National Park·Colorado·265,475 acres
Rocky Mountain National Park
Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET
Photograph: More Than Just Parks
Where to lookBear Lake Road is the best fall color in the park.
Higher ground turns first, so the slopes above the road lead the valley by a few days.
Weather Hard frost Wednesday night. Peak may come early and go fast.
No new reports from the ground here this week.
When is peak fall foliage at Rocky Mountain National Park in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Rocky Mountain National Park around Oct 2, and the four days to aim for are Oct 1 to 4.
The park runs from about 8,595 to 12,161 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 9 days: the high stands around Sep 28, the low ground around Oct 7. That's 13 days later than our model alone would say, because this season's reports from the ground moved it.
| Week | In the park | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 7 to Sep 13 | Starting to turn | |
| Sep 14 to Sep 20 | Starting to turn | |
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Nearly peak | 10,000 to 11,000 ft, 11,000 to 12,000 ft |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Peak color | 9,000 to 10,000 ft, 12,000 to 13,000 ft |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Just past peak | 8,000 to 9,000 ft |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Just past peak |
- 12,000–13,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 287%
- 11,000–12,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2628%
- 10,000–11,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2433%
- 9,000–10,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 121%
- 8,000–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 711%
Height off 3DEP inside the park’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the park stands in it.
That’s 13 days later than our model alone would say. This season’s reports from the ground moved it, and they outrank us.
The place
Trail Ridge Road climbs to 12,183 feet, the highest continuous paved road in the country, and crosses the Continental Divide with the kind of exposure that makes passengers grip their armrests. Nearly a third of Rocky Mountain National Park sits above treeline. Up there it is tundra, wind, and 200-mile views into Wyoming. Down below, elk outnumber tourists by October.
Established 1915. About 4.3 million/year visitors.
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.
Thursday, October 1 to Friday, October 2
You’ll find it just past peak up high, nearly peak lower down.
Up at 11,000 feet the stands peak around Sep 26; down at 9,000 feet they hold on until about Oct 7. Pick your elevation for the day you come.
- 11,000–12,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 26
- 10,000–11,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 24
- 9,000–10,000 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 1
- 8,000–9,000 ftNearly peakpeak Oct 7
- Where to drive
- Trail Ridge Road (US 34), in the park · Bear Lake Road, in the park · Peak to Peak Scenic Byway (CO 7, 72 and 119), about 21 miles
- What turns
- quaking aspen, narrowleaf cottonwood, willow, thinleaf alder, water birch
- Entrance
- $35
What turns, and when
- quaking aspen79%
- narrowleaf cottonwood9%
- willow6%
- thinleaf alder3%
- water birch3%
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.
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 Rocky Mountain National Park
- When is peak fall foliage at Rocky Mountain National Park?
Our forecast puts peak color at Rocky Mountain National Park around Oct 2, and the four days to aim for are Oct 1 to 4.
- Where is the best fall color at Rocky Mountain National Park right now?
On Nov 10 the park is leaves down. The last band to peak was 8,000 to 9,000 feet, around Oct 7.
- How long does peak last at Rocky Mountain National Park?
About four days at the top, Oct 1 to 4, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the park's elevations the color moves over about 9 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 13 days.
- Is Rocky Mountain National Park past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Oct 2, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.
- What trees turn color at Rocky Mountain National Park?
Quaking Aspen, Narrowleaf Cottonwood, 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.
- Is there an entrance fee at Rocky Mountain National Park?
Entrance fee $35.
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
Nearby, and when they turn
Rawah Wilderness is on the map above, with its own date.
- Peak Sep 18 best Sep 17 to 20
- Peak Oct 16 best Oct 15 to 18
- Peak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
- Peak Sep 20 best Sep 19 to 22
- Peak Sep 28 best Sep 27 to 30
Fall color roads near Rocky Mountain National Park
Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the park, so allow more by road.
- Trail Ridge Road (US 34)
Rocky Mountain National Park's road over the top. The aspen are in the first miles on both sides, Hidden Valley and Horseshoe Park on the east, the Kawuneeche Valley on the west, before the road climbs above the trees.
- Bear Lake Road
Bierstadt Moraine and the aspen below Bear Lake, the densest gold in the park. Timed entry runs through mid-October.
- Peak to Peak Scenic Byway (CO 7, 72 and 119)
Estes Park to Black Hawk along the Front Range, aspen most of the way and thickest around Allenspark and Nederland.
- Cache la Poudre Canyon (CO 14)
Cottonwood and then aspen up the Poudre from Fort Collins toward Cameron Pass.
- Guanella Pass
Georgetown to Grant. The aspen on the Georgetown side are some of the closest big groves to Denver.
- Kenosha Pass (US 285)
The grove at the summit is the Front Range's classic aspen stop, and you can walk into it on the Colorado Trail.