Located in Franklin County, New York, Azure Mountain is a mountain peak at about 708 m (2,323 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Tupper Lake, about 36 km (22 mi) away (Azure Mountain lies N of town).
Azure Mountain is a 2,323-foot-tall (708 m) mountain near Blue Mountain Road in the Adirondack Park town of Waverly in Franklin County, New York. Azure Mountain is the site of the Azure Mountain Fire Observation Station, a 35-foot-tall (11 m) steel tower that was built in 1918 and later restored in 2002. The fire tower was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2001.From the Wikipedia article “Azure Mountain”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Azure Mountain 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 69° in summer but only 22° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:02 AM | 90° E | 7:10 PM | 271° W | 45° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:14 AM | 55° NE | 8:47 PM | 305° NW | 69° | 15h 33m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:46 AM | 89° E | 6:57 PM | 271° W | 46° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:32 AM | 123° ESE | 4:21 PM | 237° WSW | 22° | 8h 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 | 6:59 AM | 7:32 AM | 8:18 AM | 3:58 PM | 4:44 PM | 5:17 PM | 9h 12m |
| February | 6:29 AM | 6:59 AM | 7:40 AM | 4:46 PM | 5:27 PM | 5:57 PM | 10h 28m |
| March | 6:42 AM | 7:11 AM | 7:50 AM | 6:26 PM | 7:04 PM | 7:33 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:44 AM | 6:15 AM | 6:54 AM | 7:03 PM | 7:43 PM | 8:13 PM | 13h 28m |
| May | 4:57 AM | 5:31 AM | 6:13 AM | 7:37 PM | 8:19 PM | 8:53 PM | 14h 48m |
| June | 4:36 AM | 5:13 AM | 5:58 AM | 8:01 PM | 8:45 PM | 9:22 PM | 15h 32m |
| July | 4:52 AM | 5:28 AM | 6:11 AM | 7:58 PM | 8:41 PM | 9:17 PM | 15h 14m |
| August | 5:30 AM | 6:01 AM | 6:42 AM | 7:25 PM | 8:05 PM | 8:37 PM | 14h 04m |
| September | 6:08 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:16 AM | 6:32 PM | 7:11 PM | 7:40 PM | 12h 33m |
| October | 6:44 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:53 AM | 5:36 PM | 6:15 PM | 6:45 PM | 11h 02m |
| November | 6:24 AM | 6:55 AM | 7:39 AM | 3:48 PM | 4:32 PM | 5:03 PM | 9h 37m |
| December | 6:55 AM | 7:29 AM | 8:17 AM | 3:31 PM | 4:19 PM | 4:53 PM | 8h 51m |
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 Azure Mountain, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 3.5 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 17° 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 | — | -3° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 7° | — |
| March | 4:51 AM – 5:31 AM | 0.7 | 13° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:49 AM – 4:19 AM | 1.5 | 16° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:55 AM – 3:15 AM | 2.3 | 17° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:13 PM – 2:43 AM | 3.5 | 17° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:59 PM – 1:19 AM | 2.3 | 17° | S → SSW |
| August | 9:59 PM – 11:19 PM | 1.3 | 16° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 8:50 PM – 9:20 PM | 0.5 | 13° | 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 ≈ 21.86 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 4.5+ 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 55% average cloud cover) and December as the cloudiest (83%). 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 | 57 | 62 | 74 | 79 | 85 | 85 | 88 | 86 | 88 | 78 | 69 | 62 |
| Low °F | -27 | -27 | -20 | 6 | 24 | 33 | 41 | 42 | 28 | 21 | -9 | -23 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.3 | 2.4 | 2.5 | 3.5 | 3.8 | 4.9 | 4.1 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 4.4 | 3.0 | 3.1 |
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.
- Tell someone where you're going in remote areas and carry the ten essentials.
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 Azure Mountain, closest first.
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LakeFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Azure Mountain?
What time is golden hour at Azure Mountain?
Where does the sun rise and set at Azure Mountain?
Can you see the Milky Way from Azure Mountain?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Azure Mountain?
How far is Azure Mountain from Tupper Lake?
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.