Peak color lands around Sep 29 in most of Wyoming, but it moves 30 days across the state. Here’s where, and when, and how sure we are.
Wyoming fall foliage map, week of Nov 2
When is peak fall foliage in Wyoming in 2026?
Most of Wyoming peaks between Sep 24 and Oct 17: the high country first, around Sep 25, and the low ground last, around Oct 17. The first county to peak is Sublette County, around Sep 23, and the last is Goshen County, around Oct 23.
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 |
|---|---|---|
| Sep 21 to Sep 27 | Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest, Shoshone National Forest, Yellowstone National Park and 11 counties | Nearly peak |
| Sep 28 to Oct 4 | Caribou-Targhee National Forest, Medicine Bow-Routt National Forest, Ashley National Forest and 4 counties | Peak color |
| Oct 5 to Oct 11 | Flaming Gorge National Recreation Area, Flaming Gorge Reservoir National Recreation Area, Seedskadee National Wildlife Refuge and 2 counties | Just past peak |
| Oct 12 to Oct 18 | Black Hills National Forest, Thunder Basin National Grassland, Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area and 5 counties | Fading |
| Oct 19 to Oct 25 | Devils Tower National Monument, Fort Laramie National Historic Site and 1 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.
2 of 23 counties here are corrected by people who have actually looked at the trees this season. 4 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 for aspens at elevation, early-to-mid October in the valleys is how Wyoming is usually described.
Wyoming’s season, place by place
The 24 places closest to their peak in Wyoming, each set on the calendar at its peak and painted by how far along it is today, Nov 7.
First: Cloud Peak Wilderness, Sep 11. Last: Grand Targhee Ski Area, Sep 30.
The dashed rule is today; the solid one is the median of the places on this chart, Sep 25. The date at the top of the page is the median county, which includes the low ground between them.
Where to go in Wyoming
The destinations we cover in Wyoming, in the order their color arrives. Each carries its own forecast and its own band, because a state isn’t one place.
- Cloud Peak WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 11 best Sep 10 to 13
- Past peakPeak Sep 12 best Sep 11 to 14
- Popo Agie WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 12 best Sep 11 to 14
- Teton WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 15 best Sep 14 to 17
- Past peakPeak Sep 15 best Sep 14 to 17
- Absaroka-Beartooth WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 17 best Sep 16 to 19
- Bridger WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 17 best Sep 16 to 19
- Washakie WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 18 best Sep 17 to 20
- Fitzpatrick WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 18 best Sep 17 to 20
- Past peakPeak Sep 19 best Sep 18 to 21
- Past peakPeak Sep 23 best Sep 22 to 25
- White Pine Ski AreaPast peakPeak Sep 24 best Sep 23 to 26
- Past peakPeak Sep 25 best Sep 24 to 27
- Past peakPeak Sep 26 best Sep 25 to 28
- Past peakPeak Sep 26 best Sep 25 to 28
- Past peakPeak Sep 27 best Sep 26 to 29
- Huston Park WildernessPast peakPeak Sep 27 best Sep 26 to 29
- Swamp Lake Botanical AreaPast peakPeak Sep 27 best Sep 26 to 29
- Past peakPeak Sep 29 best Sep 28 to Oct 1
- Past peakPeak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
- Past peakPeak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
- Past peakPeak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
- Past peakPeak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
- Grand Targhee Ski AreaPast peakPeak Sep 30 best Sep 29 to Oct 2
Also forecast in WyomingBighorn Canyon National Recreation AreaBlack Hills National ForestCaribou-Targhee National ForestFlaming Gorge National Recreation AreaMedicine Bow-Routt National ForestNational Elk RefugePlatte River WildernessWinegar Hole Wilderness
Questions people ask about Wyoming fall foliage
- When is peak fall foliage in Wyoming?
Most of Wyoming peaks between Sep 24 and Oct 17: the high country first, around Sep 25, and the low ground last, around Oct 17. The first county to peak is Sublette County, around Sep 23, and the last is Goshen County, around Oct 23. This fall is running 4 days late on September's temperatures, and the dates here already include it.
- Where is the best fall foliage in Wyoming right now?
Peak has passed in the places we cover in Wyoming as of Nov 7. Ashley National Forest and 23 more was the last, around Sep 30. The live map still shows where russet and late gold are holding.
- How long does peak last in Wyoming?
In any one place, about four days at the top, with a week or so either side that's still worth the drive. Across Wyoming as a whole, peak moves 30 days from Sublette County to Goshen County, so there's peak color somewhere in the state for about 34 days.
- Is Wyoming past peak?
Yes. As of Nov 7, every one of Wyoming's 23 counties is past peak by our forecast. Goshen County was the last, around Oct 23.
- How far along is Wyoming's fall foliage today?
On Nov 7, no county in Wyoming is at peak yet: 23 of Wyoming's 23 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 Wyoming?
The first color shows in Sublette County around Sep 2 and peaks there around Sep 23. Goshen County is the last of Wyoming's 23 counties, peaking around Oct 23. Most of the state turns through the weeks around Sep 29.
- What's the best time to visit Wyoming for fall foliage?
The week of Sep 29 catches the most of the state at once, and the four days we'd aim at there are Sep 28 to Oct 1. That's the leaf peeping window for Wyoming as a whole. For Sublette County and the counties around it, aim for the week of Sep 23; for Goshen County and its neighbors, the week of Oct 23.
What actually turns
The Tetons rising above the golden cottonwoods of the Snake River flats is one of the most famous fall landscapes in the American West, and the aspen groves at elevation add hillsides of gold.
- Quaking Aspen
- Narrowleaf Cottonwood
- Rocky Mountain Maple
- Water Birch
- Willow
The Snake River Overlook in Grand Teton National Park, where Ansel Adams made his famous photograph, is even more spectacular in early October when the cottonwoods turn gold.
Worth the drive
Teton County, Wyoming, is home to Grand Teton National Park and the most famous fall landscape in the American West. The Snake River flats lined with narrowleaf cottonwoods, the aspen groves on the lower slopes, and the Teton Range itself rising 7,000 feet straight up from the valley floor create a scene of breathtaking scale. Early October is the window.
Every county, by peak week
Albany, Big Horn, Carbon, Converse, Fremont, Hot Springs, Johnson, Lincoln, Natrona, Park observed, Sublette, Sweetwater, Teton observed, Uinta
Sheridan, Washakie
Laramie
Campbell, Crook regional, Niobrara, Platte, Weston
Goshen
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