Located in Page County, Virginia, Stony Man Mountain is a mountain peak at about 1,110 m (3,642 ft) above sea level. It lies in or next to Shenandoah National Park, so park hours, fees and rules apply. It sits roughly 10.7 km (6.6 mi) SE of Luray.
Stony Man Mountain, also known as Stony Man, is a mountain in Shenandoah National Park, Virginia and is the most northerly 4,000 foot peak in the Blue Ridge Mountains. Its maximum elevation is 4,011 feet or 1,223 meters above sea level with a clean prominence of 651 feet. The mountain is co-located in Madison and Page counties and is easily accessed from Skyline Drive by hiking trails. Along with Hawksbill Mountain (4,051 feet), it is only one of two peaks in the park higher than 4,000 feet. The shortest route to the summit is from the Skyland Resort and gains less than 400 vertical feet in about 1 kilometer. A longer, more challenging, route is from the Skyline Drive trail head at about milepost 39 of the Skyline Drive and gains almost 800 feet. The peak sits just southeast of the Appalachian Trail (AT) but the summit is accessible from the AT by previously mentioned spur trails. On...From the Wikipedia article “Stony Man Mountain”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Stony Man Mountain 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 75° in summer but only 28° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:18 AM | 90° E | 7:26 PM | 271° W | 51° | 12h 08m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:50 AM | 59° ENE | 8:42 PM | 302° WNW | 75° | 14h 52m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:02 AM | 89° E | 7:12 PM | 271° W | 52° | 12h 10m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:28 AM | 120° ESE | 4:56 PM | 240° WSW | 28° | 9h 28m |
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 | 7:01 AM | 7:30 AM | 8:11 AM | 4:36 PM | 5:16 PM | 5:46 PM | 9h 46m |
| February | 6:38 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:42 AM | 5:15 PM | 5:52 PM | 6:19 PM | 10h 46m |
| March | 6:59 AM | 7:26 AM | 8:01 AM | 6:46 PM | 7:21 PM | 7:47 PM | 11h 55m |
| April | 6:11 AM | 6:38 AM | 7:14 AM | 7:15 PM | 7:50 PM | 8:18 PM | 13h 12m |
| May | 5:33 AM | 6:03 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:41 PM | 8:19 PM | 8:49 PM | 14h 16m |
| June | 5:18 AM | 5:49 AM | 6:29 AM | 8:01 PM | 8:40 PM | 9:12 PM | 14h 51m |
| July | 5:31 AM | 6:02 AM | 6:41 AM | 7:59 PM | 8:38 PM | 9:09 PM | 14h 36m |
| August | 6:00 AM | 6:28 AM | 7:05 AM | 7:33 PM | 8:09 PM | 8:38 PM | 13h 41m |
| September | 6:29 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:31 AM | 6:49 PM | 7:24 PM | 7:50 PM | 12h 28m |
| October | 6:56 AM | 7:23 AM | 7:59 AM | 6:01 PM | 6:37 PM | 7:03 PM | 11h 14m |
| November | 6:28 AM | 6:56 AM | 7:35 AM | 4:23 PM | 5:02 PM | 5:30 PM | 10h 05m |
| December | 6:55 AM | 7:25 AM | 8:07 AM | 4:12 PM | 4:54 PM | 5:24 PM | 9h 29m |
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 Stony Man Mountain, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from March through September. June gives the longest window (about 5.2 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 23° 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 | 5:10 AM – 5:30 AM | 0.3 | 12° | SE → SE |
| March | 4:29 AM – 5:49 AM | 1.3 | 19° | SE → SSE |
| April | 2:24 AM – 4:54 AM | 2.5 | 22° | SE → S |
| May | 12:25 AM – 4:15 AM | 3.8 | 23° | SE → SSW |
| June | 10:37 PM – 3:47 AM | 5.2 | 23° | SE → SSW |
| July | 10:30 PM – 2:20 AM | 3.8 | 23° | SSE → SW |
| August | 9:48 PM – 12:18 AM | 2.5 | 22° | S → SW |
| September | 8:53 PM – 10:23 PM | 1.5 | 19° | SSW → SW |
| October | 8:04 PM – 8:24 PM | 0.3 | 13° | 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 ≈ 21.27 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 7.5+ 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 52% average cloud cover) and May as the cloudiest (64%). 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 | 72 | 73 | 78 | 87 | 93 | 96 | 101 | 98 | 97 | 95 | 80 | 77 |
| Low °F | -3 | -3 | -6 | 22 | 27 | 39 | 50 | 49 | 36 | 23 | 13 | 6 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.3 | 2.6 | 2.9 | 3.7 | 4.4 | 4.4 | 3.9 | 3.6 | 4.2 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 3.0 |
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
- 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.
- Clouds around the summit add drama — a clear blue sky is often the least interesting condition.
- 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.
Permits, drones & access
National Park Service rules. Under federal law (54 U.S.C. 100905), still photography in National Park Service areas needs a permit only when it (1) takes place where members of the public are not allowed, (2) uses models, sets or props that are not part of the location's natural or cultural resources or administrative facilities, or (3) would cause the park to incur additional administrative costs to monitor the activity. Ordinary visitor and most landscape photography needs no permit. Commercial filming rules are separate and have changed in recent years — confirm current requirements with the park before a paid shoot.
Drones: Launching, landing or operating unmanned aircraft (drones) is prohibited in National Park Service units under a 2014 Superintendent's closure (36 CFR 1.5), except where a park has issued specific written approval. Flying from outside the boundary over park land can also violate park rules and disturb wildlife.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Stony Man Mountain, closest first.
Scenic ViewpointScenic ViewpointScenic Viewpoint
Fire LookoutScenic ViewpointScenic ViewpointScenic ViewpointScenic Viewpoint
Mountain PeakCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Big Meadows Campground - Shenandoah (Va)9.7 km (6.0 mi) · reservable
- Mathews Arm Campground19.1 km (11.9 mi) · reservable
- Camp Roosevelt19.6 km (12.2 mi) · reservable
- Lewis Mountain Campground20 km (13 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Stony Man Mountain?
What time is golden hour at Stony Man Mountain?
Where does the sun rise and set at Stony Man Mountain?
Can you see the Milky Way from Stony Man Mountain?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Stony Man Mountain?
How far is Stony Man Mountain from Luray?
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.