Located in Adams County, Ohio, Serpent Mound is a mountain peak at about 230 m (755 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Peebles, about 8.8 km (5.5 mi) away (Serpent Mound lies NNW of town). It is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
The Great Serpent Mound is a 1,348-feet-long (411m), four-feet-high precontact effigy mound located in Peebles, Ohio, United States. It was built on what is known as the Serpent Mound crater plateau, running along the Ohio Brush Creek in Adams County, Ohio. The mound is the largest serpent effigy known in the world. The first published surveys of the mound, by E. G. Squier and Edwin Hamilton Davis, were featured in their 1848 study Ancient Monuments of the Mississippi Valley, commissioned by the Smithsonian Institution. The United States Department of the Interior designated the mound as a National Historic Landmark in 1966. It is maintained by the Ohio History Connection, a nonprofit organization dedicated to preserving historical sites in Ohio.From the Wikipedia article “Serpent Mound”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Serpent Mound 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) | 7:38 AM | 90° E | 7:46 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 6:09 AM | 59° ENE | 9:04 PM | 302° WNW | 74° | 14h 55m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:22 AM | 89° E | 7:33 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:50 AM | 120° ESE | 5:15 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 | 7:23 AM | 7:52 AM | 8:33 AM | 4:55 PM | 5:36 PM | 6:05 PM | 9h 44m |
| February | 6:59 AM | 7:26 AM | 8:03 AM | 5:34 PM | 6:11 PM | 6:39 PM | 10h 45m |
| March | 7:19 AM | 7:46 AM | 8:21 AM | 7:06 PM | 7:41 PM | 8:08 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 6:30 AM | 6:58 AM | 7:34 AM | 7:35 PM | 8:11 PM | 8:39 PM | 13h 13m |
| May | 5:52 AM | 6:22 AM | 7:00 AM | 8:02 PM | 8:40 PM | 9:10 PM | 14h 18m |
| June | 5:36 AM | 6:08 AM | 6:48 AM | 8:22 PM | 9:02 PM | 9:34 PM | 14h 54m |
| July | 5:50 AM | 6:21 AM | 7:00 AM | 8:21 PM | 9:00 PM | 9:31 PM | 14h 39m |
| August | 6:19 AM | 6:48 AM | 7:24 AM | 7:54 PM | 8:30 PM | 8:59 PM | 13h 43m |
| September | 6:49 AM | 7:16 AM | 7:51 AM | 7:09 PM | 7:44 PM | 8:11 PM | 12h 28m |
| October | 7:17 AM | 7:44 AM | 8:20 AM | 6:20 PM | 6:57 PM | 7:23 PM | 11h 13m |
| November | 6:49 AM | 7:17 AM | 7:57 AM | 4:42 PM | 5:21 PM | 5:50 PM | 10h 03m |
| December | 7:16 AM | 7:46 AM | 8:28 AM | 4:31 PM | 5:13 PM | 5:43 PM | 9h 27m |
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 Serpent Mound, 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 3 (rural sky), good enough for detailed Milky Way images.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -2° | — |
| February | 5:41 AM – 5:51 AM | 0.2 | 12° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:50 AM – 6:10 AM | 1.3 | 19° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:46 AM – 5:16 AM | 2.5 | 22° | SE → S |
| May | 12:48 AM – 4:28 AM | 3.7 | 22° | SE → S |
| June | 11:01 PM – 4:01 AM | 5.0 | 22° | SE → SSW |
| July | 10:54 PM – 2:44 AM | 3.8 | 22° | SSE → SW |
| August | 10:10 PM – 12:40 AM | 2.5 | 22° | S → SW |
| September | 9:15 PM – 10:35 PM | 1.3 | 19° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:26 PM – 8:36 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.45 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 7.0+ 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 45% average cloud cover) and January as the cloudiest (77%). 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 | 67 | 72 | 80 | 82 | 87 | 95 | 100 | 98 | 96 | 93 | 79 | 68 |
| Low °F | -12 | -9 | 5 | 20 | 26 | 40 | 49 | 48 | 37 | 25 | 10 | -11 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.6 | 3.0 | 3.6 | 4.1 | 4.3 | 4.2 | 3.7 | 3.0 | 3.0 | 3.2 | 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
- 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.
- 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.
- 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 Serpent Mound, closest first.
Covered Bridge
State Park
Waterfall
State ParkCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Serpent Mound?
What time is golden hour at Serpent Mound?
Where does the sun rise and set at Serpent Mound?
Can you see the Milky Way from Serpent Mound?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Serpent Mound?
How far is Serpent Mound from Peebles?
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.