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Forecast issued Nov 9, 7:48am ET

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Wilderness Area·Colorado, Wyoming·23,300 acres

Platte River Wilderness

Forecast issued Nov 9, 7:48am ET

Peak colorOct 1Aim for Sep 30 to Oct 3
In the wilderness today, Nov 9Leaves down
SepOctNov

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.

Weather Wind to 35 mph Tuesday. Color may come down before it turns.

No new reports from the ground here this week.

I-80US 30SaratogaLaramieSavage Run Wildernesspeak Sep 29Medicine Bow-Routtpeak Oct 1Snowy Range Recreation Areapeak Sep 15Rawah Wildernesspeak Oct 1Comanche Peak Wildernesspeak Oct 1Platte River Wilderness
I-80SaratogaSavage Run Wildernesspeak Sep 29Medicine Bow-Routtpeak Oct 1Snowy Range Recreation Areapeak Sep 15Rawah Wildernesspeak Oct 1Platte River Wilderness
Still greenStartingNearly peakPeakPast peakNo fall canopy we forecastInside the line, each band of elevation is painted on its own date.
Around Platte River Wilderness Nearly all of the wilderness is in Carbon County, which is leaves down today. Jackson County, to the south, is 1 day behind. Albany County, to the northeast, is 2 days ahead.
Platte River Wilderness fall foliage map 2026: the place and the counties around it painted by how far along their color is on Nov 9. Peak forecast around Oct 1, best Sep 30 to Oct 3.
Save or share this mapToday’s Platte River Wilderness fall foliage map as a picture, redrawn every morning. Free to reuse with credit to More Than Just Parks and a link back; the terms.Save the mapPin itFacebookXEmail

When is peak fall foliage at Platte River Wilderness in 2026?

Our forecast puts peak color at Platte River Wilderness around Oct 1, and the four days to aim for are Sep 30 to Oct 3.

The wilderness runs from about 7,702 to 9,050 feet, and the color comes downhill over about 8 days: the high stands around Sep 22, the low ground around Sep 30. That's 4 days later than our model alone would say, because this September has been running warm.

Platte River Wilderness, fall color week by week, 2026
WeekIn the wildernessElevation at peak
Sep 7 to Sep 13Starting to turn
Sep 14 to Sep 20Starting to turn
Sep 21 to Sep 27Nearly peak8,500 to 9,000 ft, 9,000 to 9,500 ft
Sep 28 to Oct 4Peak color7,500 to 8,000 ft, 8,000 to 8,500 ft
Oct 5 to Oct 11Just past peak
By elevation The wilderness runs from about 7,702 to 9,050 feet. That’s 8 days of season between the top and the bottom: the high stands peak around Sep 22, the low ground holds until about Sep 30, and the color comes downhill in between. The date at the top of this page is the 7,500 to 8,000 foot band.
  1. 9,000–9,500 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 227%
  2. 8,500–9,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2535%
  3. 8,000–8,500 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 2839%
  4. 7,500–8,000 ftLeaves downpeak Sep 3019%

Height off 3DEP inside the wilderness’s own boundary; each band carries the date our model gives that elevation, corrections and all. The percentage is how much of the wilderness stands in it.

Today from the glees camera, 5 km from Platte River Wilderness
See it now PhenoCam Network, Glacier Lakes Ecosystem Experiments Site camera, 5 km away, captured Nov 8.

That’s 4 days later than our model alone would say. This September has been running warm, which shifts peak color.

Plan this trip

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.

Wednesday, September 30 to Thursday, October 1

You’ll find it just past peak up high, peak color lower down.

Up at 8,500 feet the stands peak around Sep 25; down at 8,000 feet they hold on until about Sep 30. Pick your elevation for the day you come.

  • 8,500–9,000 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 25
  • 8,000–8,500 ftJust past peakpeak Sep 28
  • 7,500–8,000 ftPeak colorpeak Sep 30
Where to drive
Snowy Range Scenic Byway (WY 130), about 19 miles · Cache la Poudre Canyon (CO 14), about 49 miles · Trail Ridge Road (US 34), about 56 miles
What turns
quaking aspen, Gambel oak, bigtooth maple, serviceberry, narrowleaf cottonwood

What turns, and when

Also named across Wyoming, outside what the canopy read measures here: Rocky Mountain Maple, Water Birch.

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.

Questions people ask about Platte River Wilderness

When is peak fall foliage at Platte River Wilderness?

Our forecast puts peak color at Platte River Wilderness around Oct 1, and the four days to aim for are Sep 30 to Oct 3.

Where is the best fall color at Platte River Wilderness right now?

On Nov 9 the wilderness is leaves down. The last band to peak was 7,500 to 8,000 feet, around Sep 30.

How long does peak last at Platte River Wilderness?

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 wilderness's elevations the color moves over about 8 days, so there's peak color somewhere in it for roughly 12 days.

Is Platte River Wilderness past peak?

Yes. Peak was around Oct 1, and on Nov 9 it's leaves down.

What trees turn color at Platte River Wilderness?

Quaking Aspen, Narrowleaf Cottonwood, Rocky Mountain Maple, Water Birch, Willow. 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.

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

All of Wyoming

Nearby, and when they turn

Rawah Wilderness and Comanche Peak Wilderness are on the map above, with their own date.

  1. Never Summer WildernessCO · about 54 miles
    Peak Sep 21 best Sep 20 to 23
  2. Rocky Mountain National ParkCO · about 62 miles
    Peak Oct 2 best Oct 1 to 4
  3. Arapaho and Roosevelt National ForestsCO · about 63 miles
    Peak Oct 5 best Oct 4 to 7
  4. Arapaho National Recreation AreaCO · about 73 miles
    Peak Oct 6 best Oct 5 to 8

Fall color roads near Platte River Wilderness

Nearest first. Distances are straight-line from the wilderness, so allow more by road.

  • Snowy Range Scenic Byway (WY 130) · about 19 miles, WY · 29 miles of road

    Centennial to Saratoga through the Medicine Bow aspen.

  • Cache la Poudre Canyon (CO 14) · about 49 miles, CO · 60 miles of road

    Cottonwood and then aspen up the Poudre from Fort Collins toward Cameron Pass.

  • Trail Ridge Road (US 34) · about 56 miles, CO · 48 miles of road

    Rocky Mountain National Park's road over the top. The aspen are in the first miles on both sides, Hidden Valley and Horseshoe Park on the east, the Kawuneeche Valley on the west, before the road climbs above the trees.

  • Bear Lake Road · about 66 miles, CO · 9 miles of road

    Bierstadt Moraine and the aspen below Bear Lake, the densest gold in the park. Timed entry runs through mid-October.

  • Peak to Peak Scenic Byway (CO 7, 72 and 119) · about 82 miles, CO · 55 miles of road

    Estes Park to Black Hawk along the Front Range, aspen most of the way and thickest around Allenspark and Nederland.

  • Guanella Pass · about 108 miles, CO · 22 miles of road

    Georgetown to Grant. The aspen on the Georgetown side are some of the closest big groves to Denver.