Mount Sunflower is a mountain peak in Wallace County, Kansas at about 1,230 m (4,035 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Burlington, about 37 km (23 mi) away (Mount Sunflower lies SSE of town).
Mount Sunflower, although not a true mountain, is the highest natural point in the U.S. state of Kansas. At 4,039 feet (1,231 m), it is 3,300 feet (1,010 m) above the state's topographic low point, which lies on the opposite side of the state. It is located between the communities of Kanorado and Weskan in Wallace County, less than half a mile (0.8 km) from the state border with Colorado and is near the lowest point in Colorado. Mount Sunflower is located on private land owned by Ed and Cindy Harold, who encourage visitors to the site. Amenities include a picnic table, a little free library, a sunflower sculpture made from railroad spikes, and a plaque on the site stating, "On this site in 1897, nothing happened." Additionally, there is a mailbox on the site with a registration book inside where visitors can write their names, where they are from, and how many members are in their party.From the Wikipedia article “Mount Sunflower”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Mount Sunflower the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 59° (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 28° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:52 AM | 90° E | 7:00 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:23 AM | 59° ENE | 8:18 PM | 302° WNW | 74° | 14h 55m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:37 AM | 89° E | 6:47 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:04 AM | 120° ESE | 4:30 PM | 240° WSW | 28° | 9h 25m |
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 | 6:37 AM | 7:06 AM | 7:47 AM | 4:09 PM | 4:50 PM | 5:19 PM | 9h 44m |
| February | 6:13 AM | 6:41 AM | 7:18 AM | 4:49 PM | 5:26 PM | 5:53 PM | 10h 45m |
| March | 6:34 AM | 7:00 AM | 7:36 AM | 6:20 PM | 6:55 PM | 7:22 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 5:45 AM | 6:12 AM | 6:48 AM | 6:50 PM | 7:25 PM | 7:53 PM | 13h 13m |
| May | 5:06 AM | 5:36 AM | 6:14 AM | 7:16 PM | 7:55 PM | 8:25 PM | 14h 18m |
| June | 4:51 AM | 5:23 AM | 6:03 AM | 7:36 PM | 8:16 PM | 8:48 PM | 14h 54m |
| July | 5:04 AM | 5:35 AM | 6:14 AM | 7:35 PM | 8:14 PM | 8:45 PM | 14h 39m |
| August | 5:34 AM | 6:02 AM | 6:39 AM | 7:08 PM | 7:45 PM | 8:13 PM | 13h 42m |
| September | 6:04 AM | 6:30 AM | 7:06 AM | 6:23 PM | 6:58 PM | 7:25 PM | 12h 28m |
| October | 6:31 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:34 AM | 5:35 PM | 6:11 PM | 6:38 PM | 11h 13m |
| November | 6:03 AM | 6:32 AM | 7:11 AM | 3:56 PM | 4:35 PM | 5:04 PM | 10h 03m |
| December | 6:31 AM | 7:01 AM | 7:43 AM | 3:46 PM | 4:28 PM | 4:58 PM | 9h 27m |
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 Sunflower, 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 1 (excellent dark-sky site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| February | 4:55 AM – 5:05 AM | 0.2 | 12° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:04 AM – 5:24 AM | 1.3 | 19° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:00 AM – 4:30 AM | 2.5 | 22° | SE → S |
| May | 12:02 AM – 3:42 AM | 3.7 | 22° | SE → S |
| June | 10:15 PM – 3:15 AM | 5.0 | 22° | SE → SSW |
| July | 10:08 PM – 1:58 AM | 3.8 | 22° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:24 PM – 11:54 PM | 2.5 | 22° | S → SW |
| September | 8:29 PM – 9:49 PM | 1.3 | 19° | SSW → SW |
| October | 7:40 PM – 7:50 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: 1 Bortle 1 — Excellent dark-sky site. The Milky Way casts faint shadows; zodiacal light and airglow are obvious. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.93 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 38% average cloud cover) and February as the cloudiest (61%). 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 | 75 | 80 | 84 | 92 | 101 | 111 | 109 | 106 | 101 | 90 | 81 | 70 |
| Low °F | -3 | -5 | -2 | 15 | 25 | 40 | 51 | 49 | 32 | 13 | 2 | -3 |
| Precip. (in) | 0.4 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 1.9 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 2.8 | 2.6 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.5 |
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
- 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.
- 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.
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Mount Sunflower?
What time is golden hour at Mount Sunflower?
Where does the sun rise and set at Mount Sunflower?
Can you see the Milky Way from Mount Sunflower?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Mount Sunflower?
How far is Mount Sunflower from Burlington?
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.