bigleaf maple and black cottonwood
vine maple and western larch, peak Oct 7
Peak color should arrive around Sep 27 for the bigleaf maple and black cottonwood, and around Oct 7 for the vine maple and western larch.
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.
1 report came in from Chelan County this week, 1 of them at peak. Our date held. See the county on the map.
When is peak fall foliage at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest in 2026?
Our forecast puts peak color at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest around Oct 1, and the four days to aim for are Sep 30 to Oct 3. vine maple and western larch peak later, around Oct 7.
The forest runs from about 2,053 to 6,621 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 13 days: the high stands around Sep 5, the low ground around Sep 18. That's 9 days earlier than our model alone would say, because this season's reports from the ground moved it.
| Week | In the forest | Elevation at peak |
|---|---|---|
| Aug 17 to Aug 23 | Still green | |
| Aug 24 to Aug 30 | Still green | |
| Aug 31 to Sep 6 | Still green | 6,000 to 7,000 ft |
| Sep 7 to Sep 13 | Starting to turn | 5,000 to 6,000 ft |
| Sep 14 to Sep 20 | Starting to turn | 1,000 to 2,000 ft, 4,000 to 5,000 ft |
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Nearly peak | 3,000 to 4,000 ft |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Peak color | 2,000 to 3,000 ft |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Just past peak |
- 6,000–7,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 515%
- 5,000–6,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 1322%
- 4,000–5,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 1923%
- 3,000–4,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 2620%
- 2,000–3,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 2815%
- 1,000–2,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 184%
Height off 3DEP inside the forest’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the forest stands in it.
That’s 9 days earlier than our model alone would say. This season’s reports from the ground moved it, and they outrank us.
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.
Wednesday, September 30 to Thursday, October 1
You’ll find it leaves down up high, just past peak lower down.
Up at 6,000 feet the stands peak around Sep 5; down at 3,000 feet they hold on until about Sep 28. Pick your elevation for the day you come.
- 6,000–7,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 5
- 5,000–6,000 ftFadingpeak Sep 13
- 4,000–5,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 19
- 3,000–4,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 26
- 2,000–3,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 28
- Where to drive
- Mountain Loop Highway, about 53 miles · Sherman Pass Scenic Byway (Route 20), about 97 miles
- What turns
- bigleaf maple, vine maple, black cottonwood, red alder, western larch
What turns, and when
- bigleaf maple24%
- vine maple23%
- black cottonwood14%
- red alder13%
- western larch12%
- willow7%
Vine maples turn scarlet in the Cascade understory, bigleaf maples go gold in the lowlands, and the western larches in the Okanogan and Wenatchee forests turn amber on the high slopes.
Questions people ask about Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest
- When is peak fall foliage at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest?
Our forecast puts peak color at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest around Oct 1, and the four days to aim for are Sep 30 to Oct 3. vine maple and western larch peak later, around Oct 7.
- Where is the best fall color at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest right now?
On Oct 13 the forest is just past peak. The last band to peak was 2,000 to 3,000 feet, around Sep 28.
- How long does peak last at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest?
About four days at the top, Sep 30 to Oct 3, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across the forest's elevations the color moves over about 13 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 17 days.
- Is Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest past peak?
Yes. Peak was around Oct 1, and on Oct 13 it's just past peak.
- What trees turn color at Okanogan-Wenatchee National Forest?
Vine Maple, Bigleaf Maple, Black Cottonwood, Red Alder, Western Larch. Vine maples turn scarlet in the Cascade understory, bigleaf maples go gold in the lowlands, and the western larches in the Okanogan and Wenatchee forests turn amber on the high slopes.
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