Peak color lands around Oct 21 in most of Ohio, but it moves 11 days across the state. Here’s where, and when, and how sure we are.
Ohio fall foliage map for the week of Nov 9
When is peak fall foliage in Ohio in 2026?
Most of Ohio peaks between Oct 19 and Oct 24. The first county to peak is Richland County, around Oct 18, and the last is Butler County, around Oct 29.
Lake Erie does a lot of the work here. The Lake Erie shore itself turns a week or more after the woods inland at the same latitude, and the counties along it run a few days behind, because water that soaked up a summer of heat gives it back all fall and holds the first hard frosts off. Beyond the water, latitude carries it: color moves south at about two days per degree, so the north of the state turns a week or more ahead of the south. This fall is running 3 days late on September's temperatures, and the dates here already include it.
| Week | Where it peaks | Most of the state |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Richland County, Trumbull County | Nearly peak |
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Wayne National Forest, Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Ottawa National Wildlife Refuge and 83 counties | Peak color |
| Oct 26 to Nov 1 | Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge and 3 counties | Just past peak |
Each date is the middle of the four days we’d aim a trip at, and each place page names them. We score the model against 13 long-running forest monitoring sites in this part of the country and publish what it got wrong.
2 of 88 counties here are corrected by people who have actually looked at the trees this season. 18 reports from official state sources have moved those dates off the model and narrowed their windows. Counties with neither keep the model forecast and say so. Which is which is marked in the table below.
Mid-October in the northeast, late October in the Hocking Hills and southern Ohio is how Ohio is usually described.
Ohio’s season place by place
Every place we forecast in Ohio, each set on the calendar at its peak and painted by how far along it is today, Nov 10.
First: Cuyahoga Valley National Park, Oct 20. Last: Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge, Oct 26.
The dashed rule is today; the solid one is the median of the places on this chart, Oct 25. The date at the top of the page is the median county, which includes the low ground between them.
Where to go in Ohio
The destinations we cover in Ohio, in the order their color arrives. Each carries its own forecast and its own band, because a state isn’t one place.
- Past peakPeak Oct 20, oak Oct 26 best Oct 19 to 22
- Past peakPeak Oct 24 best Oct 23 to 26
- Ottawa National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 25 best Oct 24 to 27
- Hopewell Culture National Historical ParkPast peakPeak Oct 25 best Oct 24 to 27
- Cedar Point National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 26 best Oct 25 to 28
Questions people ask about Ohio fall foliage
- When is peak fall foliage in Ohio?
Most of Ohio peaks between Oct 19 and Oct 24. The first county to peak is Richland County, around Oct 18, and the last is Butler County, around Oct 29. This fall is running 3 days late on September's temperatures, and the dates here already include it.
- Where is the best fall foliage in Ohio right now?
Peak has passed in the places we cover in Ohio as of Nov 10. Cedar Point National Wildlife Refuge and four more was the last, around Oct 26. The live map still shows where russet and late gold are holding.
- How long does peak last in Ohio?
In any one place, about four days at the top, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across Ohio as a whole, peak moves 11 days from Richland County to Butler County, so there's peak color somewhere in the state for about 15 days.
- Is Ohio past peak?
Yes. As of Nov 10, every one of Ohio's 88 counties is past peak by our forecast. Butler County was the last, around Oct 29.
- How far along is Ohio's fall foliage today?
On Nov 10, no county in Ohio is at peak yet: 88 of Ohio's 88 counties (100 percent) are past peak. The county map above paints each one, and the live map lets you scrub the day.
- When do the leaves change in Ohio?
The first color shows in Richland County around Sep 27 and peaks there around Oct 18. Butler County is the last of Ohio's 88 counties, peaking around Oct 29. Most of the state turns through the weeks around Oct 21.
- What's the best time to visit Ohio for fall foliage?
The week of Oct 21 catches the most of the state at once, and the four days we'd aim at there are Oct 20 to 23. That's the leaf peeping window for Ohio as a whole. For Richland County and the counties around it, aim for the week of Oct 18; for Butler County and its neighbors, the week of Oct 29.
What actually turns
Hocking Hills' sandstone gorges frame sugar maples in vivid orange, red oaks turn deep burgundy across the unglaciated Appalachian Plateau, and beeches fade to bronze in the ravines.
- Sugar Maple
- Red Oak
- White Oak
- Hickory
- American Beech
Hocking Hills State Park is Ohio's fall destination, where sandstone caves and waterfalls are framed by maples and hemlocks in the third and fourth weeks of October.
Worth the drive
Hocking County in southeastern Ohio contains the Hocking Hills, a landscape of sandstone gorges, waterfalls, and hemlock-shaded ravines that produces the most dramatic fall color in the state. Old Man's Cave, Ash Cave, and Cedar Falls are the iconic spots, and the combination of rock, water, and color in a compressed space makes this area photograph far above its weight class.
Every county by peak week
Allen, Ashland, Ashtabula, Auglaize, Carroll, Champaign, Columbiana, Coshocton, Crawford, Delaware, Fulton, Geauga, Hancock, Hardin, Harrison, Henry, Holmes, Huron, Knox, Licking, Logan, Mahoning, Marion, Medina, Morrow, Paulding, Portage, Putnam, Richland, Seneca, Shelby, Stark, Summit, Trumbull regional, Tuscarawas, Van Wert, Wayne, Williams, Wood, Wyandot
Adams, Athens, Belmont regional, Brown, Clark, Clermont regional, Clinton regional, Cuyahoga, Darke, Defiance, Erie, Fairfield, Fayette, Franklin observed, Gallia, Greene regional, Guernsey, Hamilton regional, Highland, Hocking, Jackson, Jefferson regional, Lake, Lawrence, Lorain, Lucas, Madison, Meigs, Mercer, Miami, Monroe, Montgomery regional, Morgan, Muskingum, Noble, Ottawa, Perry, Pickaway, Pike, Preble, Ross, Sandusky, Scioto, Union, Vinton, Warren regional, Washington
Butler corrected
Every date on this site is a forecast: a model corrected by ground reports, carrying a measured error, published in full. Check conditions with the land manager before you travel. Last reviewed September 2026. Open the live map
See it on the map
The live map covers every county in the country, with a timeline you can scrub through the season, the nearest forest monitoring camera, and the long-term record where we hold one. If you’re going this weekend, the weekend report names where color is at peak right now, region by region.
Before you drive, it’s worth checking fire and smoke conditions for the same forests. A perfect color week is no good under a smoke plume.