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Mountain Peaks in Maryland

4 mountain peaks in Maryland with photography planning data — sunrise and sunset azimuths, golden hour by month, Milky Way windows and estimated sky darkness. Garrett County has the most (1). The darkest skies are at Hoye-Crest (Bortle 3).

Top mountain peaks

Hoye-CrestMountain Peak
Hoye-CrestGarrett County · 1,027 m
Catoctin MountainMountain Peak
Catoctin MountainFrederick County · 572 m
Quirauk MountainMountain Peak
Quirauk MountainWashington County · 654 m
Dans MountainMountain Peak
Dans MountainAllegany County · 873 m

Map

How to photograph mountain peaks

Summits catch first and last light — alpenglow can turn rock pink or orange minutes before sunrise and after sunset while valleys stay in shadow.

  • 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.
  • Alpenglow lasts only a few minutes; set up and focus beforehand.

Season: Early summer keeps snow on the peaks with green valleys below; autumn adds aspen or larch color in many ranges.