Best time for New England

[bukhrn]

OK, before I get told by some of you to do a search, I have, I've never found the answer I was looking for by doing a search on here.
Now, what is the best time to leaf peep in VT,NH & Maine, August or Sept.?

[Redsky]

It will be a guessing game as the weather is changing in case you have not noticed. The changes in the leaves depends on the temperatures and at a certain point a storm can blow through and remove all the leaves from the trees overnight.

In colder pockets like the valleys of the western part of CT the leaves will turn sooner than in warmer areas so if you are flexible you can go to where the leaves are the color you want.

[spadoctor]

I would say 3rd week of September to 2nd of October BUT as stated here in the NE most campgrounds close after Columbus day weekend.

[Clay_L]

Note that in NH almost all campgrounds close on Oct 1 or Oct 15.

[gregrc75]

This may be helpful

[ryegatevt]

Late September and the first two weeks of October, going form north to south. Here is the Vermont Foliage Link: Leaf Peepers Link and in season look here: More Peeping!

[We_Cant_Wait]

A lot of NE towns will have their Fall foliage festivals over the Columbus 3 day weekend. Bear in mind if you chose this weekend so will A LOT of other people so you'll need to make your reservation almost as far in advance ad you would for a major holiday weekend. Some places will also have a minimum night stay requirement too.

[lakeside013104]

1st or 2nd week of October.

Lakeside

[Crowe]

There will be virtually no color change in August, so end of September at the earliest, October is usually best. What triggers the change is the shorter days. Color is dependent on multiple factors such as amount of rain and temperature. As others have stated the different state's foliage websites start tracking mid-to-late September throughout the season. Last year the colors were best I can remember and were late in turning.

[Padlin]

October

[Two_Hands]

We did a New England fall colors trip a few years ago and had the same question. We did an internet search and got all the information we needed to include when to go and where to go. We found a sort of email newsletter that we joined that provided us with periodic reports on the best places to see the colors and when those colors were supposed to peak. We were able to go into their archives to see many different photos of many different areas in order to decide where we wanted to go. That was one of our best trips ever.

[TucsonJim]

August is usually way too early and you will see little if any color. October is better on average.

[TucsonJim]

Here is a link to the Mainefoilage.com website. It tells when and where is the best time to visit.

Maine Foilage

[YnotTurbo]

Sept is a great time in Maine. I grew up in Maine and the fall leaves start pretty early due to frost.