Located in Houghton County, Michigan, Hungarian Falls is a waterfall at about 224 m (735 ft) above sea level. It sits roughly 7.5 km (4.7 mi) S of Laurium.
Hungarian Falls is a series of waterfalls in the Dover Creek west of Hubbell, in Houghton County, Michigan. The site is near State Highway 26 in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. There are three drops with the largest being 50 feet. The total height of the falls is 90 feet. The base of the waterfall is made up of Jacobsville Sandstone, a type of rock common in that area. Hungarian Falls is also near Michigan's tallest waterfall, Houghton Falls.From the Wikipedia article “Hungarian Falls”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Sunrise & sunset directions
At Hungarian Falls the sunrise point swings a long way through the year: about 53° (NE) at the June solstice and 125° (SE) in late December. Sunset moves from 307° (NW) in June to 235° (SW) in December, and the midday sun climbs to 66° in summer but only 19° in winter.
| Date | Sunrise | Azimuth | Sunset | Azimuth | Noon sun | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March equinox (Mar 20) | 7:58 AM | 90° E | 8:06 PM | 271° W | 43° | 12h 09m |
| June solstice (Jun 21) | 5:59 AM | 53° NE | 9:54 PM | 307° NW | 66° | 15h 55m |
| September equinox (Sep 22) | 7:41 AM | 89° E | 7:53 PM | 271° W | 43° | 12h 12m |
| December solstice (Dec 21) | 8:38 AM | 125° SE | 5:07 PM | 235° SW | 19° | 8h 29m |
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
Waterfalls photograph best in soft, even light: overcast days, deep shade, or the hour after sunrise before direct sun hits the water. Bright sun on white water blows highlights and adds harsh contrast.
| Month (15th) | Blue hour starts | Sunrise | Golden hour ends | Golden hour starts | Sunset | Blue hour ends | Daylight |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | 8:02 AM | 8:36 AM | 9:26 AM | 4:42 PM | 5:31 PM | 6:05 PM | 8h 55m |
| February | 7:28 AM | 8:00 AM | 8:43 AM | 5:35 PM | 6:18 PM | 6:49 PM | 10h 18m |
| March | 7:37 AM | 8:08 AM | 8:48 AM | 7:19 PM | 7:59 PM | 8:30 PM | 11h 52m |
| April | 6:34 AM | 7:06 AM | 7:47 AM | 8:01 PM | 8:42 PM | 9:14 PM | 13h 36m |
| May | 5:43 AM | 6:19 AM | 7:03 AM | 8:39 PM | 9:23 PM | 9:59 PM | 15h 04m |
| June | 5:18 AM | 5:58 AM | 6:46 AM | 9:04 PM | 9:52 PM | 10:32 PM | 15h 54m |
| July | 5:36 AM | 6:14 AM | 7:00 AM | 9:01 PM | 9:47 PM | 10:25 PM | 15h 33m |
| August | 6:18 AM | 6:51 AM | 7:34 AM | 8:25 PM | 9:07 PM | 9:41 PM | 14h 16m |
| September | 7:01 AM | 7:32 AM | 8:12 AM | 7:28 PM | 8:08 PM | 8:38 PM | 12h 36m |
| October | 7:42 AM | 8:12 AM | 8:54 AM | 6:26 PM | 7:08 PM | 7:39 PM | 10h 55m |
| November | 7:25 AM | 7:58 AM | 8:45 AM | 4:33 PM | 5:20 PM | 5:53 PM | 9h 22m |
| December | 7:59 AM | 8:34 AM | 9:26 AM | 4:13 PM | 5:05 PM | 5:41 PM | 8h 31m |
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 Hungarian Falls, the Milky Way core is visible in a dark sky from April through August. June gives the longest window (about 2.0 hours on a moonless night), and the core peaks around 14° 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 | 6:22 AM – 6:22 AM | 0.0 | 10° | SSE → SSE |
| April | 4:16 AM – 5:06 AM | 0.8 | 13° | SSE → SSE |
| May | 2:25 AM – 3:55 AM | 1.5 | 14° | SSE → S |
| June | 12:52 AM – 2:52 AM | 2.0 | 14° | SSE → S |
| July | 12:26 AM – 1:46 AM | 1.3 | 14° | S → SSW |
| August | 11:10 PM – 11:50 PM | 0.7 | 12° | SSW → SSW |
| September | Below 10° in darkness | — | 10° | — |
| October | Below 10° in darkness | — | 5° | — |
| 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: 3 Bortle 3 — Rural sky. Some light domes sit on the horizon, but the Milky Way still looks complex overhead. Modeled zenith brightness ≈ 21.66 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 March as the clearest month (about 73% average cloud cover) and May as the cloudiest (89%). 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 | 42 | 41 | 57 | 58 | 65 | 65 | 75 | 76 | 74 | 66 | 58 | 49 |
| Low °F | -6 | -9 | -6 | 16 | 27 | 35 | 39 | 50 | 40 | 31 | 13 | 5 |
| Precip. (in) | 2.0 | 1.7 | 1.6 | 2.8 | 3.1 | 3.4 | 3.0 | 2.6 | 3.2 | 3.4 | 2.3 | 2.5 |
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 waterfall
- Look for a foreground: a mossy boulder, a fallen log or the creek's leading lines make a stronger frame than the falls alone.
- Keep a microfiber cloth handy — spray drifts onto the lens, especially at the plunge pool.
- Bracket shutter speeds: 1/8 s, 1/2 s and 2 s give very different water textures and you can choose later.
- A 3-stop ND filter lets you use slow shutter speeds even when the light is bright.
- Shoot a vertical and a horizontal frame; tall falls often work better in portrait orientation.
- Shoot RAW to keep the most latitude for high-contrast sunrise and sunset scenes.
Season: Peak flow is usually in late spring; autumn adds color around the falls, and winter can bring ice formations at colder locations.
Suggested gear: Tripod, Circular polarizer, 3–6 stop ND filter, Lens cloth, Waterproof footwear. Work out exposures with the depth of field, ND filter and NPF rule calculators.
Nearby photo spots
Other locations within 25 km of Hungarian Falls, closest first.
Waterfall
Scenic Viewpoint
Sand DunesSand DunesSand DunesSand Dunes
State Park
LighthouseWaterfallFAQ
When is the best time to photograph Hungarian Falls?
What time is golden hour at Hungarian Falls?
Where does the sun rise and set at Hungarian Falls?
Can you see the Milky Way from Hungarian Falls?
Do you need a permit to photograph at Hungarian Falls?
How far is Hungarian Falls from Laurium?
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.