 PM – 1:57 AM | 3.3 | 20° | S → SW |
| August | 9:49 PM – 11:59 PM | 2.2 | 20° | S → SW |
| September | 8:50 PM – 10:00 PM | 1.2 | 17° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:58 PM – 7:58 PM | 0.0 | 11° | 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: 2 Bortle 2 — Typical truly dark site. The summer Milky Way shows rich structure; clouds look like black holes in the stars. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.81 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 8.0+ 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 14% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (62%). 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 | 59 | 64 | 65 | 74 | 88 | 94 | 102 | 99 | 96 | 87 | 74 | 58 |
| Low °F | -1 | 2 | 5 | 10 | 23 | 27 | 38 | 35 | 26 | 21 | -2 | -3 |
| Precip. (in) | 5.0 | 5.9 | 5.3 | 3.1 | 2.0 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.5 | 2.0 | 3.8 | 7.1 |
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 peak
- 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.
- Afternoon thunderstorms are common in summer at high elevations — plan summit hikes for early morning.
- Snow on the summit holds detail best when you expose for the highlights and lift shadows later.
- 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 Twin Buttes, closest first.
Campgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Hat Creek17.2 km (10.7 mi) · reservable
- Lost Creek Group25 km (15 mi) · reservable
- Pit River Campground25 km (15 mi)
- Manzanita Lake Camping Cabins (Ca)28 km (17 mi) · reservable
- Manzanita Lake Group Campground28 km (17 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Twin Buttes?
What time is golden hour at Twin Buttes?
Where does the sun rise and set at Twin Buttes?
Can you see the Milky Way from Twin Buttes?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Twin Buttes?
How far is Twin Buttes from Burney?
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.