Higher ground turns first, so the slopes above the road lead the valley by a few days.
Weather Hard frost Tuesday night. Peak may come early and go fast.
No new reports from the ground here this week.
When is peak fall foliage at Crater Lake National Park in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Crater Lake National Park around Oct 7, and the four days to aim for are Oct 6 to 9.
The park runs from about 4,826 to 7,000 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 20 days: the high stands around Sep 24, the low ground around Oct 11.
| Week | In the park | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 7 to Sep 13 | Still green | |
| Sep 14 to Sep 20 | Starting to turn | |
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Starting to turn | 7,000 to 7,500 ft |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Nearly peak | 6,000 to 6,500 ft, 6,500 to 7,000 ft |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Peak color | 4,500 to 5,000 ft, 5,000 to 5,500 ft, 5,500 to 6,000 ft |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 this week | Just past peak | |
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Just past peak |
- 7,000–7,500 ftFadingpeak Sep 245%
- 6,500–7,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 2911%
- 6,000–6,500 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 232%
- 5,500–6,000 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 529%
- 5,000–5,500 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 817%
- 4,500–5,000 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 114%
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.
The place
Mount Mazama blew itself apart 7,700 years ago, and the caldera filled with snowmelt to 1,943 feet deep. No rivers in, no rivers out, just rain and snow. That is why the water is that color. You have seen the photos and assumed they were edited. They were not. Crater Lake is the bluest thing you will ever stand next to, and it is not even close.
Established 1902. About 704K/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.
Tuesday, October 6 to Wednesday, October 7
You’ll find it just past peak up high, peak color lower down.
Up at 6,500 feet the stands peak around Sep 29; down at 5,500 feet they hold on until about Oct 8. Pick your elevation for the day you come.
- 6,500–7,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 29
- 6,000–6,500 ftJust past peakpeak Oct 2
- 5,500–6,000 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 5
- 5,000–5,500 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 8
- Where to drive
- McKenzie Pass Scenic Byway (Route 242), about 93 miles
- What turns
- bigleaf maple, vine maple, black cottonwood, red alder, willow
- Entrance
- $30
What turns, and when
- bigleaf maple29%
- vine maple24%
- black cottonwood20%
- red alder17%
- willow6%
- red-osier dogwood3%
Also named across Oregon, outside what the canopy read measures here: Western Larch.
Vine maples turn vivid scarlet in the understory of Douglas fir forests, bigleaf maples go gold with enormous leaves, and the Columbia Gorge frames it all against waterfalls and basalt.
Questions people ask about Crater Lake National Park
- When is peak fall foliage at Crater Lake National Park?
Our forecast puts peak color at Crater Lake National Park around Oct 7, and the four days to aim for are Oct 6 to 9.
- Where is the best fall color at Crater Lake National Park right now?
On Oct 13 the park is just past peak. By elevation, the color is at peak at 4,500 to 5,000 feet.
- How long does peak last at Crater Lake National Park?
About four days at the top, Oct 6 to 9, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the park's elevations the color moves over about 20 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 24 days.
- Is Crater Lake National Park past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Oct 7, and on Oct 13 it's just past peak.
- What trees turn color at Crater Lake National Park?
Vine Maple, Bigleaf Maple, Black Cottonwood, Red Alder, Western Larch. Vine maples turn vivid scarlet in the understory of Douglas fir forests, bigleaf maples go gold with enormous leaves, and the Columbia Gorge frames it all against waterfalls and basalt.
- Is there an entrance fee at Crater Lake National Park?
Entrance fee $30.
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