Daylight hours in Maine? (Portland: home, live in, bus)

[sunsetrider]

I am thinking of moving to Maine in a couple of years when I retire but now have some concerns about daylight? I have lived in Alaska and seen the sun come up at 10:00 am and go down at 4:00 pm but at least we had the land of the midnight sun! I read on a climate chart that there are 4 1/2 hours of daylight in the winter and only 10 hours during the summer. Is this correct? I don't care about the cold and snow (been there, done that) but too much dark might be a little more than I can handle. Right now I live in the midwest and really want to escape the summer heat and humidity and live in a more scenic area in my old age!! Not to mention one can never get enough "fresh" seafood!!!!! Thanks for your help. Oh, one more thing. Are horses/stables available in the area?

[elston]

Originally Posted by sunsetrider

I am thinking of moving to Maine in a couple of years when I retire but now have some concerns about daylight? I have lived in Alaska and seen the sun come up at 10:00 am and go down at 4:00 pm but at least we had the land of the midnight sun! I read on a climate chart that there are 4 1/2 hours of daylight in the winter and only 10 hours during the summer. Is this correct? I don't care about the cold and snow (been there, done that) but too much dark might be a little more than I can handle. Right now I live in the midwest and really want to escape the summer heat and humidity and live in a more scenic area in my old age!! Not to mention one can never get enough "fresh" seafood!!!!! Thanks for your help. Oh, one more thing. Are horses/stables available in the area?

Hmmm summer I wake up around 5 and its light and the crows are cawing and the sun rises sending its rosy glow across my yard.....it stays light till around 8 or 8:30 pm ....so 10 hours is about right...seems like a lot of sunshine. In the winter it starts to get dark around 5 pm....not sure about when sun rises in the morning. But the days do seem short and the dark gets to me....in a negative way. Cold and dark. Winters are tough.

[sunsetrider]

That sounds more like 15-16 hours daylight in the summer. Winters are dreary here, too. Not light till 7:30 and dark by 5:00. Don't have a problem with shorter days as long as they aren't TOO short. 4 1/2 hours seemed like it couldn't possibly be right. Thanks for the reply. I appreciate it.

[elston]

Originally Posted by sunsetrider

That sounds more like 15-16 hours daylight in the summer. Winters are dreary here, too. Not light till 7:30 and dark by 5:00. Don't have a problem with shorter days as long as they aren't TOO short. 4 1/2 hours seemed like it couldn't possibly be right. Thanks for the reply. I appreciate it.

Yes....i just counted it out on my fingers...lol....you are correct! In the winter when it gets dark by 5:00 it really feel like the days are too short. By the way....its fully dark here now and the street lights are on.

If one moves south....say to florida.....are the winter days longer?

[sunsetrider]

I don't know.....that's a good question! But who would want to put up with the heat. I'm trying to get away from it!

[Comicbookmommy]

In winter I think the earliest it gets dark is around 4:00, because around then when my son came home on the bus and it was almost night! Don't remember on sunrise, though I *think* it was around 7 or 8am.

We just passed the summer solstice a month ago, and it was getting light around 4am and getting dark around 9pm. Right now (a month later) it gets light at 5am and dark around 8:30.

[sunsetrider]

Thanks so much for your help. That time frame sounds a lot more reasonable than what I found on the internet. Not all that different from what we have in the Midwest.

[Submariner]

Each area is different for others.

I have observed that through the winters we tend to get one storm blow through each week. The other days are clear and sunny. So 5 to 6 days of bright glare between each storm that blows through.

The window of daylight is shorter, though I think that if you lifestyle is such that you get outdoors most days, then I think that your experience will be more of the bright and sunny rather than the gloom.

[sunsetrider]

Thanks for the info! I agree....if one is active and involved the dark days aren't a problem. And nothing beats sitting by a crackling fire watching the snow fall. One of my favorite pastimes!!

[Coaster]

Go here:

Sunrise and Sunset for U.S.A. – Maine – Portland – coming days

and you can find sunrise and sunset times for any time of year. It will give you apetty good idea what to expect for daylight and dark in Maine throughout the year.