Iowa Says Goodbye To Summer With Shorter Days Ahead

Get this, by the end of August, Iowa will have lost an hour and ten minutes of daylight. Me personally? I love riding the slowly darkening days straight into fall! Pumpkins, goblins, flannels, and all things cooler weather. My wife on the other hand... let's just say she is of a more tropical persuasion. Give her the warm, long summer days over any season. But I digress...

Still, 70 minutes of daylight gone in just 31 days is kind of a big deal, especially for those of you who don’t have “set hours,” so to speak (looking at you farmers, landscapers, construction crews, and anyone whose work depends on the sun staying out). You might not notice it day-to-day, but over a few weeks? Oh yeah, you’ll feel it.

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Here’s a little perspective on those precious daylight hours:

On June 21st, the summer solstice, Iowa gets its longest day of the year. A whopping 15 hours and 18 minutes of daylight. That’s sunrise around 5:30 AM and sunset close to 8:50 PM. Glorious, right?

Fast forward to the winter solstice, around December 21st, and things look a bit bleaker for those of you who dread that hibernation feeling. That day, Iowa only gets about 9 hours and 6 minutes of daylight. Sunrise doesn’t even show up until 7:40 AM, and the sun's already tapping out around 4:45 PM. So yeah, we’re on that slow, downward slide now.

August is like the Sunday night of summer. Still warm (with a false fall), still beautiful, but with that creeping sense that something’s winding down. The light fades just a bit earlier every evening, and you start to wonder if it’s time to dig out your hoodie or at least start saying goodbye to evening walks without it getting dark.

For those of us who pay attention to daylight, whether for work or for vibes, this month is where the change really starts to hit. So make the most of those late summer sunsets while they last. We’re heading into cozy season, whether you’re ready or not.

It might be time to get to one of these Iowa Adventures, while you still have daylight!