Dome Peak is a mountain peak in Skagit County, Washington at about 2,698 m (8,852 ft) above sea level. The nearest town is Darrington, about 43 km (26 mi) away (Dome Peak lies E of town).
Dome Peak is a high, massive, glaciated mountain in the Glacier Peak Wilderness of Washington's North Cascades. The remote location of Dome Peak, combined with its height, make it a less common destination for Cascade Range mountaineers. Dome Peak is at the southern end of the Ptarmigan Traverse mountaineering route. It is located at the extreme southeast corner of Skagit County. The mountain was given its name by Albert H. Sylvester, the first forest supervisor of Wenatchee National Forest. There are two main summits connected by a narrow ridge with the northeastern summit being higher than the southwestern. Chickamin Glacier is north of the peak while Dome Glacier is to the west. A rock face drops off to the southeast. Dana Glacier is on the north side of a ridge that connects Dome Peak and Spire Point. The higher northeast peak was first climbed by George Freed and Eric Larson on...From the Wikipedia article “Dome Peak”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Dome Peak the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 52° (NE) at the June solstice and 126° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 308° (NW) in June to 235° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 65° in summer but only 18° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:08 AM | 89° E | 7:17 PM | 271° W | 42° | 12h 09m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:04 AM | 52° NE | 9:09 PM | 308° NW | 65° | 16h 06m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 6:52 AM | 89° E | 7:04 PM | 271° W | 42° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 7:53 AM | 126° SE | 4:13 PM | 235° SW | 18° | 8h 19m |
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 | 7:15 AM | 7:51 AM | 8:42 AM | 3:46 PM | 4:37 PM | 5:13 PM | 8h 47m |
| February | 6:40 AM | 7:12 AM | 7:57 AM | 4:42 PM | 5:26 PM | 5:59 PM | 10h 14m |
| March | 6:47 AM | 7:18 AM | 7:59 AM | 6:28 PM | 7:10 PM | 7:41 PM | 11h 51m |
| April | 5:42 AM | 6:15 AM | 6:57 AM | 7:13 PM | 7:55 PM | 8:28 PM | 13h 40m |
| May | 4:48 AM | 5:25 AM | 6:11 AM | 7:52 PM | 8:38 PM | 9:15 PM | 15h 12m |
| June | 4:22 AM | 5:03 AM | 5:53 AM | 8:18 PM | 9:07 PM | 9:49 PM | 16h 04m |
| July | 4:40 AM | 5:20 AM | 6:07 AM | 8:14 PM | 9:02 PM | 9:41 PM | 15h 42m |
| August | 5:25 AM | 5:59 AM | 6:42 AM | 7:37 PM | 8:20 PM | 8:54 PM | 14h 21m |
| September | 6:10 AM | 6:42 AM | 7:23 AM | 6:37 PM | 7:19 PM | 7:50 PM | 12h 37m |
| October | 6:53 AM | 7:24 AM | 8:07 AM | 5:34 PM | 6:17 PM | 6:48 PM | 10h 52m |
| November | 6:38 AM | 7:12 AM | 8:01 AM | 3:38 PM | 4:27 PM | 5:01 PM | 9h 15m |
| December | 7:13 AM | 7:49 AM | 8:44 AM | 3:17 PM | 4:11 PM | 4:48 PM | 8h 21m |
Local time (America/Los Angeles), 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 Dome Peak, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through July. May gives the longest window (about 1.0 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 13° 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 | — | -6° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 5° | — |
| March | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| April | 3:41 AM – 4:11 AM | 0.5 | 12° | SSE → SSE |
| May | 1:45 AM – 2:45 AM | 1.0 | 13° | SSE → S |
| June | 12:30 AM – 1:30 AM | 1.0 | 13° | S → S |
| July | 11:51 PM – 12:41 AM | 0.8 | 12° | S → SSW |
| August | 10:26 PM – 10:46 PM | 0.3 | 11° | SSW → SSW |
| September | Below 10° in darkness | — | 9° | — |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 4° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -5° | — |
| 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.68 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 July as the clearest month (about 42% average cloud cover) and November as the cloudiest (76%). August is the warmest month and December 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 | 47 | 50 | 56 | 68 | 77 | 87 | 90 | 90 | 86 | 76 | 55 | 41 |
| Low °F | -20 | -17 | -12 | 1 | 16 | 28 | 34 | 35 | 24 | -2 | -17 | -20 |
| Precip. (in) | 9.5 | 6.5 | 7.5 | 4.8 | 3.6 | 3.0 | 1.3 | 1.7 | 3.4 | 7.2 | 10.7 | 9.1 |
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.
- Bring a spare battery — cold weather and long exposures drain them fast.
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 Dome Peak, closest first.
Glacier
Glacier
Mountain Peak
Mountain Peak
Glacier
Fire Lookout
Hot Spring
Glacier
GlacierCampgrounds nearby (Recreation.gov)
- Sulphur Creek Campground13.6 km (8.4 mi) · reservable
- Mineral Park Campground21 km (13 mi) · reservable
- Suiattle Guard Station22 km (14 mi) · reservable
- Buck Creek Campground22 km (14 mi) · reservable
- Harlequin Campground24 km (15 mi) · reservable
FAQ
When is the best time to photograph Dome Peak?
What time is golden hour at Dome Peak?
Where does the sun rise and set at Dome Peak?
Can you see the Milky Way from Dome Peak?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Dome Peak?
How far is Dome Peak from Darrington?
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.