Mount of the Holy Cross — a mountain peak in Eagle County, Colorado at about 4,268 m (14,003 ft) above sea level — is a rewarding subject for landscape photographers. It is part of White River National Forest. It sits roughly 14.0 km (8.7 mi) SSW of Minturn.
Mount of the Holy Cross is a high and prominent mountain summit in the northern Sawatch Range of the Rocky Mountains of North America. The 14,005-foot (4268.80 m) fourteener is located in the Holy Cross Wilderness of White River National Forest, 6.6 miles (10.7 km) west-southwest (bearing 244°) of the Town of Red Cliff in Eagle County, Colorado, United States. The summit of Mount of the Holy Cross is the highest point in Eagle County and the northern Sawatch Range.From the Wikipedia article “Mount of the Holy Cross”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Mount of the Holy Cross the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 58° (ENE) at the June solstice and 120° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 302° (WNW) in June to 240° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 74° in summer but only 27° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:10 AM | 90° E | 7:18 PM | 271° W | 50° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:40 AM | 58° ENE | 8:37 PM | 302° WNW | 74° | 14h 57m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:54 AM | 89° E | 7:05 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:23 AM | 120° ESE | 4:46 PM | 240° WSW | 27° | 9h 23m |
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 | 6:56 AM | 7:25 AM | 8:06 AM | 4:26 PM | 5:07 PM | 5:36 PM | 9h 42m |
| February | 6:31 AM | 6:59 AM | 7:36 AM | 5:06 PM | 5:43 PM | 6:11 PM | 10h 44m |
| March | 6:51 AM | 7:18 AM | 7:54 AM | 6:38 PM | 7:13 PM | 7:40 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 6:02 AM | 6:29 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:08 PM | 7:44 PM | 8:12 PM | 13h 14m |
| May | 5:23 AM | 5:53 AM | 6:31 AM | 7:35 PM | 8:13 PM | 8:44 PM | 14h 21m |
| June | 5:07 AM | 5:39 AM | 6:19 AM | 7:55 PM | 8:35 PM | 9:08 PM | 14h 56m |
| July | 5:20 AM | 5:52 AM | 6:31 AM | 7:54 PM | 8:33 PM | 9:05 PM | 14h 41m |
| August | 5:51 AM | 6:19 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:26 PM | 8:03 PM | 8:32 PM | 13h 44m |
| September | 6:21 AM | 6:48 AM | 7:23 AM | 6:41 PM | 7:16 PM | 7:43 PM | 12h 28m |
| October | 6:49 AM | 7:16 AM | 7:53 AM | 5:52 PM | 6:28 PM | 6:55 PM | 11h 12m |
| November | 6:22 AM | 6:51 AM | 7:30 AM | 4:12 PM | 4:52 PM | 5:21 PM | 10h 01m |
| December | 6:50 AM | 7:20 AM | 8:02 AM | 4:02 PM | 4:44 PM | 5:14 PM | 9h 24m |
Local time (America/Denver), 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 Mount of the Holy Cross, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 5.0 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 22° 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 | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:13 AM – 5:23 AM | 0.2 | 12° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:23 AM – 5:43 AM | 1.3 | 18° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:20 AM – 4:50 AM | 2.5 | 21° | SE → S |
| May | 12:23 AM – 3:53 AM | 3.5 | 22° | SE → S |
| June | 10:37 PM – 3:37 AM | 5.0 | 22° | SE → SSW |
| July | 10:29 PM – 2:09 AM | 3.7 | 22° | S → SW |
| August | 9:44 PM – 12:04 AM | 2.3 | 21° | S → SW |
| September | 8:48 PM – 10:08 PM | 1.3 | 18° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:58 PM – 8:08 PM | 0.2 | 12° | SW → SW |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | 0° | — |
| 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.62 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 September as the clearest month (about 44% average cloud cover) and February as the cloudiest (68%). 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 | 36 | 34 | 55 | 61 | 75 | 82 | 82 | 78 | 78 | 69 | 54 | 43 |
| Low °F | -26 | -34 | -23 | -12 | 4 | 19 | 29 | 27 | 10 | -7 | -29 | -28 |
| Precip. (in) | 1.8 | 2.0 | 2.0 | 2.5 | 2.2 | 1.2 | 2.0 | 1.9 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.7 | 1.9 |
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 Mount of the Holy Cross, closest first.
Wilderness Area
Mountain Peak
Ghost Town
National Forest
Natural Arch
Ghost Town
Ghost Town
Mountain Pass
Botanical GardenCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Gold Park Campground8.0 km (5.0 mi)
- Tigiwon Community House8.2 km (5.1 mi) · reservable
- Camp Hale Memorial15.2 km (9.5 mi) · reservable
- Camp Hale East Fork Group17.6 km (10.9 mi) · reservable
- May Queen21 km (13 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Mount of the Holy Cross?
What time is golden hour at Mount of the Holy Cross?
Where does the sun rise and set at Mount of the Holy Cross?
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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.