Tahquamenon Falls State Park — a state park in Chippewa County, Michigan — is a popular subject for landscape photographers. It sits roughly 35 km (22 mi) NE of Newberry.
The Tahquamenon Falls State Park is a 46,179-acre (18,688 ha) public recreation area in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is the second largest of Michigan's state parks. Bordering on Lake Superior, most of the park is located within Whitefish Township in Chippewa County, with the western section of the park extending into McMillan Township in Luce County. The nearest town of any size is Paradise. The park follows the Tahquamenon River as it passes over Tahquamenon Falls and drains into Whitefish Bay, Lake Superior. The Tahquamenon Falls include a single 50-foot (15 m) drop, the Upper Falls, plus the cascades and rapids collectively called the Lower Falls. During the late-spring runoff, the river drains as much as 50,000 U.S. gallons (190,000 L) of water per second, making the upper falls the second most voluminous vertical waterfall east of the Mississippi River, after only Niagara Falls.From the Wikipedia article “Tahquamenon Falls State Park”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Tahquamenon Falls State Park the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 54° (NE) at the June solstice and 125° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 307° (NW) in June to 236° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 67° in summer but only 20° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:45 AM | 90° E | 7:53 PM | 271° W | 43° | 12h 09m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:48 AM | 54° NE | 9:39 PM | 307° NW | 67° | 15h 50m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:28 AM | 89° E | 7:40 PM | 271° W | 44° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 8:23 AM | 125° SE | 4:56 PM | 236° SW | 20° | 8h 34m |
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
State parks often protect a signature feature — a gorge, lake or overlook — that is best in early morning before visitors and harsh light arrive.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 7:48 AM | 8:22 AM | 9:10 AM | 4:31 PM | 5:20 PM | 5:54 PM | 8h 59m |
| February | 7:15 AM | 7:46 AM | 8:29 AM | 5:23 PM | 6:06 PM | 6:37 PM | 10h 20m |
| March | 7:25 AM | 7:55 AM | 8:35 AM | 7:07 PM | 7:47 PM | 8:17 PM | 11h 52m |
| April | 6:23 AM | 6:54 AM | 7:35 AM | 7:48 PM | 8:29 PM | 9:00 PM | 13h 34m |
| May | 5:32 AM | 6:08 AM | 6:52 AM | 8:24 PM | 9:08 PM | 9:44 PM | 15h 01m |
| June | 5:09 AM | 5:48 AM | 6:35 AM | 8:50 PM | 9:37 PM | 10:16 PM | 15h 49m |
| July | 5:25 AM | 6:03 AM | 6:49 AM | 8:46 PM | 9:32 PM | 10:09 PM | 15h 29m |
| August | 6:07 AM | 6:40 AM | 7:22 AM | 8:11 PM | 8:53 PM | 9:26 PM | 14h 13m |
| September | 6:49 AM | 7:19 AM | 7:59 AM | 7:15 PM | 7:55 PM | 8:25 PM | 12h 35m |
| October | 7:28 AM | 7:59 AM | 8:40 AM | 6:14 PM | 6:56 PM | 7:26 PM | 10h 57m |
| November | 7:11 AM | 7:44 AM | 8:30 AM | 4:23 PM | 5:09 PM | 5:42 PM | 9h 25m |
| December | 7:44 AM | 8:19 AM | 9:10 AM | 4:03 PM | 4:55 PM | 5:30 PM | 8h 35m |
Local time (America/Detroit), 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 Tahquamenon Falls State Park, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 2.5 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 15° above the southern horizon. Our light-pollution model puts the sky at about Bortle 1 (excellent dark-sky site), which is excellent for astrophotography.
| Month | Core visible (15th) | Hours | Max altitude | Direction |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | Below 10° in darkness | — | -5° | — |
| February | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| March | 5:58 AM – 6:08 AM | 0.2 | 11° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 4:00 AM – 5:00 AM | 1.0 | 14° | SSE → S |
| May | 1:55 AM – 3:45 AM | 1.8 | 15° | SSE → S |
| June | 12:25 AM – 2:55 AM | 2.5 | 15° | SSE → SSW |
| July | 12:03 AM – 1:43 AM | 1.7 | 15° | S → SSW |
| August | 10:53 PM – 11:43 PM | 0.8 | 13° | SSW → SSW |
| September | 9:38 PM – 9:38 PM | 0.0 | 11° | SSW → SSW |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 6° | — |
| November | Below 10° in darkness | — | -4° | — |
| 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: 1 Bortle 1 — Excellent dark-sky site. The Milky Way casts faint shadows; zodiacal light and airglow are obvious. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.94 mag/arcsec². Aurora needs roughly Kp 3.5+ to show low on the northern horizon here.
Weather & best season
Long-term NASA satellite data for this area show August as the clearest month (about 66% average cloud cover) and November as the cloudiest (82%). August is the warmest month and February 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 | 40 | 44 | 68 | 70 | 79 | 83 | 92 | 86 | 82 | 77 | 65 | 54 |
| Low °F | -11 | -16 | -14 | 6 | 27 | 32 | 38 | 44 | 35 | 24 | 4 | -9 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.3 | 2.2 | 2.0 | 3.0 | 3.1 | 3.5 | 3.4 | 2.9 | 3.9 | 4.4 | 3.1 | 2.8 |
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 state park
- Day-use fees or passes are common; buy them online before arriving.
- Check park hours: many state parks close at dusk, which affects sunset and night shooting.
- Ask rangers about photography permits for commercial work, models or drones.
- Weekday mornings are the least crowded at popular viewpoints.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Spring wildflowers and autumn color are peak seasons in most parks.
Suggested gear: Versatile zoom lens, Tripod, Park pass. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Permits, drones & access
Drones: Drone rules in state parks vary by state and even by park — many require a permit or ban recreational drone flights. Check the park's rules and the FAA B4UFLY app before flying.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 40 km of Tahquamenon Falls State Park, closest first.
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Sources
Location data: Wikidata, 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.