Where to Find the Best Fall Colors in Days Ahead

Time is running out if you want to catch the fall colors in all of their glory. We are heading well into November and at least half of the country has reached the peak of fall foliage season. Here is a closer look at where you can expect to see the brilliant explosion of red, yellow, orange, and purple colors this week before they are gone.

Where to Find the Best Leaf Viewing This Weekend

The chlorophyll chemical that leaves store to give them that distinctive green color is quickly fading. Once the chlorophyll has run out, the leaves begin the process of turning different colors before they finally dry up and fall to the ground.

Unfortunately for leaf peepers, it has not been the most ideal fall foliage season. A number of factors have limited the brilliance of the hues that typically take over this time of the year. A steady stream of moisture in the spring and summer seasons, paired with unseasonably cool overnight temperatures in the early fall, has contributed to the lack of eye-popping colors.

Widespread dry conditions across much of the country in August caused stress for the trees. The lack of rainfall and the soaring temperatures meant that many of the trees simply stopped producing chlorophyll sooner than usual, triggering an early start to the fall foliage season.

While the season was cut short throughout a large swath of the nation, some pockets still enjoyed favorable conditions leading into the leaf peeping season. For instance, the popular leaf viewing spots in central and northern New England experienced weather that kept the colors bright and beautiful for an extended period of time.

You will see a mixed bag of conditions if you are hoping to get out this weekend to catch the colors before they disappear. The bulk of the northern U.S. has already reached the peak viewing season, meaning that the window has closed. This includes much of the Pacific Northwest, Nevada, Northern California, Minnesota, Michigan, and the majority of New England.

The central U.S. will be a good spot to see the leaves this weekend, with many states in the nation's heartland nearing peak colors.  Most of Missouri, western Kansas, Illinois, northwestern Arkansas, and eastern Colorado will be a great place to plan your weekend around fall foliage viewing. The brightest hues are likely to be found in southeastern South Dakota, central Iowa, southern Indiana, and the southwestern corner of Ohio.