National Recreation Area·Kentucky, Tennessee·171,281 acres
Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area
Forecast issued Nov 10, 7:57am ET
white oak and northern red oak
red maple and shagbark hickory, peak Oct 29
Peak color should arrive around Oct 29 for the red maple and shagbark hickory, and around Nov 7 for the white oak and northern red oak.
Roadsides and wetland edges turn first, and the woods behind them run a few days later.
Weather Hard frost Saturday night. Peak may come early and go fast.
No new reports from the ground here this week.
When is peak fall foliage at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area around Nov 4, and the four days to aim for are Nov 3 to 6. red maple and shagbark hickory peak later, around Oct 29.
That's 6 days later than our model alone would say, because this September has been running warm.
| Week | In the recreation area |
|---|---|
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Starting to turn |
| Oct 26 to Nov 1 | Nearly peak |
| Nov 2 to Nov 8 | Peak color |
| Nov 9 to Nov 15 this week | Just past peak |
That’s 6 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.
Tuesday, November 3 to Wednesday, November 4
You’ll find it peak color.
That's the day our forecast puts peak color here.
- What turns
- white oak, northern red oak, red maple, shagbark hickory
What turns, and when
- white oak34%
- northern red oak33%
- red maple17%
- shagbark hickory16%
Also named across Kentucky, outside what the canopy read measures here: Sugar Maple, Tulip Poplar, Sweetgum.
The Cumberland Plateau and Daniel Boone National Forest produce a warm palette of gold tulip poplars, bronze hickories, and deep red sugar maples against sandstone cliffs.
Across Kentucky as a whole: Mid-October in the eastern mountains, late October to early November in the Bluegrass.
Questions people ask about Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area
- When is peak fall foliage at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area?
Our forecast puts peak color at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area around Nov 4, and the four days to aim for are Nov 3 to 6. red maple and shagbark hickory peak later, around Oct 29.
- Where is the best fall color at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area right now?
On Nov 10 the recreation area is just past peak. Nearby, Holly Springs National Forest and William B. Bankhead National Forest are at peak.
- How long does peak last at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area?
About four days at the top, Nov 3 to 6, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive.
- Is Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Nov 4, and on Nov 10 it's just past peak.
- What trees turn color at Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area?
Sugar Maple, Tulip Poplar, Red Oak, Hickory, Sweetgum. The Cumberland Plateau and Daniel Boone National Forest produce a warm palette of gold tulip poplars, bronze hickories, and deep red sugar maples against sandstone cliffs.
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. We score it here against 7 long-running forest cameras: two dates in three land within 13 days of the camera’s own peak. How this map is made
Nearby, and when they turn
Shawnee is on the map above, with its own date.
- Peak Nov 1 best Oct 31 to Nov 3
- Peak Oct 29 best Oct 28 to 31
- Peak Nov 10 best Nov 9 to 12
- Peak Nov 8 best Nov 7 to 10
- Peak Nov 2 best Nov 1 to 4