Located in Franklin County, Maine, Saddleback Junior is a mountain peak at about 1,110 m (3,642 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Phillips, about 17.7 km (11.0 mi) away (Saddleback Junior lies NNW of town).
Saddleback Junior is a mountain located in Franklin County, Maine. Saddleback Junior is flanked to the southwest by Saddleback Horn, and to the northeast by Poplar Ridge. The mountain is on the south border of the U.S. Navy Survival Escape and Evasion Training Facility (USSEAETF). Saddleback Junior stands within the watershed of the Kennebec River, which drains into the Gulf of Maine. The northeast and northwest sides of Saddleback Jr. drain into Redington Stream, then into the South Branch of the Dead River, and the Kennebec River. The east and south sides of Saddleback Jr. drain into Hardy Stream, then into Orbeton Stream, and the Sandy River, another tributary of the Kennebec. The Appalachian Trail, a 2,170 mi (3,490 km) National Scenic Trail from Georgia to Maine, runs across the summit of Saddleback Junior, between Saddleback and Spaulding Mountain.From the Wikipedia article “Saddleback Junior”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Saddleback Junior the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 55° (NE) at the June solstice and 123° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 305° (NW) in June to 237° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 68° in summer but only 22° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 6:46 AM | 90° E | 6:54 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 4:56 AM | 55° NE | 8:33 PM | 305° NW | 68° | 15h 37m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:30 AM | 89° E | 6:41 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:18 AM | 123° ESE | 4:04 PM | 237° WSW | 22° | 8h 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 | 6:44 AM | 7:17 AM | 8:04 AM | 3:40 PM | 4:27 PM | 4:59 PM | 9h 09m |
| February | 6:14 AM | 6:44 AM | 7:25 AM | 4:29 PM | 5:10 PM | 5:40 PM | 10h 26m |
| March | 6:26 AM | 6:55 AM | 7:34 AM | 6:09 PM | 6:48 PM | 7:17 PM | 11h 52m |
| April | 5:27 AM | 5:58 AM | 6:37 AM | 6:48 PM | 7:27 PM | 7:58 PM | 13h 29m |
| May | 4:40 AM | 5:14 AM | 5:56 AM | 7:22 PM | 8:04 PM | 8:38 PM | 14h 50m |
| June | 4:18 AM | 4:56 AM | 5:41 AM | 7:46 PM | 8:31 PM | 9:08 PM | 15h 35m |
| July | 4:34 AM | 5:10 AM | 5:54 AM | 7:43 PM | 8:27 PM | 9:03 PM | 15h 17m |
| August | 5:12 AM | 5:44 AM | 6:25 AM | 7:10 PM | 7:50 PM | 8:22 PM | 14h 06m |
| September | 5:52 AM | 6:21 AM | 7:00 AM | 6:16 PM | 6:55 PM | 7:24 PM | 12h 34m |
| October | 6:28 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:38 AM | 5:19 PM | 5:59 PM | 6:28 PM | 11h 01m |
| November | 6:08 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:25 AM | 3:30 PM | 4:15 PM | 4:46 PM | 9h 34m |
| December | 6:40 AM | 7:14 AM | 8:03 AM | 3:13 PM | 4:02 PM | 4:36 PM | 8h 48m |
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 Saddleback Junior, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 3.2 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 16° 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 | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| March | 4:46 AM – 5:06 AM | 0.3 | 12° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:45 AM – 4:05 AM | 1.3 | 15° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:43 AM – 3:03 AM | 2.3 | 16° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:04 PM – 2:14 AM | 3.2 | 16° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:48 PM – 12:58 AM | 2.2 | 16° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:45 PM – 11:05 PM | 1.3 | 15° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:36 PM – 8:56 PM | 0.3 | 12° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -3° | — |
| December | Below 10° in darkness | — | -20° | — |
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 ≈ 21.87 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 4.0+ 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 52% average cloud cover) and December 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 | 51 | 59 | 72 | 76 | 84 | 90 | 101 | 89 | 85 | 78 | 67 | 56 |
| Low °F | -25 | -31 | -23 | 9 | 26 | 34 | 46 | 42 | 31 | 21 | -2 | -20 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.8 | 3.2 | 3.1 | 4.3 | 4.1 | 5.4 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 5.4 | 4.3 | 4.4 |
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 Saddleback Junior, closest first.
Waterfall
Mountain Peak
LakeState Park
Mountain Peak
Scenic Viewpoint
Mountain PeakFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Saddleback Junior?
What time is golden hour at Saddleback Junior?
Where does the sun rise and set at Saddleback Junior?
Can you see the Milky Way from Saddleback Junior?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Saddleback Junior?
How far is Saddleback Junior from Phillips?
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.