How early is too early to go to work?

Morning rush hour traffic, Portland, Oregon.

I'm in the habit of heading to the office around 6:30 a.m. to get in front of the bulk of morning rush hour traffic. Although my late afternoon intention is to leave early, it doesn't always work out that way, which, in the end, makes for a long workday.

In the early morning, I appreciate a dark office, the slow transition from the soft tapping of fingers on my computer keyboard to the full morning sun streaming through the knee high to ceiling windows and the rise in volume from voices streaming into the office expressing their morning greetings, shouting out coffee runs, and the onslaught of work and strategy conversations that ensues.

If I could I would arrive at work an hour before I do, I would. Those early hours seem more meaningful, more fruitful, more focused, more free.

But too early isn't always time better spent.

How about you, when do you get to work and how early do you think is too early?