Fall Color Reports

I was wondering if anyone could report how the fall colors were coming along in recently visited areas. Do you think there will still be color up at Paradise by Oct. 17th? I am leading a small workshop up there and really hope there will be some color for us. The ranger said the colors were just starting to show up there now. Banff was just barely starting when I was there the second week of Sept. That's all I got.

The Sawtooths are about a week away from prime color season with the aspen.

David M. Cobb

Went over Chinook pass over the weekend to see the M's beeat the Yankees and there was very little color showing anywhere on that route.

Thanks

Mike

Here's a report from a friend of mine who photographed at Picture Lake and Mt. Shuksan in Washington this past Sunday:
" Blueberries are at peak color some places, not yet turned in others. Mountain Ash looks a bit dry, but the berries are nice color. ".

As mentioned in the North Cascades thread here, he also says that he could see no color in the larch trees in the Enchantments when flying over the area Tuesday morning.

Driving over to lincoln city yesterday, color is at about 20%... two weeks and it will be peak. Going over hood on 26 last weekend, a few trees starting to turn. Probably a few weeks out. I'm curious about the Santiam Pass... might try that out next weekend.

As of this past Saturday, there is very little color at Picture Lake for the classic Mt. Shuksan photo. Same with the nearby Bagley Lakes Trail and most of Heather Meadows, although there are some spots with deep red huckleberries and mountain ash with with bright red berries.

Not far away, there's a lot more color up on the Yellow Aster Butte Trail, some of it in the right place for a photo to include Mount Baker.

Crossing over Washington Pass to the east side of the Cascades, the fall color is practically nil. Drove up to Hart Pass and only at the very top are the larch trees just starting to turn.

Down in the Methow Valley, also zilch. Two years ago at this time the aspen and cottonwood in this area were ablaze, but today there is hardly anything.

I'm thinking that just as wildflowers were about two weeks late this year, so is the fall color.

My impression is that the color is gonna be late this year as well. I just spent 3 days in the Alpine Lakes Wilderness south of Stevens Pass at about 5600 feet and while there were patches of Huckleberry that were at or slightly past peak (mainly areas that got lots of direct sunlight), there were just as many areas that were still green or were just starting to yellow a bit. Ash is still behind a bit, mostly greenish-yellow from what I saw. A few patches of good maple turning but nothing widespread yet. It was pretty cold up there (frost on the ground in the morning) so with the incoming weather this weekend, it should hurry up a bit.

So it looks like I might be ok for some color up at rainier on the 17th...
I just returned from a trip to Banff and the color was pretty brown around Bow lake, the larches were past peak(golden) and loosing needles. I guess the best week this year was the 3rd week in Sept. Pretty small margin!

Chip, I was up around Paradise at Rainier yesterday. The color is another 1-2 weeks from peak, I would guess. There are a couple of nice spots, but most of it has a ways to go.

I went up to Heather Meadows last night for sunset shots. Every year the fall color in the NF Nooksack Valley is pretty nice but it's also about 2 weeks behind. There was one short 1/2 mile stretch of highway where some vine maples were in color.

Around and above Heather Meadows, the huckleberries are turning red and the Mountain Ash have their red berries. This past week's snow is still lingering with patches around Heather Meadows and more consistant snow a bit higher.

Glad I went when I did because sunset was amazing and the snow will probably be gone by next weekend..

I took a quick trip to Rainier yesterday. The huckleberry is peak at Paradise meadows, the mountain ash is a little behind.

A friend and I rode the old Columbia River Highway yesterday from Multnomah Falls to a bit before Larch Mountain. The color in the gorge is just getting started, but the Vine Maple are peaking on the forest edges.