Finding Fall Foliage Between October 5 and 15
Good Locations Around Columbus Day Weekend (CDW)?
CDW shows on different dates so the dates I picked here are a bit arbitrary. Whatever your vacation dates are, you can simply move more northerly or southerly depending on the foliage. I think 5 to 15 October in VT and NH “should” be great opportunities for viewing the fall colors. So based on this, you may want to look at some places that are centrally located to allow for great exploring and shorter drives.
New Hampshire for Columbus Day Weekend
First up, we’re looking at the northern White Mountains south to the Kancamagus (Kanc) Highway. The Kanc is at a higher elevation so it turns between Sept 25th to the 10th of October. Places like Franconia Notch and Crawford Notch are extremely popular at this time. (Seen below is Saco Lake in Crawford Notch New Hampshire).
Your best chance for finding the peak for these dates means you are anywhere from the White Mountains north to the Canadian Border. Places like Littleton, Lancaster, or Bethlehem, will provide decent-sized towns with lodging and food options. Each town has several routes in and out of town to minimize traffic backlogs. And if the season is slow you can easily go north or south if the colors are early and you aren’t.
Lisa and I have stayed in Littleton (see the write-up in our NH places to stay), I’ve even stayed at a motel on 93 outside Lancaster which was fine for me. If you just want a bed, wifi, and to be on the road at dawn the next morning a motel is a cheap(er) solution. My only concern for the next morning was how close was I to Dixville Notch, (10-15 minutes away) so this was good for me. The downside was that I left well before they put out the breakfast buffet.
But you may have heard “New England runs on Dunkin” so I was able to get a coffee (pumpkin spice of course) and a muffin before I went too far.
Based on my experience over the past 20 years For the dates between 5 to 10 October you should be looking South of Route 26 and North of Route 112 (the Kanc) in New Hampshire.
In Vermont for Columbus Day Weekend
For these dates, near Stowe VT might be good. Also north into the NEK (Northeast Kingdom), and maybe south to almost Woodstock VT should give you good locations. BUT! even if the color isn’t all the way down to Woodstock it has great places to eat, stay, and explore.
Stowe is touristy but a great visit, with several routes in or out of it, notably Route 108 north to Smuggler’s Notch Awesome! Each year is different but I find CDW (Columbus Day Weekend) is a great time to venture through the Notch… BUT!!! DO NOT BRING YOUR RV!! You’d be amazed how many 18-wheelers ignore this and have to get towed out paying a hefty fine.
You can also try Burke, Lyndon, Craftsbury, or St Johnsbury for places to stay. St Johnsbury is a bigger town (slightly bigger than Mayberry RFD) and it has a few museums and lots of options.
In Maine for Columbus Day Weekend
So many places between 5-10 October should be painfully beautiful like this picture of Grafton Notch State Park Maine (8 Oct).
Also, much of the North Country at this time would be the same… (I think) That would be Moosehead Lake and Katahdin Woods and Waters, Rangeley Lake. Greenville or Rangeley would be good options for places to stay.
You can usually be up near Rangeley over the early part of this date range but as you get towards the 10th I “normally” recommend being a bit further south. BUT… in 2017 the colors were REAL LATE and on the 20th of Oct, I made this image at Haley Pond which is next to Rangeley Lake. This is NOT normal and I usually would look for 1-8 Oct for good color in Rangeley.
Normally you would not go very far south. Maybe you can draw a line from Bethel in the west to Bar Harbor and Mount Desert Island in the east on the coast. I would not go south past central Maine like Augusta but I doubt the colors will be much farther than that.
Locations to think about between 10 to 15 October
Columbus Day Weekend passes and you can set your sights a bit further south. This DOES NOT mean the colors north of these positions have fallen and turned brown. It only means that some have fallen and some have turned darker shades. The brighter colors “should” be more South. (Jeff has spoken… Now if Mother Nature would only listen!)
In New Hampshire after Columbus Day Weekend
This week you can be anywhere from Lake Winnipesaukee and the wonderful towns of Meredith, Wolfeboro, and Laconia. Almost every town from here south into Massachusetts will have options for food, lodging, and activities. The roads are nice and you will find tons of places to visit.
You may be farther away from the awe-inspiring 4,000-foot mountains up north but now it takes on a small-town ambiance where you find small villages to slightly larger towns with lots to see. White steeple churches nestled in hillsides of fall colors.
Meredith is a great location and it is a vacation spot so the prices are a bit higher. I’ve stayed at several of the places in Meredith and Church Landing is at the upper level of cost but is so very nice. They comped me a room but I feel you get good value for those $$$$ rooms. But they have a place across the road which is Mill Falls at the Lake in Meredith and the prices drop by half… You have a bunch of routes North, west, and south out of Meredith for options.
You might also want to try going east which if you do it in your car, well it may need flotation bags. But an option would be the Mount Washington Cruise which offers scenic cruises and sunset dinner dance cruises on Lake Winnipesaukee. During the trips around the lake and you can see the fall colors running from the tops of the hills running down to the shoreline.
Places for these dates that I would look at can be either VERY touristy or SLIGHTLY touristy. Those places that come to mind that are very touristy are Killington, Rutland, and Manchester. While Woodstock would be very touristy these later dates tend to preclude this area from really serious fall colors and I would probably want to be a bit further south.
Manchester has Route 7 and Route 30 to Route 11 over to Route 100, so you have some options there for the direction taken. If you go further South, you have Bennington, and south into North Adams Massachusetts. You can go east along Route 9 which is a scenic route with options for North or South depending on how the fall colors are flowing. There are wonderful small towns like Newfane, Townshend, or Rockingham. In Rockingham, you will find the Vermont Country store which is a destination in and of itself.
You’re Always a short Detour from
Take a look at the map on their website and pick a start and end point. simply click on places along your route to add them to your itinerary.
There are tons of places that are listed from diners to B&Bs and activities to explore.
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In Vermont after Columbus Day Weekend
Now before you go and focus only on what is ahead. DON’T assume all the color up north is gone! In 2015 I went up to Pomfret VT on 16 October. and while it was a bit past peak, I dare you to tell me this isn’t nice…
The colors are a bit past peak but I think this is a lovely example of Vermont fall colors and I was captivated by all the autumn colors. To find this spot look for Hewitt’s Corners in Pomfret VT.
In Maine after Columbus Day Weekend
You are probably heading for the coastal areas from Bar Harbor, south into Portland and Lighthouses are the call of the day. Freeport Maine and the L.L. Bean flagship store may be on your list.
I’m looking at Acadia (Mount Desert Island) for 18-19 Oct this year (most years). and you could probably do it a week earlier and have very nice colors. I might be late, but I can go further down the coast to explore, like Rockland or Baily’s Island, and look at places inland…
We visited Bar Harbor in 2005, and it was a rainy day in late Sept till the day we left on 11 Oct. You can bet I was very grumpy that year. but on the way home, we stopped in Camden and went up to Mount Battie to get this shot. (shot in 2021 on October 19th)
Maybe this year I’ll get a much better picture of this view of Camden Maine from that overlook. I like Mount Battie because I can drive all the way to the top. I know, I know………..
Jeff Foliage Folger
Autumn is a state of mind more than a time of year – Jeff Foliage
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Jeff, my delight was to open your article this morning and see that your writing was based on a question I sent you a few years back. Due to the COVID mess by the end of that year we had to cancel and are still waiting on our “bucket list” fall trip to the northeast. Thanks again for your writings and pictures, they have made planning for our trip so much easier. Blessing to you both! Phil & Kelly Z. Morton, IL
Well Phil, my readers are a source of inspiration for me. Sometimes they help me see a problem from their point of view and that gives me an idea to write about. 🙂
Jeff, my delight was to open your article this morning and see that your writing was based on a question I sent you a few years back. Due to the COVID mess by the end of that year we had to cancel and are still waiting on our “bucket list” fall trip to the northeast. Thanks again for your writings and pictures, they have made planning for our trip so much easier. Blessing to you both! Phil & Kelly Z. Morton, IL
Well Phil, my readers are a source of inspiration for me. Sometimes they help me see a problem from their point of view and that gives me an idea to write about. 🙂
Jeff, we’ve been following your page, and your amazing photography, since early 2020 when we were hoping to come to New England. We are planning to visit this year !!!!!!, Oct. 7 – 17, from Dallas. I am watching the weather praying that y’all are spared from destruction with hurricane Henri. Be safe, thank you for your posts!
Maybe I’ll do a video during the storm but as of now, it doesn’t look like more than heavy rain and wind, and Yaaa it’s well before the leaves start turning. We would not want to see this 30 – 40 days from now…
Jeff, we’ve been following your page, and your amazing photography, since early 2020 when we were hoping to come to New England. We are planning to visit this year !!!!!!, Oct. 7 – 17, from Dallas. I am watching the weather praying that y’all are spared from destruction with hurricane Henri. Be safe, thank you for your posts!
Maybe I’ll do a video during the storm but as of now, it doesn’t look like more than heavy rain and wind, and Yaaa it’s well before the leaves start turning. We would not want to see this 30 – 40 days from now…
Hi, Jeff: To what extent do you think a visit to sights in New England in Fall 2021 would be safe for folks in their mid-70s?
If you are referring to covid. Get vaccinated and wear a mask as needed.
Safe be cause you might trip and break a hip?
You can do that in your own backyard…
Or safe from people who mean us harm? If that is a worry, take a guided bus trip. Make friends and do things as a group…
Does this help?
If not let me know your thoughts. I don’t give tours as a rule but in 2018 I took a gentleman who was I believe 85. He found it enjoyable.
April who advertises on my page does tours and you could talk to her…
Hi, Jeff: To what extent do you think a visit to sights in New England in Fall 2021 would be safe for folks in their mid-70s?
If you are referring to covid. Get vaccinated and wear a mask as needed.
Safe be cause you might trip and break a hip?
You can do that in your own backyard…
Or safe from people who mean us harm? If that is a worry, take a guided bus trip. Make friends and do things as a group…
Does this help?
If not let me know your thoughts. I don’t give tours as a rule but in 2018 I took a gentleman who was I believe 85. He found it enjoyable.
April who advertises on my page does tours and you could talk to her…
Jeff I am very glad to read your thoughts on the effect that this storm may have on the leaves.. We are scheduled to be in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine on October 1st through the 10th.
We are very excited to see the foliage this year after missing last year….
Take care and be safe!!
Well Hoss, as of this moment I have not heard of any issues from the rainy July or the rain brought in by Ida. I was just up in Quechee up to Pomfret Vermont and all looked normal to me. I put a foliage report upon my Instagram feed. I could put it up on FB as well…
Jeff I am very glad to read your thoughts on the effect that this storm may have on the leaves.. We are scheduled to be in Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine on October 1st through the 10th.
We are very excited to see the foliage this year after missing last year….
Take care and be safe!!
Well Hoss, as of this moment I have not heard of any issues from the rainy July or the rain brought in by Ida. I was just up in Quechee up to Pomfret Vermont and all looked normal to me. I put a foliage report upon my Instagram feed. I could put it up on FB as well…
Hi Jeff, what a great site – thank you. We’re booked to travel into Burlington from 9/25-10/3, which seems like it might be a little early for leaf peeping given your current prediction. With this in mind we thought about checking out Montreal/Quebec City the first few days of the trip (depending on the current border situation of course) as we’ve never been, and then coming back south from Quebec City on 9/30 which would hopefully be a little more likely to allow us to see some fall foliage. Any thoughts/recommendations on a potential route through VT/NH or even ME coming from the north at about that time?
If you can get up into Montreal, there are lots of nice areas up there. I even found a covered bridge my last time up there. Most people don’t like to be “early” but I would rather be early than late. Fully leafed trees that are partially turned are wonderful. Half bare trees with leaves of orange or brown are not fun… If I knew how to time it perfectly for any given area, I would be very rich for selling that info… 🙂 but generally, since I can’t tell you when to be here for “peak” then hedging your visit a little early means that you can travel North of where you are staying and you should find closer to peak fall colors… (I hope)
The border is open as of now and you just need to be fully vaccinated. Burlington is always later to turn because of proximity to the lake so you will want to head to Route 100 and head North to Newport VT and cross there. This way you can judge the colors on this side of the border. Montreal is an hour from the border and QC is another 2 hours North East of there. You will eat up much of your trip in Canada and that is something you have to balance out for yourselves… Good Luck!
Hi Jeff, what a great site – thank you. We’re booked to travel into Burlington from 9/25-10/3, which seems like it might be a little early for leaf peeping given your current prediction. With this in mind we thought about checking out Montreal/Quebec City the first few days of the trip (depending on the current border situation of course) as we’ve never been, and then coming back south from Quebec City on 9/30 which would hopefully be a little more likely to allow us to see some fall foliage. Any thoughts/recommendations on a potential route through VT/NH or even ME coming from the north at about that time?
If you can get up into Montreal, there are lots of nice areas up there. I even found a covered bridge my last time up there. Most people don’t like to be “early” but I would rather be early than late. Fully leafed trees that are partially turned are wonderful. Half bare trees with leaves of orange or brown are not fun… If I knew how to time it perfectly for any given area, I would be very rich for selling that info… 🙂 but generally, since I can’t tell you when to be here for “peak” then hedging your visit a little early means that you can travel North of where you are staying and you should find closer to peak fall colors… (I hope)
The border is open as of now and you just need to be fully vaccinated. Burlington is always later to turn because of proximity to the lake so you will want to head to Route 100 and head North to Newport VT and cross there. This way you can judge the colors on this side of the border. Montreal is an hour from the border and QC is another 2 hours North East of there. You will eat up much of your trip in Canada and that is something you have to balance out for yourselves… Good Luck!