Photograph: More Than Just Parks
Peak color lands around Oct 26 in most of California, but it moves 35 days across the state. Here’s where, and when, and how sure we are.
California fall foliage map for the week of Nov 9
When is peak fall foliage in California in 2026?
Most of California peaks between Oct 18 and Oct 31. The first county to peak is Alpine County, around Oct 5, and the last is Mariposa County, around Nov 9.
Elevation does most of the work here. Color runs down a mountain at roughly a day per 100 meters, so a ridge and the valley below it can be a week or two apart in the same county.
| Week | Where it peaks | Most of the state |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Inyo National Forest, Modoc National Forest, Stanislaus National Forest and 3 counties | Starting to turn |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Toiyabe National Forest, Klamath National Forest, Plumas National Forest and 4 counties | Nearly peak |
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Rogue River-Siskiyou National Forest, Sierra National Forest, Lassen National Forest and 19 counties | Peak color |
| Oct 26 to Nov 1 | Shasta-Trinity National Forest, Los Padres National Forest, Yosemite National Park and 27 counties | Peak color |
| Nov 2 to Nov 8 | Mendocino National Forest, Tahoe National Forest, Cleveland National Forest and 4 counties | Just past peak |
| Nov 9 to Nov 15 this week | Salton Sea, Otay Mountain Wilderness Area, Imperial Refuge Wilderness Area and 1 county | Fading |
Each date is the middle of the four days we’d aim a trip at, and each place page names them. We publish what the model got wrong, region by region.
14 of 58 counties here are corrected by people who have actually looked at the trees this season. 69 reports from official state sources have moved those dates off the model and narrowed their windows. Counties with neither keep the model forecast and say so. Which is which is marked in the table below.
Late September to mid-October in the Sierra, late October to mid-November in Yosemite Valley is how California is usually described.
California’s season place by place
The 24 places closest to their peak in California, each set on the calendar at its peak and painted by how far along it is today, Nov 10.
First: John Muir Wilderness, Sep 29. Last: San Diego Bay National Wildlife Refuge, Nov 11.
The dashed rule is today; the solid one is the median of the places on this chart, Oct 9. The date at the top of the page is the median county, which includes the low ground between them.
Where to go in California
The destinations we cover in California, in the order their color arrives. Each carries its own forecast and its own band, because a state isn’t one place.
- San Diego National Wildlife RefugePeakPeak Nov 10 best Nov 9 to 12
- Tijuana Slough National Wildlife RefugePeakPeak Nov 11 best Nov 10 to 13
- San Diego Bay National Wildlife RefugePeakPeak Nov 11 best Nov 10 to 13
- San Mateo Canyon WildernessNear peakPeak Nov 7, valley oak Nov 25 best Nov 6 to 9
- Seal Beach National Wildlife RefugeNear peakPeak Nov 8 best Nov 7 to 10
- Salton SeaNear peakPeak Nov 9 best Nov 8 to 11
- Otay Mountain Wilderness AreaNear peakPeak Nov 9 best Nov 8 to 11
- Imperial Refuge Wilderness AreaNear peakPeak Nov 9 best Nov 8 to 11
- Cibola National Wildlife RefugeNear peakPeak Nov 9 best Nov 8 to 11
- Cabrillo National MonumentNear peakPeak Nov 9 best Nov 8 to 11
- Past peakPeak Sep 29 best Sep 28 to Oct 1
- Past peakPeak Oct 2 best Oct 1 to 4
- Past peakPeak Oct 4 best Oct 3 to 6
- Sequoia-Kings Canyon Wilderness AreaPast peakPeak Oct 5 best Oct 4 to 7
- Past peakPeak Oct 5 best Oct 4 to 7
- Caribou WildernessPast peakPeak Oct 6 best Oct 5 to 8
- Past peakPeak Oct 7 best Oct 6 to 9
- Past peakPeak Oct 7 best Oct 6 to 9
- Bridgeport Winter Recreation AreaPast peakPeak Oct 7 best Oct 6 to 9
- Past peakPeak Oct 8 best Oct 7 to 10
- Past peakPeak Oct 8 best Oct 7 to 10
- White Mountains WildernessPast peakPeak Oct 9 best Oct 8 to 11
- Devils Postpile National MonumentPast peakPeak Oct 9 best Oct 8 to 11
- Past peakPeak Oct 10 best Oct 9 to 12
Also forecast in CaliforniaAngeles National ForestAnsel Adams WildernessChannel Islands National ParkCleveland National ForestDeath Valley National ParkEldorado National ForestEmigrant WildernessGolden Gate National Recreation AreaJoshua Tree National ParkKings Canyon National ParkKlamath National ForestLassen National ForestLassen Volcanic National ParkLos Padres National ForestMendocino National ForestMokelumne WildernessMono Basin National Scenic AreaPinnacles National ParkPlumas National ForestPoint Reyes National SeashoreRedwood National ParkRogue River-Siskiyou National ForestSan Bernardino National ForestSanta Monica Mountains National Recreation AreaSequoia National ForestShasta-Trinity National ForestSierra National ForestSix Rivers National ForestSmith River National Recreation AreaStanislaus National ForestTahoe National ForestToiyabe National ForestWhiskeytown Shasta-Trinity National Recreation AreaYosemite National Park
Questions people ask about California fall foliage
- When is peak fall foliage in California?
Most of California peaks between Oct 18 and Oct 31. The first county to peak is Alpine County, around Oct 5, and the last is Mariposa County, around Nov 9.
- Where is the best fall foliage in California right now?
As of Nov 10, San Diego National Wildlife Refuge, Tijuana Slough National Wildlife Refuge, San Diego Bay National Wildlife Refuge and seven more are at peak.
- How long does peak last in California?
In any one place, about four days at the top, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across California as a whole, peak moves 35 days from Alpine County to Mariposa County, so there's peak color somewhere in the state for about 39 days.
- Is California past peak?
Mostly. As of Nov 10, 55 of California's 58 counties are past peak, 3 are at it and 0 are still ahead. Mariposa County is the last to peak, around Nov 9.
- How far along is California's fall foliage today?
On Nov 10, 3 of California's 58 counties (5 percent) are at peak and 55 (95 percent) are past peak. The county map above paints each one, and the live map lets you scrub the day.
- When do the leaves change in California?
The first color shows in Alpine County around Sep 14 and peaks there around Oct 5. Mariposa County is the last of California's 58 counties, peaking around Nov 9. Most of the state turns through the weeks around Oct 26.
- What's the best time to visit California for fall foliage?
The week of Oct 26 catches the most of the state at once, and the four days we'd aim at there are Oct 25 to 28. That's the leaf peeping window for California as a whole. For Alpine County and the counties around it, aim for the week of Oct 5; for Mariposa County and its neighbors, the week of Nov 9.
What actually turns
Eastern Sierra aspens turn brilliant gold against granite walls, black oaks in Yosemite Valley go bronze and russet, and cottonwoods line the desert creeks in pale yellow.
- Quaking Aspen
- Black Oak
- Bigleaf Maple
- Fremont Cottonwood
- White Alder
The June Lake Loop off US 395 is the most concentrated aspen color in California, with dense groves reflected in four alpine lakes.
Worth the drive
Mono County on the eastern slope of the Sierra Nevada contains the June Lake Loop, Convict Lake, and the northern end of the US 395 aspen corridor. The aspens here grow in dense groves in every canyon draining the Sierra's east face, and the backdrop of 12,000-foot granite peaks reflected in alpine lakes makes this one of the most photogenic fall landscapes in America. Photographers treat this as an annual pilgrimage.
Fresno County contains the western slope of the Sierra Nevada including Kings Canyon and portions of the Sierra National Forest. The black oaks and dogwoods in the mid-elevation forests produce a warm, golden fall that peaks later than the eastern Sierra aspens. Kings Canyon's Grant Grove and the road down to Cedar Grove pass through groves of black oak and bigleaf maple that color in late October.
Every county by peak week
Alpine observed
Inyo observed, Lassen observed, Mono observed
Del Norte, Kern, Lake, Modoc, Plumas regional, Shasta, Sierra observed, Yuba regional
Alameda, Amador regional, Butte corrected, Colusa, Contra Costa corrected, El Dorado observed, Fresno observed, Glenn, Humboldt corrected, Los Angeles, Madera, Marin, Mendocino corrected, Napa, Placer regional, Sacramento, San Bernardino observed, San Joaquin, Santa Clara, Siskiyou, Solano, Sonoma, Sutter, Tehama, Tulare, Ventura, Yolo
Calaveras regional, Kings, Merced, Monterey corrected, Nevada observed, Riverside, San Diego, San Francisco, San Luis Obispo, San Mateo, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz, Stanislaus, Trinity
Imperial, Mariposa regional, Orange, San Benito, Tuolumne regional
Every date on this site is a forecast: a model corrected by ground reports, carrying a measured error, published in full. Check conditions with the land manager before you travel. Last reviewed September 2026. Open the live map
See it on the map
The live map covers every county in the country, with a timeline you can scrub through the season, the nearest forest monitoring camera, and the long-term record where we hold one. If you’re going this weekend, the weekend report names where color is at peak right now, region by region.
Before you drive, it’s worth checking fire and smoke conditions for the same forests. A perfect color week is no good under a smoke plume.