National Recreation Area·New Jersey, Pennsylvania·58,143 acres
Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area
Forecast issued 25 Sep, 5:21pm ET
Peak color18 OctAim for 17 to 20 Oct
In the recreation area today, Sep 25Still green
Roadsides and wetland edges turn first, and the woods behind them run a few days later.
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 Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area Sussex County holds most of the recreation area and is still green today. Pike County, to the north, is 3 days ahead. Monroe County, to the west, is 1 day ahead.By elevation The recreation area runs from about 371 to 1,351 feet. That’s 3 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Oct 16, the low ground holds until about Oct 19, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 750 to 1,000 foot band.
1,250–1,500 ftStarting to turnpeak Oct 1610%
1,000–1,250 ftStill greenpeak Oct 1717%
750–1,000 ftStill greenpeak Oct 1835%
500–750 ftStill greenpeak Oct 1923%
250–500 ftStill greenpeak Oct 1915%
SepOctNov
Height off 3DEP inside the recreation area’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the recreation area stands in it.
That’s 1 day later than our model alone would say. This September has been running warm, which shifts peak color.
The place
Situated within the most densely populated region of the United States, Delaware Water Gap National Recreation Area provides a unique opportunity to experience tranquil landscapes, rich human history, and striking scenery along 40 miles of the longest free-flowing river east of the Mississippi. The park offers year-round recreation including hiking, paddling, fishing, and hunting.
Set the days you can be here. Everything under them answers for those days, not for peak.
Saturday 17 October to Sunday 18 October
You’ll find it peak color.
That's the day our forecast puts peak color here.
1,250–1,500 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 16
1,000–1,250 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 17
750–1,000 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 18
500–750 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 19
250–500 ftPeak colorpeak Oct 19
Where to drive
Route 97 (Hawk's Nest), about 20 miles · Palisades Interstate Parkway, about 52 miles · Route 28 through the Catskills, about 71 miles
What turns
northern red oak, red maple, white oak, shagbark hickory, sugar maple
What turns, and when
northern red oak26%
red maple23%
white oak20%
shagbark hickory13%
sugar maple7%
blackgum4%
Also named across Pennsylvania, outside what the canopy read measures here: American Beech.
Pennsylvania's vast forests turn every shade from scarlet maple to burgundy oak to bronze beech, and the Allegheny Plateau produces color that rivals the best of New England across a much larger canvas.
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 27 long-running forest cameras: two dates in three land within 10 days of the camera’s own peak. How this map is made
