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Forecast issued Nov 9, 5:27pm ET

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The bridge from the headlands.

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National Recreation Area·California·34,888 acres

Golden Gate National Recreation Area

Forecast issued Nov 9, 5:27pm ET

Photograph: More Than Just Parks

Peak color, most of the standOct 28Aim for Oct 27 to 30
In the recreation area today, Nov 9Just past peak

vine maple and black cottonwood

SepOctNov

bigleaf maple, peak Nov 9

SepOctNov

Peak color should arrive around Oct 16 for the vine maple and black cottonwood, and around Nov 9 for the bigleaf maple.

Roadsides and wetland edges turn first, and the woods behind them run a few days later.

Weather Wind to 30 mph Sunday. Color may come down before it turns.

No new reports from the ground here this week.

US 101I-680I-880I-80Tamalpais ValleySan FranciscoDaly CityRichmondSan RafaelSouth San FranciscoSan MateoPacificaPoint Reyespeak Oct 27Golden Gate
US 101I-80I-580I-280Tamalpais ValleyOaklandDaly CitySan RafaelPacificaSan MateoCorte MaderaVallejoPoint Reyespeak Oct 27Golden Gate
Still greenStartingNearly peakPeakPast peakNo fall canopy we forecastInside the line, each band of elevation is painted on its own date.
Around Golden Gate National Recreation Area Marin County holds most of the recreation area and is fading today. That’s the county as a whole, which peaks 1 day earlier than the recreation area’s own stands: the recreation area is just past peak. San Mateo County, to the southeast, is 1 day behind. San Francisco County, to the east, is 1 day behind.
Golden Gate National Recreation Area fall foliage map 2026: the unit and the counties around it painted by how far along their color is on Nov 9. Peak forecast around Oct 28, bigleaf maple Nov 9, best Oct 27 to 30.
Save or share this mapToday’s Golden Gate National Recreation Area fall foliage map as a picture, redrawn every morning. Free to reuse with credit to More Than Just Parks and a link back; the terms.Save the mapPin itFacebookXEmail

When is peak fall foliage at Golden Gate National Recreation Area in 2026?

Our forecast puts peak color at Golden Gate National Recreation Area around Oct 28, and the four days to aim for are Oct 27 to 30. bigleaf maple peak later, around Nov 9.

The recreation area runs from about 4 to 1,156 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 4 days: the high stands around Oct 24, the low ground around Oct 27.

Golden Gate, fall color week by week, 2026
WeekIn the recreation areaElevation at peak
Oct 5 to Oct 11Starting to turn
Oct 12 to Oct 18Starting to turn
Oct 19 to Oct 25Nearly peak750 to 1,000 ft, 1,000 to 1,250 ft
Oct 26 to Nov 1Peak color0 to 250 ft, 250 to 500 ft, 500 to 750 ft
Nov 2 to Nov 8Just past peak
By elevation The recreation area runs from about 4 to 1,156 feet. That’s 4 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Oct 24, the low ground holds until about Oct 27, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 0 to 250 foot band.
  1. 1,000–1,250 ftFadingpeak Oct 244%
  2. 750–1,000 ftFadingpeak Oct 2515%
  3. 500–750 ftFadingpeak Oct 2628%
  4. 250–500 ftFadingpeak Oct 2728%
  5. 0–250 ftFadingpeak Oct 2718%

Height off 3DEP inside the recreation area’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the recreation area stands in it.

The place

Experience a park so rich it supports 19 distinct ecosystems with over 2,000 plant and animal species. Go for a hike, enjoy a vista, have a picnic or learn about the centuries of overlapping history from California’s indigenous cultures, Spanish colonialism, the Mexican Republic, US military expansion and the growth of San Francisco. All of this and more awaits you, so get out and find your park.

Established 1972.

Plan this trip

If you can only come on certain days

Set the days you can be here. Everything under them answers for those days, not for peak.

Tuesday, October 27 to Wednesday, October 28

You’ll find it just past peak up high, peak color lower down.

Up at 750 feet the stands peak around Oct 25; down at 250 feet they hold on until about Oct 27. Pick your elevation for the day you come.

  • 750–1,000 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 25
  • 500–750 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 26
  • 250–500 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 27
  • 0–250 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 27
What turns
bigleaf maple, vine maple, red alder, black cottonwood, Fremont cottonwood

What turns, and when

Also named across California, outside what the canopy read measures here: Quaking Aspen, Black Oak.

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.

Questions people ask about Golden Gate National Recreation Area

When is peak fall foliage at Golden Gate National Recreation Area?

Our forecast puts peak color at Golden Gate National Recreation Area around Oct 28, and the four days to aim for are Oct 27 to 30. bigleaf maple peak later, around Nov 9.

Where is the best fall color at Golden Gate National Recreation Area right now?

On Nov 9 the recreation area is just past peak. The last band to peak was 0 to 250 feet, around Oct 27.

How long does peak last at Golden Gate National Recreation Area?

About four days at the top, Oct 27 to 30, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the recreation area's elevations the color moves over about 4 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 8 days.

Is Golden Gate National Recreation Area past peak?

Yes. Peak was around Oct 28, and on Nov 9 it's just past peak.

What trees turn color at Golden Gate National Recreation Area?

Quaking Aspen, Black Oak, Bigleaf Maple, Fremont Cottonwood, White Alder. 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.

This forecast is built from the species that stand here, their elevation and this September’s weather, and corrected in season by cameras, foresters and our own crew. Out here we score it against NASA's satellite record of when the canopy shuts down, read inside each unit’s own boundary: two dates in three land within 12 days of it. How this map is made

All of California

Nearby, and when they turn

  1. Mendocino National ForestCA · about 122 miles
    Peak Nov 2 best Nov 1 to 4
  2. Pinnacles National ParkCA · about 123 miles
    Peak Oct 28 best Oct 27 to 30
  3. Eldorado National ForestCA · about 141 miles
    Peak Oct 24 best Oct 23 to 26
  4. Stanislaus National ForestCA · about 144 miles
    Peak Oct 10 best Oct 9 to 12
  5. Mokelumne WildernessCA · about 150 miles
    Peak Oct 26 best Oct 25 to 28
  6. Tahoe National ForestCA · about 154 miles
    Peak Nov 3 best Nov 2 to 5