Where is the best fall color at Spanish Peaks Wilderness right now?

On Nov 10 the wilderness is leaves down. The last band to peak was 8,000 to 9,000 feet, around Oct 9.

How long does peak last at Spanish Peaks Wilderness?

About four days at the top, Oct 11 to 14, 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 Spanish Peaks Wilderness past peak?

Yes. Peak was around Oct 12, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.

Back to the map

Wilderness Area·Colorado·19,353 acres

Spanish Peaks Wilderness

Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET

Peak colorOct 12Aim for Oct 11 to 14

In the wilderness today, Nov 10Leaves down

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.

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

Around Spanish Peaks Wilderness Huerfano County holds most of the wilderness and is leaves down today. Las Animas County, to the east, is 2 days behind.

When is peak fall foliage at Spanish Peaks Wilderness in 2026?

Our forecast puts peak color at Spanish Peaks Wilderness around Oct 12, and the four days to aim for are Oct 11 to 14.

The wilderness runs from about 8,860 to 12,034 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 9 days: the high stands around Sep 30, the low ground around Oct 9. That's 7 days later than our model alone would say, because this season's reports from the ground moved it.

Spanish Peaks Wilderness, fall color week by week, 2026
Week	In the wilderness	Elevation at peak
Sep 14 to Sep 20	Still green
Sep 21 to Sep 27	Starting to turn
Sep 28 to Oct 4	Nearly peak	9,000 to 10,000 ft, 10,000 to 11,000 ft, 11,000 to 12,000 ft, 12,000 to 13,000 ft
Oct 5 to Oct 11	Peak color	8,000 to 9,000 ft
Oct 12 to Oct 18	Peak color
Oct 19 to Oct 25	Just past peak

By elevation The wilderness runs from about 8,860 to 12,034 feet. That’s 9 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Sep 30, the low ground holds until about Oct 9, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 8,000 to 9,000 foot band.

12,000–13,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 305%
11,000–12,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2816%
10,000–11,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2835%
9,000–10,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 435%
8,000–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 98%

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.

That’s 7 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

Sunday, October 11 to Monday, October 12

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

Up at 11,000 feet the stands peak around Sep 28; down at 10,000 feet they hold on until about Oct 4. Pick your elevation for the day you come.

11,000–12,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 28
10,000–11,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 28
9,000–10,000 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 4

Where to drive: Highway of Legends (CO 12), about 6 miles · Enchanted Circle (NM 38, 522 and 64), about 60 miles · Cumbres and La Manga passes (CO 17), about 85 miles
What turns: quaking aspen, Gambel oak, bigtooth maple, serviceberry

What turns, and when

quaking aspen86%
Gambel oak8%
bigtooth maple3%
serviceberry3%

Also named across Colorado, outside what the canopy read measures here: Narrowleaf Cottonwood, 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 Spanish Peaks Wilderness

When is peak fall foliage at Spanish Peaks Wilderness?: Our forecast puts peak color at Spanish Peaks Wilderness around Oct 12, and the four days to aim for are Oct 11 to 14.
Where is the best fall color at Spanish Peaks Wilderness right now?: On Nov 10 the wilderness is leaves down. The last band to peak was 8,000 to 9,000 feet, around Oct 9.
How long does peak last at Spanish Peaks Wilderness?: About four days at the top, Oct 11 to 14, 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 Spanish Peaks Wilderness past peak?: Yes. Peak was around Oct 12, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.
What trees turn color at Spanish Peaks Wilderness?: 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.

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

Great Sand Dunes and Carson are on the map above, with their own date.

Latir Peak WildernessNM · about 51 miles
Peak Oct 7 best Oct 6 to 9
Columbine-Hondo WildernessNM · about 60 miles
Peak Oct 12 best Oct 11 to 14
Wheeler Peak WildernessNM · about 62 miles
Peak Oct 6 best Oct 5 to 8
Cruces Basin WildernessNM · about 79 miles
Peak Oct 4 best Oct 3 to 6

Fall color roads near Spanish Peaks Wilderness

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

Highway of Legends (CO 12) · about 6 miles, CO · 82 miles of road
Trinidad to La Veta around the Spanish Peaks, aspen up high and Gambel oak below.
Enchanted Circle (NM 38, 522 and 64) · about 60 miles, NM · 84 miles of road
Taos, Questa, Red River, Eagle Nest and Angel Fire, aspen on the Sangre de Cristo the whole loop.
Cumbres and La Manga passes (CO 17) · about 85 miles, CO · 50 miles of road
Antonito to Chama through the Conejos aspen, with the narrow-gauge train doing the same route.
Wolf Creek Pass (US 160) · about 100 miles, CO · 38 miles of road
South Fork to Pagosa Springs, aspen on the west side of the pass.
High Road to Taos · about 105 miles, NM · 56 miles of road
Cottonwood in the villages, aspen above Truchas.
Alpine Loop (NM 475) · about 122 miles, NM · 15 miles of road
Climbs from Santa Fe to the Ski Basin through the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. One of the most accessible aspen drives in the Southwest.