National Forest·Idaho, Montana, Utah, Wyoming·2,626,553 acres
Caribou-Targhee National Forest
Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET
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.
When is peak fall foliage at Caribou-Targhee National Forest in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Caribou-Targhee National Forest around Oct 4, and the four days to aim for are Oct 3 to 6.
The forest runs from about 5,433 to 8,757 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 32 days: the high stands around Sep 18, the low ground around Oct 6. That's 3 days later than our model alone would say, because this September has been running warm.
| Week | In the forest | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 to Sep 6 | Still green | |
| Sep 7 to Sep 13 | Starting to turn | |
| Sep 14 to Sep 20 | Starting to turn | 8,000 to 9,000 ft |
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Nearly peak | 7,000 to 8,000 ft |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Peak color | 6,000 to 7,000 ft |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Peak color | 5,000 to 6,000 ft |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Just past peak |
- 8,000–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 1815%
- 7,000–8,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2434%
- 6,000–7,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 136%
- 5,000–6,000 ftLeaves downpeak Oct 69%
Height off 3DEP inside the forest’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the forest stands in it.
That’s 3 days later than our model alone would say. This September has been running warm, which shifts peak color.
Plan this tripIf you can only come on certain days
Set the days you can be here. Everything under them answers for those days, not for peak.
Saturday, October 3 to Sunday, October 4
You’ll find it fading up high, nearly peak lower down.
Up at 8,000 feet the stands peak around Sep 18; down at 6,000 feet they hold on until about Oct 6. Pick your elevation for the day you come.
- 8,000–9,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 18
- 7,000–8,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 24
- 6,000–7,000 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 1
- 5,000–6,000 ftNearly peakpeak Oct 6
- Where to drive
- Teton Scenic Byway (ID 31, 32 and 33), about 21 miles · Teton Park Road, about 44 miles · Logan Canyon (US 89), about 121 miles
- What turns
- quaking aspen, bigtooth maple, narrowleaf cottonwood, willow, Gambel oak
What turns, and when
- quaking aspen65%
- bigtooth maple12%
- narrowleaf cottonwood8%
- willow6%
- Gambel oak4%
- water birch3%
Also named across Idaho, outside what the canopy read measures here: Black Cottonwood, Western Larch, Rocky Mountain Maple.
Aspens turn gold on the mountainsides, cottonwoods line the river corridors in yellow, and western larches in the northern panhandle go deep amber before dropping their needles.
Questions people ask about Caribou-Targhee National Forest
- When is peak fall foliage at Caribou-Targhee National Forest?
Our forecast puts peak color at Caribou-Targhee National Forest around Oct 4, and the four days to aim for are Oct 3 to 6.
- Where is the best fall color at Caribou-Targhee National Forest right now?
On Nov 10 the forest is leaves down. The last band to peak was 5,000 to 6,000 feet, around Oct 6.
- How long does peak last at Caribou-Targhee National Forest?
About four days at the top, Oct 3 to 6, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the forest's elevations the color moves over about 32 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 36 days.
- Is Caribou-Targhee National Forest past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Oct 4, and on Nov 10 it's leaves down.
- What trees turn color at Caribou-Targhee National Forest?
Quaking Aspen, Black Cottonwood, Western Larch, Rocky Mountain Maple, Water Birch. Aspens turn gold on the mountainsides, cottonwoods line the river corridors in yellow, and western larches in the northern panhandle go deep amber before dropping their needles.
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
Jedediah Smith Wilderness and Grand Teton and Gros Ventre Wilderness are on the map above, with their own date.
- Peak Oct 2 best Oct 1 to 4
- Peak Oct 2 best Oct 1 to 4
- Peak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
Fall color roads near Caribou-Targhee National Forest
Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the forest, so allow more by road.
- Teton Scenic Byway (ID 31, 32 and 33)
Swan Valley to Ashton, aspen on the west side of the Tetons.
- Teton Park Road
The cottonwoods along the Snake River flats with the Tetons behind them. This is the most famous fall landscape in the American West.
- Logan Canyon (US 89)
Logan to Bear Lake, maple and aspen up the canyon.
- Chief Joseph Scenic Byway (WY 296)
Cody toward Cooke City, cottonwood in the Clarks Fork canyon and aspen on Dead Indian Hill.
- Beartooth Highway (US 212)
Red Lodge to Cooke City. The aspen are in Rock Creek canyon before the switchbacks; above them it is tundra.