Where is the best fall color at Eagles Nest Wilderness right now?

On Nov 12 the wilderness is leaves down. The last band to peak was 8,000 to 9,000 feet, around Oct 4.

How long does peak last at Eagles Nest Wilderness?

About four days at the top, Sep 27 to 30, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the wilderness's elevations the color moves over about 9 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 13 days.

Is Eagles Nest Wilderness past peak?

Yes. Peak was around Sep 28, and on Nov 12 it's leaves down.

What trees turn color at Eagles Nest Wilderness?

Quaking aspen is 88 percent of the trees that turn here, then narrowleaf cottonwood (7 percent) and willow (5). All of them turn yellow or gold.

Back to the map

Wilderness Area·Colorado·135,204 acres

Eagles Nest Wilderness

Forecast issued Nov 12, 5:26pm ET

Peak colorSep 28Aim for Sep 27 to 30

In the wilderness today, Nov 12Leaves down

Higher ground turns first, so the slopes above the road lead the valley by a few days.

No new reports from the ground here this week.

Still greenStartingNearly peakPeakPast peakNo fall canopy we forecastInside the line, each band of elevation is painted on its own date.

Around Eagles Nest Wilderness Summit County holds most of the wilderness and is leaves down today. Eagle County, to the west, is 6 days behind.

When is peak fall foliage at Eagles Nest Wilderness in 2026?

Our forecast puts peak color at Eagles Nest Wilderness around Sep 28, and the four days to aim for are Sep 27 to 30.

The wilderness runs from about 8,629 to 12,200 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 9 days: the high stands around Sep 25, the low ground around Oct 4. That's 8 days later than our model alone would say, because this season's reports from the ground moved it.

Eagles Nest Wilderness, fall color week by week, 2026
Week	In the wilderness	Elevation at peak
Sep 7 to Sep 13	Starting to turn
Sep 14 to Sep 20	Nearly peak
Sep 21 to Sep 27	Peak color	10,000 to 11,000 ft, 11,000 to 12,000 ft, 12,000 to 13,000 ft
Sep 28 to Oct 4	Peak color	8,000 to 9,000 ft, 9,000 to 10,000 ft
Oct 5 to Oct 11	Just past peak
Oct 12 to Oct 18	Fading

By elevation The wilderness runs from about 8,629 to 12,200 feet. That’s 9 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Sep 25, the low ground holds until about Oct 4, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 9,000 to 10,000 foot band.

12,000–13,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 258%
11,000–12,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2426%
10,000–11,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2233%
9,000–10,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2822%
8,000–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 410%

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

Today from the NEON.D13.WLOU.DP1.20002 camera, 20 km from Eagles Nest Wilderness — See it now PhenoCam Network, West St Louis Creek camera, 20 km away, captured Nov 12.

That’s 8 days later than our model alone would say. This season’s reports from the ground moved it, and they outrank us.

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.

ArrivingLeaving

Thursday, November 12 to Friday, November 13

You’ll find it with the leaves down.

Peak color was 46 days before you arrive, around Sep 28.

12,000–13,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 25
11,000–12,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 24
10,000–11,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 22
9,000–10,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 28
8,000–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 4

What turns: quaking aspen, narrowleaf cottonwood, willow

What turns, and when

quaking aspen88%
narrowleaf cottonwood7%
willow5%

Every one of these turns yellow or gold here. The shades only tell the species apart.

Also named across Colorado, outside what the canopy read measures here: Gambel Oak, Rocky Mountain Maple, Alder.

Colorado aspens are the main event, turning entire mountainsides gold and amber while Gambel oaks add russet and orange at lower elevations and cottonwoods line the rivers in yellow.

Questions people ask about Eagles Nest Wilderness

When is peak fall foliage at Eagles Nest Wilderness?: Our forecast puts peak color at Eagles Nest Wilderness around Sep 28, and the four days to aim for are Sep 27 to 30.
Where is the best fall color at Eagles Nest Wilderness right now?: On Nov 12 the wilderness is leaves down. The last band to peak was 8,000 to 9,000 feet, around Oct 4.
How long does peak last at Eagles Nest Wilderness?: About four days at the top, Sep 27 to 30, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the wilderness's elevations the color moves over about 9 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 13 days.
Is Eagles Nest Wilderness past peak?: Yes. Peak was around Sep 28, and on Nov 12 it's leaves down.
What trees turn color at Eagles Nest Wilderness?: Quaking aspen is 88 percent of the trees that turn here, then narrowleaf cottonwood (7 percent) and willow (5). All of them turn yellow or gold. What turns, and when

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 Colorado

Nearby, and when they turn

James Peak Wilderness and White River and Mount Evans Wilderness are on the map above, with their own date.

Mount Massive WildernessCO · about 37 miles
Peak Sep 21 best Sep 20 to 23
Arapaho National Recreation AreaCO · about 38 miles
Peak Oct 6 best Oct 5 to 8
Hunter-Fryingpan WildernessCO · about 39 miles
Peak Sep 28 best Sep 27 to 30

Fall color roads near Eagles Nest Wilderness

Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the wilderness, so allow more by road.

Boreas Pass Road · about 26 miles, CO · 22 miles of road
Breckenridge to Como on the old railroad grade, aspen the whole way. Gravel, fine for a car.
Guanella Pass · about 31 miles, CO · 22 miles of road
Georgetown to Grant. The aspen on the Georgetown side are some of the closest big groves to Denver.
Kenosha Pass (US 285) · about 34 miles, CO
The grove at the summit is the Front Range's classic aspen stop, and you can walk into it on the Colorado Trail.
Independence Pass (CO 82) · about 44 miles, CO · 32 miles of road
Aspen to Twin Lakes up the Roaring Fork. The pass closes for the winter around the first of November.
Peak to Peak Scenic Byway (CO 7, 72 and 119) · about 49 miles, CO · 55 miles of road
Estes Park to Black Hawk along the Front Range, aspen most of the way and thickest around Allenspark and Nederland.
Maroon Creek Road · about 55 miles, CO · 10 miles of road
The Maroon Bells over a lake ringed with aspen. Shuttle only during the season.