Yep, it's dark...

But not nearly as bad as I expected. You notice it most in the morning because it takes so long for the sun to rise. Then, it just never gets fully bright.

The Shortest Day of the Year
8:00am- still completely dark

9:00am

10:00am- official sunrise is 10:15

11:00am

Noon

1:00pm

2:00pm

See the line on the mountains where the light stops? It's always a bit colder where we live because we are always in the shadows of the mountains around us. During the winter, that is. Since the sun never rises high enough in the sky to clear the mountains, we never get any direct sunlight. That's why it still looks a bit dark, even when the sky is bright blue.

3:00pm- sunset is 3:39


4:00pm

5:00pm

Overall, we don't notice the darkness too much. Sometimes we happen to be in the right location at the right time of day and catch a glimpse of the sun... then it feels so good and we realize we miss it. It takes a bit longer to feel awake in the morning, but the girls get up nice and early no matter how dark it is, and once you get out of the house, the beautiful scenery perks you right up.