Cumorah is a mountain peak in Ontario County, New York at about 208 m (682 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Manchester, about 2.9 km (1.8 mi) away (Cumorah lies NNE of town).
Cumorah () is a drumlin in Manchester, New York, United States, where Joseph Smith said he found a set of golden plates which he also said he translated into English and published as the Book of Mormon. In the text of the Book of Mormon, "Cumorah" is a hill located in a land of the same name, which is "a land of many waters, rivers and fountains". In this hill, a Book of Mormon figure, Mormon, deposited a number of metal plates containing the record of his nation of Nephites, just prior to their final battle with the Lamanites in which at least 230,000 people were killed.From the Wikipedia article “Cumorah”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Cumorah the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 56° (ENE) at the June solstice and 122° (ESE) in late December. Sunset moves from 304° (NW) in June to 238° (WSW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 70° in summer but only 24° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:13 AM | 90° E | 7:21 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:31 AM | 56° ENE | 8:52 PM | 304° NW | 70° | 15h 22m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:57 AM | 89° E | 7:08 PM | 271° W | 47° | 12h 11m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:38 AM | 122° ESE | 4:38 PM | 238° WSW | 24° | 9h 00m |
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 | 7:07 AM | 7:38 AM | 8:22 AM | 4:15 PM | 5:00 PM | 5:31 PM | 9h 22m |
| February | 6:38 AM | 7:08 AM | 7:47 AM | 5:01 PM | 5:40 PM | 6:10 PM | 10h 33m |
| March | 6:54 AM | 7:22 AM | 8:00 AM | 6:38 PM | 7:15 PM | 7:44 PM | 11h 53m |
| April | 5:58 AM | 6:28 AM | 7:06 AM | 7:13 PM | 7:51 PM | 8:21 PM | 13h 23m |
| May | 5:14 AM | 5:47 AM | 6:27 AM | 7:45 PM | 8:26 PM | 8:58 PM | 14h 39m |
| June | 4:55 AM | 5:30 AM | 6:13 AM | 8:07 PM | 8:50 PM | 9:26 PM | 15h 20m |
| July | 5:10 AM | 5:44 AM | 6:26 AM | 8:05 PM | 8:47 PM | 9:21 PM | 15h 03m |
| August | 5:45 AM | 6:16 AM | 6:55 AM | 7:34 PM | 8:13 PM | 8:44 PM | 13h 57m |
| September | 6:21 AM | 6:49 AM | 7:27 AM | 6:43 PM | 7:21 PM | 7:49 PM | 12h 32m |
| October | 6:54 AM | 7:23 AM | 8:01 AM | 5:49 PM | 6:28 PM | 6:56 PM | 11h 05m |
| November | 6:31 AM | 7:02 AM | 7:45 AM | 4:04 PM | 4:47 PM | 5:17 PM | 9h 45m |
| December | 7:02 AM | 7:34 AM | 8:20 AM | 3:50 PM | 4:36 PM | 5:08 PM | 9h 02m |
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 Cumorah, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 4.0 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 18° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 4 (rural / suburban transition), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| March | 4:50 AM – 5:40 AM | 0.8 | 14° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 2:54 AM – 4:34 AM | 1.7 | 17° | SSE → S |
| May | 12:56 AM – 3:36 AM | 2.7 | 18° | SSE → S |
| June | 11:08 PM – 3:08 AM | 4.0 | 18° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 10:57 PM – 1:47 AM | 2.8 | 18° | S → SSW |
| August | 10:02 PM – 11:42 PM | 1.7 | 17° | S → SSW |
| September | 8:58 PM – 9:48 PM | 0.8 | 14° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| 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: 4 Bortle 4 — Rural / suburban transition. Light domes are visible in several directions; the Milky Way is clear but lacks detail near the horizon. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.03 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 5.0+ 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 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 | 60 | 64 | 75 | 82 | 88 | 93 | 97 | 97 | 94 | 86 | 74 | 66 |
| Low °F | -10 | -13 | -7 | 12 | 24 | 35 | 45 | 45 | 35 | 23 | -1 | -4 |
| Precip. (in) | 1.9 | 2.0 | 2.4 | 3.0 | 3.4 | 3.8 | 3.8 | 3.6 | 3.6 | 3.7 | 2.4 | 2.6 |
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.
- Scout in daylight if you plan to shoot at night or before sunrise.
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 Cumorah, closest first.
Botanical Garden
State Park
LighthouseFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Cumorah?
What time is golden hour at Cumorah?
Where does the sun rise and set at Cumorah?
Can you see the Milky Way from Cumorah?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Cumorah?
How far is Cumorah from Manchester?
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.