Located in Towns County, Georgia, Double Spring Knob is a mountain peak at about 1,304 m (4,278 ft) above sea level. It sits roughly 18.4 km (11.4 mi) ESE of Young Harris.
Double Spring Knob, with an elevation of 4,280 feet (1,305 m), is tied with Coosa Bald as the tenth-highest peak in Georgia, USA. It is located in two Georgia counties - Rabun and Towns. It is located within the boundaries of the Chattahoochee National Forest. The Appalachian Trail passes below the knob to the east. This mountain is also known as Kelly Knob.From the Wikipedia article “Double Spring Knob”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Double Spring Knob 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 300° (WNW) in June to 242° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 79° in summer but only 32° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:39 AM | 90° E | 7:47 PM | 271° W | 55° | 12h 07m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 6:22 AM | 60° ENE | 8:52 PM | 300° WNW | 79° | 14h 30m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:23 AM | 89° E | 7:33 PM | 271° W | 55° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:39 AM | 119° ESE | 5:28 PM | 242° WSW | 32° | 9h 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
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 | 7:15 AM | 7:43 AM | 8:20 AM | 5:09 PM | 5:47 PM | 6:14 PM | 10h 04m |
| February | 6:56 AM | 7:21 AM | 7:56 AM | 5:43 PM | 6:18 PM | 6:44 PM | 10h 56m |
| March | 7:21 AM | 7:46 AM | 8:20 AM | 7:09 PM | 7:43 PM | 8:08 PM | 11h 56m |
| April | 6:37 AM | 7:03 AM | 7:37 AM | 7:33 PM | 8:07 PM | 8:33 PM | 13h 04m |
| May | 6:04 AM | 6:32 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:56 PM | 8:31 PM | 9:00 PM | 13h 59m |
| June | 5:52 AM | 6:21 AM | 6:59 AM | 8:13 PM | 8:51 PM | 9:20 PM | 14h 29m |
| July | 6:04 AM | 6:33 AM | 7:10 AM | 8:13 PM | 8:50 PM | 9:18 PM | 14h 17m |
| August | 6:29 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:30 AM | 7:50 PM | 8:24 PM | 8:51 PM | 13h 29m |
| September | 6:53 AM | 7:18 AM | 7:52 AM | 7:10 PM | 7:43 PM | 8:09 PM | 12h 25m |
| October | 7:16 AM | 7:41 AM | 8:15 AM | 6:27 PM | 7:01 PM | 7:27 PM | 11h 20m |
| November | 6:43 AM | 7:10 AM | 7:46 AM | 4:54 PM | 5:31 PM | 5:57 PM | 10h 21m |
| December | 7:08 AM | 7:36 AM | 8:15 AM | 4:47 PM | 5:25 PM | 5:54 PM | 9h 50m |
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 Double Spring Knob, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from February through October. June gives the longest window (about 5.8 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 26° 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 | — | -1° | — |
| February | 5:13 AM – 5:53 AM | 0.7 | 15° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:27 AM – 6:17 AM | 1.8 | 23° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:27 AM – 5:27 AM | 3.0 | 26° | SE → S |
| May | 12:31 AM – 4:51 AM | 4.3 | 26° | SE → SSW |
| June | 10:38 PM – 4:28 AM | 5.8 | 26° | SE → SW |
| July | 10:33 PM – 3:03 AM | 4.5 | 26° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:58 PM – 1:08 AM | 3.2 | 26° | S → SW |
| September | 9:09 PM – 10:59 PM | 1.8 | 23° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:26 PM – 9:06 PM | 0.7 | 16° | SW → SW |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | 2° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -18° | — |
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 ≈ 21.64 mag/arcsec².
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show October as the clearest month (about 44% average cloud cover) and February as the cloudiest (59%). 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 | 72 | 75 | 81 | 86 | 92 | 108 | 107 | 103 | 100 | 100 | 84 | 74 |
| Low °F | 3 | 7 | 20 | 22 | 34 | 49 | 55 | 54 | 40 | 27 | 18 | 12 |
| Precip. (in) | 4.5 | 5.1 | 4.7 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 4.8 | 4.9 | 4.5 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 4.4 | 5.7 |
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.
- Check road and trail conditions with the managing agency before you go.
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 Double Spring Knob, closest first.
Mountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassMountain PassCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Tallulah River Campground11.6 km (7.2 mi) · reservable
- Low Gap Campground11.7 km (7.3 mi) · reservable
- Tate Branch Campground (Clayton, Ga) 12.8 km (8.0 mi) · reservable
- Andrew'S Cove Campground13.4 km (8.3 mi) · reservable
- Upper Chattahoochee River Campground15.4 km (9.5 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Double Spring Knob?
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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.