Foliage Report | Spectacular Autumn Colors Widespread Now In New England

Magical. Simply magical.  Autumn Colors. The colors that arrived in advance of the big Columbus Day weekend across northern New England were widespread, vivid and bright. Some are saying that the show is the best they’ve seen in years, and given the incredible intensity of the reds in the sugar maples, I can’t disagree.  

The colors were so bright that they even showed up on satellite images from space. The orange and red tones clearly highlight the areas that have already reached peak, strong autumn colors intermixed across the rest of the region.   The evidence of this amazing weekend was all over social media. Images of pumpkin patches, fairs, festivals, hikes, cider donuts and all sorts of other leaf-peeping adventures filled our feeds with autumn colors and reminded us why so many join us from all over the world to take in the show!  

We saw peak color across fields in Vermont, on mountains in New Hampshire, and over lakes in Maine. It was the sort of weekend that has you wishing that you could be everywhere at once. And really, it’s only just begun. We will see peak color fanning out across the rest of New England over the coming weeks, as the North Country slowly fades.    

It’s generally stated that the foliage starts in the northern mountains, and sweeps southward, downslope, and towards the coast over the course of the month. Even in Northern New England, however, there are so many local effects that must be taken into account. Elevation, aspect, soil type, forest type, and proximity to water all have an impact on the timing of the foliage, and offer keys of where to find pockets of persistent peak color.   A closer examination of the satellite image shows many of these nuances. One can clearly see the large river valleys and lake shores are largely still green. They will be turning soon. Areas like the shorelines surrounding Lakes Champlain and Winnipesaukee, and the Connecticut, Saco and Kennebec River Valleys always turn a bit later because of the heat they store and the overnight fog that they generate. North Conway, NH, with it’s relatively low elevation in a river valley, is a perfect example of this effect, and should peak this coming week.  

We expect western Massachusetts, the hills of northwestern Connecticut, and the coast of Downeast Maine to reach peak over the next week or so, as the big wave moves south. Best bets this coming week include the Woodstock and Quechee area of Vermont, the Monadnock region of New Hampshire, and much of Downeast Maine. Acadia will likely be peaking over the next week or so, as will the Pioneer Valley of western Mass. Pick a point on the map, and you’ll find color there.   

The last areas to turn this year will be southern coastal Maine, southeastern New Hampshire, eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island. The maple trees in these areas are showing a lot of color earlier than usual as a result of the severe drought, but visitors will be treated to plenty of great autumn colors this coming weekend. It’s interesting to note,  though, that the oak trees in these mixed forests haven’t begun to show the even slightest inclination towards changing color. This will likely yield a double peak here, with maples turning over the next two weeks, and oaks following suit around the turn of the month.   Lastly, the far north, where peak has already occurred will still be colorful, even if the brightest hues are behind us. Fallen leaves will cover the ground during your exploration in these areas, which as still beautiful.

If you’ll be out exploring this coming weekend, we hope that you’ll download our foliage app and make reports and upload pictures from the road. Our crowdsourced foliage map provides invaluable information for visitors looking for the best autumn colors! Additionally, on Twitter and Instagram, use the hashtags #NEFoliage and #MyNewEnglandFall to let others see your images! And be sure to check out our Fall Foliage Facebook page for images from our favorite New England places and photographers! The weather looks great, the foliage looks incredible!  Make some memories this weekend!

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