Photograph: More Than Just Parks
Peak color lands around Oct 11 in most of South Dakota, but it moves 22 days across the state. Here’s where, and when, and how sure we are.
South Dakota fall color map for the week of Nov 9
When is peak fall color in South Dakota in 2026?
Most of South Dakota peaks between Oct 8 and Oct 19. The first county to peak is Corson County, around Oct 6, and the last is Fall River County, around Oct 28.
Elevation does most of the work here. Color runs down a mountain at roughly a day per 100 meters, so a ridge and the valley below it can be a week or two apart in the same county. This fall is running 4 days late on September's temperatures, and the dates here already include it.
| Week | Where it peaks | Most of the state |
|---|---|---|
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Fort Pierre National Grassland, Sand Lake National Wildlife Refuge, Lacreek National Wildlife Refuge and 35 counties | Peak color |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Black Hills National Forest, Grand River National Grassland, Black Elk Wilderness and 23 counties | Peak color |
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Buffalo Gap National Grassland, Badlands National Park, Wind Cave National Park and 7 counties | Just past peak |
| Oct 26 to Nov 1 | Fall River County | Fading |
Each date is the middle of the four days we’d aim a trip at, and each place page names them. We publish what the model got wrong, region by region.
5 of 66 counties here are corrected by people who have actually looked at the trees this season. 30 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.
Late September to mid-October in the Black Hills, mid-October in the Missouri River valley is how South Dakota is usually described.
South Dakota’s season place by place
Every place we forecast in South Dakota, each set on the calendar at its peak and painted by how far along it is today, Nov 10.
First: Custer National Forest, Sep 27. Last: Wind Cave National Park, Oct 23.
The dashed rule is today; the solid one is the median of the places on this chart, Oct 14. The date at the top of the page is the median county, which includes the low ground between them.
Where to go in South Dakota
The destinations we cover in South Dakota, in the order their color arrives. Each carries its own forecast and its own band, because a state isn’t one place.
- Past peakPeak Sep 27 best Sep 26 to 29
- Waubay National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 7 best Oct 6 to 9
- Sand Lake National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 8 best Oct 7 to 10
- Fort Pierre National GrasslandPast peakPeak Oct 11 best Oct 10 to 13
- Lacreek National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 11 best Oct 10 to 13
- Grand River National GrasslandPast peakPeak Oct 12 best Oct 11 to 14
- Beadle County Waterfowl Production AreaPast peakPeak Oct 13 best Oct 12 to 15
- Past peakPeak Oct 14 best Oct 13 to 16
- Jewel Cave National MonumentPast peakPeak Oct 14 best Oct 13 to 16
- Lake Andes National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 14 best Oct 13 to 16
- Karl E. Mundt National Wildlife RefugePast peakPeak Oct 15 best Oct 14 to 17
- Black Elk WildernessPast peakPeak Oct 18 best Oct 17 to 20
- Buffalo Gap National GrasslandPast peakPeak Oct 20 best Oct 19 to 22
- Past peakPeak Oct 20 best Oct 19 to 22
- Mount Rushmore National MemorialPast peakPeak Oct 21 best Oct 20 to 23
- Past peakPeak Oct 23 best Oct 22 to 25
Questions people ask about South Dakota fall colors
- When is peak fall color in South Dakota?
Most of South Dakota peaks between Oct 8 and Oct 19. The first county to peak is Corson County, around Oct 6, and the last is Fall River County, around Oct 28. This fall is running 4 days late on September's temperatures, and the dates here already include it.
- Where is the best fall color in South Dakota right now?
Peak has passed in the places we cover in South Dakota as of Nov 10. Wind Cave National Park and 15 more was the last, around Oct 23. The live map still shows where russet and late gold are holding.
- How long does peak last in South Dakota?
In any one place, about four days at the top, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across South Dakota as a whole, peak moves 22 days from Corson County to Fall River County, so there's peak color somewhere in the state for about 26 days.
- Is South Dakota past peak?
Yes. As of Nov 10, every one of South Dakota's 66 counties is past peak by our forecast. Fall River County was the last, around Oct 28.
- How far along is South Dakota's fall color today?
On Nov 10, no county in South Dakota is at peak yet: 66 of South Dakota's 66 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 South Dakota?
The first color shows in Corson County around Sep 15 and peaks there around Oct 6. Fall River County is the last of South Dakota's 66 counties, peaking around Oct 28. Most of the state turns through the weeks around Oct 11.
- What's the best time to visit South Dakota for fall colors?
The week of Oct 11 catches the most of the state at once, and the four days we'd aim at there are Oct 10 to 13. That's the leaf peeping window for South Dakota as a whole. For Corson County and the counties around it, aim for the week of Oct 6; for Fall River County and its neighbors, the week of Oct 28.
What actually turns
The Black Hills produce a colorful mix of aspen gold and birch yellow against the dark green of ponderosa pine, while Spearfish Canyon stages the most dramatic display.
- Quaking Aspen
- Bur Oak
- Cottonwood
- Paper Birch
- Green Ash
Spearfish Canyon Scenic Byway (Route 14A) is one of the most underrated fall drives in America, with limestone walls framed by birch, aspen, and oak color.
Every county by peak week
Campbell, Corson
Aurora, Beadle observed, Bennett, Brookings regional, Brown, Brule, Buffalo, Clark, Codington, Davison, Day, Deuel, Dewey, Douglas, Edmunds, Faulk, Grant, Gregory, Haakon, Hamlin, Hand, Hughes, Hyde, Jackson, Jerauld, Jones, Kingsbury, Lake regional, Lyman, Marshall, McPherson, Mellette, Miner regional, Potter, Roberts, Sanborn regional, Spink, Stanley, Sully, Todd, Tripp, Walworth, Ziebach
Bon Homme, Charles Mix, Clay regional, Custer, Hanson regional, Harding, Hutchinson, Lawrence corrected, McCook regional, Meade regional, Moody regional, Oglala Lakota, Perkins, Turner regional, Union regional, Yankton regional
Butte, Lincoln observed, Minnehaha observed, Pennington observed
Fall River
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.