5 U.S. Regions That Lose the Most Daylight in November
Most people look forward to fall, which brings a gradual return to cooler temperatures and a dazzling foliage display in its earliest days. But as the season pushes on through November, changing conditions make it much clearer that we’re marching towards winter. The drastic drop in sunlight also becomes much more pronounced, especially in certain areas where the time between sunrise and sunset shrinks relatively quickly. Wondering if you’re heading into the dark darks of late autumn? These are the regions across the U.S. that lose the most daylight in November.
RELATED: 4 Regions Most Likely to See Their First Snowfall in November.
1. Northern New England
The highest reaches of the Eastern Seaboard are no strangers to winter weather, and that includes a drop in sunlight. According to sunrise and sunset data from TimeAndDate.com, some parts of Northern New England lose more than a full hour of daylight by the time December arrives. Higher latitude cities like Caribou, Maine, drop a full hour and 22 minutes, while Burlington, Vermont, loses one hour and five minutes.
Even cities that are less northern still drop a considerable amount. Portland, Maine, will see its days shorten by an hour and two minutes, while Boston (the largest city in the region) is barely shy of an hour, with 59 minutes lost. This will put sunset around 4 p.m. for most parts of New England by the end of the month.
2. Upper Midwest and Great Lakes
As temperatures continue to drop across the traditionally chilly northern central parts of the U.S., so do the number of daylight hours. All told, most cities will see roughly an hour of sunlight reduction, with northern cities like Duluth, Minnesota, losing one hour and 10 minutes by December.
Even cities like Minneapolis, Minnesota, will still drop about an hour and five minutes; Green Bay, Wisconsin, loses one hour and four minutes; and Milwaukee, Wisconsin, loses a full hour. Even Chicago, farther south, loses 58 minutes, while Detroit will have days that are 59 minutes shorter when the end of the month rolls around.
RELATED: When 5 U.S. Regions Will Hit Peak Fall Foliage This Year.
3. Coastal Pacific Northwest
The highest latitudes in the westernmost contiguous U.S. experience a significant reduction in daylight over the course of November. Parts of northern California lose just less than an hour, with Eureka losing 55 minutes over the course of the month.
Meanwhile, Portland, Oregon, loses just over 60 minutes, with an hour and six minutes of sunlight lost by December. Still, Seattle will see the biggest reduction, with an hour and 20 minutes of daylight axed off through Nov. 30, 2025, per TimeAndDate.com.
4. Northern Rockies
The Rocky Mountains typically see some of the earliest snowfall in the U.S. each fall, but their northernmost regions also see some of the most significant daylight losses during the last full month of fall. Cities in Montana, such as Bozeman, Missoula, and Helena, all drop about an hour and 15 minutes between sunrise and sunset by December.
Other states see significant changes, too. Jackson, Wyoming, will drop an hour and 9 minutes, while Coeur d’Alene, Idaho, will lose an hour and 11 minutes.
RELATED: The #1 Sign Your Region Is About to Get Its First Hard Freeze.
5. Alaska and the Arctic
Famously, nowhere in the U.S. loses as much light as its northernmost state. The march towards weeks of prolonged darkness brings a considerable drop in daylight hours to Alaska, especially the northern reaches that fall within the Arctic Circle. This includes towns like Point Barrow (also known as Utqiaġvik), which will lose its sunrise entirely before November even ends.
The changes are still stark in other parts of the state. Along the coast in Kake, there will be a drop of an hour and 50 minutes of daylight, while Denali National Park near Talkeetna will lose two hours and 42 minutes. In interior Alaska, towns like Kaltag will lose 2 hours and 55 minutes, while Fairbanks loses two hours and 20 minutes overall by December, according to TimeAndDate.com.