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Rule Golden Hour

Pen-y-ghent - Golden Hour - Yorkshire Dales

Horton in Ribblesdale, England, United Kingdom

That magical warm light just after sunrise or before sunset

Currently

Real-time conditions
Low Cloud Cover8%
Mid Cloud Cover0%
High Cloud Cover0%
Sun Elevation45.3° (Daylight)

Upcoming Opportunities

When all conditions match, PhotoWeather marks an opportunity window.

Times shown in Europe/London
golden-hour weather icon
Next opportunity
Exceptional Golden Hour at Sunset
Pen-y-ghent
Fri, Jun 12 · 22:00–22:15 · 1h window
Medium confidence
50%
🌇Golden Hour Potential88.5%
Low Cloud Cover: 49%
Mid Cloud Cover: 0%
High Cloud Cover: 2%
Sun Elevation: -2.5° (Civil twilight)
golden-hour weather icon
Exceptional Golden Hour (calm) at Sunset
Pen-y-ghent
Mon, Jun 15 · 20:45–22:17
🌇Golden Hour Potential:91.2-100%
Medium
golden-hour weather icon
Excellent Golden Hour at Sunset
Pen-y-ghent
Wed, Jun 17 · 20:46–21:00
🌇Golden Hour Potential:80.6%
Low

What this forecast looks for

Plain-language explanation from the rule

This forecast identifies optimal golden hour conditions for the Yorkshire Dales' dramatic limestone landscapes, historic structures, and waterfall trails. We track cloud cover, visibility, and atmospheric conditions to predict when warm directional light enhances the region's geological and architectural features.

The Dales' high-contrast landscape—white limestone against green pastures, dark millstone grit peaks, and ancient stone structures—comes alive during golden hour. East-west valleys like Wharfedale and Wensleydale align with sunrise and sunset, channeling warm light through limestone gorges and across traditional hay meadows.

What makes Yorkshire Dales golden-hour photography distinctive:

  • Limestone glowing - Malham Cove's 260-foot limestone cliff catches warm light, appearing to glow from within
  • Viaduct drama - Ribblehead Viaduct's 24 Victorian arches under sunrise or sunset with dramatic skies
  • Gorge light - Gordale Scar's overhanging limestone cliffs create natural light shows as sun moves through
  • Waterfall scenes - Golden light illuminates the mist and spray at Aysgarth Falls and Ingleton waterfalls

Malham Cove at sunrise provides the classic shot—warm light hits the curved limestone amphitheater while the valley floor remains in shadow, creating dramatic contrast. Ribblehead Viaduct works magnificently at both sunrise and sunset, especially under partial cloud creating spotlight effects. Gordale Scar requires timing—when low sun penetrates the ravine, limestone walls glow gold while the waterfall catches light. The medieval ruins of Bolton Abbey on the River Wharfe gain romantic quality during golden hour, with warm stone and riverside reflections. Pen-y-ghent's distinctive profile stands out at sunset from viewpoints along the Ribblehead road. The network of stone walls creates leading lines especially effective under low-angle light. Spring and autumn provide longer golden hour periods than summer's brief windows. Check specific locations' orientations—some valleys receive sunrise light, others sunset.

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72-hour requirements breakdown

What passed or failed, hour by hour
0matching hours in the next 95 hours
AND logic: all conditions required
Meets requirement
Misses requirement
Time
Europe/London
Golden Hour
Any
Golden Hour Potential
≥ 80.0%
Precipitation Chance
≤ 5.0%
Visibility
≥ 1000.0m
Sun, Jun 7
16:0020%85%20737m
17:0020%90%23419m
18:0020%95%24135m
19:0019%100%24135m
20:0051%100%24134m
21:0048%100%24135m
22:0041%100%24135m
23:0030%100%24134m
Mon, Jun 8
24:0021%100%24134m
01:0021%100%15237m
02:0019%94%14760m
03:0029%88%23667m
04:0027%82%1885m
05:0021%85%534m
06:0014%88%1694m
07:0016%91%24134m
08:0016%61%24134m
09:0031%31%24135m
10:0038%0%24135m
11:0035%0%21897m
12:0035%0%22546m
13:0028%0%24135m
14:0035%0%24134m
15:0037%0%24134m
16:0036%0%24134m
17:0035%27%24135m
18:0037%54%24135m
19:0037%82%24134m
20:0088%86%24134m
21:0092%90%24134m
22:0061%95%24135m
23:0045%97%24134m
Tue, Jun 9
24:0026%98%24135m
01:0028%100%24135m
02:0031%100%24135m
03:0033%99%5677m
04:0033%99%999m
05:0030%99%714m
06:0024%100%15572m
07:0026%100%18735m
08:0034%100%24135m
09:0037%100%24134m
10:0025%99%11013m
11:0020%100%14046m
12:0018%100%21070m
13:0015%100%12106m
14:0015%83%12344m
15:0014%66%18251m
16:0018%50%21696m
17:0025%54%22527m
18:0031%59%21877m
19:0033%64%24134m
20:0080%62%24135m
21:0083%59%24134m
22:0091%57%24134m
23:0061%65%24134m
Wed, Jun 10
24:0038%74%24134m
01:0029%82%24135m
02:0024%87%24134m
03:0031%92%24134m
04:0048%98%22131m
05:0040%98%13567m
06:0015%99%19396m
07:0015%99%19886m
08:0021%91%24134m
09:0016%83%19150m
10:0017%74%18892m
11:0017%78%17673m
12:0017%81%24135m
13:0018%85%24135m
14:0018%64%22875m
15:0020%43%21161m
16:0020%22%22140m
17:0020%28%23408m
18:0028%33%20776m
19:0032%39%23971m
20:0082%34%24135m
21:0085%30%24134m
22:0074%26%24135m
23:0084%32%24135m
Thu, Jun 11
24:0032%39%24134m
01:0030%45%24134m
02:007.8%46%23413m
03:0025%48%22692m
04:0047%49%21971m
05:0046%59%15597m
06:006.2%69%9223m
07:004.6%78%2849m
08:004.4%69%1936m
09:004.4%59%1022m
10:003.2%49%109m
11:002.8%57%333m
12:002.4%65%556m
13:002.4%73%779m
14:005.4%67%8564m
How to read: colored cells show whether each predicate requirement is met; highlighted rows mean the full rule matched (an opportunity).

What does Golden Hour Potential mean?

Inputs that drive the score

This derived score summarizes multiple raw weather signals. The table below shows the supporting inputs hour by hour, so you can see what's pushing the score up or down.

Time
Europe/London
Golden Hour
High Clouds
%
Low Clouds
%
Mid-Level Clouds
%
Relative Humidity
%
Total Cloud Coverage
%
Wind Speed
m/s
Mon, Jun 8 Sunrise 04:38 Sunset 21:38
16:00
- 0% 8% 0% 65% 8% 6.7m/s
17:00
- 0% 7% 3% 69% 7% 6.7m/s
18:00
- 0% 10% 1% 72% 10% 6.4m/s
19:00
- 5% 6% 5% 78% 7% 6.1m/s
20:00
- 5% 3% 5% 86% 5% 4.7m/s
21:00
- 14% 2% 18% 90% 19% 4.2m/s
22:00
- 23% 5% 94% 95% 94% 3.6m/s
23:00
- 18% 6% 99% 95% 99% 3.2m/s
Tue, Jun 9 Sunrise 04:38 Sunset 21:38
24:00
- 2% 11% 100% 96% 100% 3.2m/s
01:00
- 2% 14% 100% 97% 100% 3.5m/s
02:00
- 48% 22% 99% 97% 99% 3.2m/s
03:00
- 99% 35% 100% 99% 100% 2.9m/s
04:00
- 94% 44% 99% 99% 99% 3.2m/s
05:00
- 50% 100% 67% 99% 100% 3.7m/s
06:00
- 14% 42% 28% 94% 42% 6.2m/s
07:00
- 5% 35% 5% 93% 35% 6.9m/s
08:00
- 5% 3% 5% 90% 5% 7.4m/s
09:00
- 5% 24% 5% 84% 24% 8.1m/s
10:00
- 5% 94% 20% 86% 94% 9.1m/s
11:00
- 5% 100% 98% 91% 100% 8.5m/s
12:00
- 0% 100% 73% 92% 100% 8.3m/s
13:00
- 0% 100% 5% 92% 100% 8.4m/s
14:00
- 0% 98% 5% 92% 98% 8.6m/s
15:00
- 0% 96% 68% 89% 96% 9.3m/s
16:00
- 0% 86% 30% 89% 86% 9.2m/s
17:00
- 0% 46% 100% 89% 100% 9m/s
18:00
- 0% 32% 18% 91% 32% 8.8m/s
19:00
- 0% 1% 4% 90% 4% 7.7m/s
20:00
- 2% 0% 1% 90% 2% 7.1m/s
21:00
- 5% 0% 5% 91% 5% 5.9m/s
22:00
- 9% 0% 12% 94% 12% 4m/s
23:00
- 10% 0% 18% 94% 18% 3m/s
Wed, Jun 10 Sunrise 04:37 Sunset 21:39
24:00
- 41% 1% 20% 94% 41% 2.5m/s
01:00
- 80% 5% 79% 95% 80% 2.3m/s
02:00
- 87% 14% 100% 94% 100% 2.3m/s
03:00
- 42% 87% 99% 96% 100% 2.4m/s
04:00
- 8% 100% 99% 97% 100% 3.4m/s
05:00
- 4% 100% 100% 97% 100% 5.2m/s
06:00
- 0% 100% 100% 97% 100% 4.2m/s
07:00
- 0% 100% 100% 97% 100% 4.8m/s
08:00
- 0% 28% 41% 96% 43% 5.1m/s
09:00
- 0% 84% 16% 88% 84% 6.4m/s
10:00
- 0% 90% 100% 88% 100% 6m/s
11:00
- 0% 100% 90% 88% 100% 6.7m/s
12:00
- 0% 100% 100% 85% 100% 7m/s
13:00
- 0% 98% 16% 83% 98% 6.9m/s
14:00
- 0% 100% 64% 78% 100% 7.3m/s
15:00
- 0% 92% 9% 86% 92% 6.8m/s
16:00
- 0% 84% 4% 84% 84% 7.2m/s
17:00
- 0% 89% 4% 89% 89% 6.5m/s
18:00
- 0% 27% 4% 88% 27% 6.5m/s
19:00
- 0% 7% 0% 89% 7% 5.9m/s
20:00
- 0% 5% 1% 92% 5% 5.1m/s
21:00
- 4% 5% 0% 94% 5% 3.5m/s
22:00
- 69% 5% 5% 96% 69% 2.8m/s
23:00
- 28% 5% 44% 96% 44% 2.5m/s
Thu, Jun 11 Sunrise 04:37 Sunset 21:40
24:00
- 100% 4% 71% 96% 100% 2.5m/s
01:00
- 100% 5% 100% 96% 100% 2.3m/s
02:00
- 100% 36% 100% 96% 100% 2.4m/s
03:00
- 100% 68% 100% 96% 100% 2.5m/s
04:00
- 100% 100% 100% 96% 100% 2.5m/s
05:00
- 100% 100% 100% 97% 100% 2.8m/s
06:00
- 100% 100% 100% 97% 100% 3m/s
07:00
- 100% 100% 100% 97% 100% 3.2m/s
08:00
- 100% 100% 100% 98% 100% 3.3m/s
09:00
- 100% 100% 100% 99% 100% 3.4m/s
10:00
- 100% 100% 99% 99% 100% 3.4m/s
11:00
- 100% 97% 100% 99% 100% 4.6m/s
12:00
- 100% 93% 100% 98% 100% 5.7m/s
13:00
- 100% 90% 100% 98% 100% 6.8m/s
14:00
- 89% 60% 81% 96% 89% 6.6m/s
15:00
- 78% 30% 62% 94% 79% 6.4m/s
How to read: these inputs help produce the derived score; they are not requirements by themselves.

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