Fall Color Report
Fall Foliage Color Report
Fall is certainly in the air here in the park! Cool evening and daytime temperatures are becoming more frequent and days are becoming just a bit shorter as October quickly approaches. Although we estimate Shenandoah's color at only about 15%, those cooler temperatures and shorter days with less sunlight will directly impact our fall color show.
If you visit the park this week, you'll see beautiful fall wildflowers approaching their peak. Several species of goldenrod, purple asters, white wood asters, and sunshine-yellow sunflowers line beautiful Skyline Drive. Brightly colored purple thistle blooms beckon a variety of butterflies, among them the large, bold yellow and black swallowtails and the brilliant Monarchs dressed in their orange and black glory. Patches of crown vetch and wingstem wildflowers are topped with tiny bursts of deep gold which display beautifully against their tall and slender green stalks. Common milkweed leaves are turning a beautiful soft yellow and are abundant along the Drive and in open fields and meadows. Many species of ferns abound in the park and one of the most common you'll see along your way is the hay-scented fern which is currently displaying a mixture of yellows, browns, and greens.
Dogwood trees boast their deep burgundies while some high branches of our abundant majestic red oaks are just beginning to turn a soft restful shade of light brown. Standing tall and straight, tulip poplars commonly seen along your way are starting to reveal their yellow-gold crowns. Every so often, you'll round a curve and see a dazzling burst of the rich red color of small red maple trees. Locust leaf miners, tiny native insects that feed on the leaves of several different species of locust trees, have been working hard to change the green compound leaves of the locust to a lovely light brown network of netting, filling up their tummies with their favorite food. Stop at one of our seventy-five overlooks to take a closer look at this tiny natural marvel's work. Another plant with compound leaves often seen in the park in disturbed areas such as the road banks along the Drive is sumac which always shows beautifully this time of year. Right now, many of them are beginning to turn a glorious yellow. Any color that you see will stand out against the soft deep greens of the white pine with its stately whorled branches.
Color doesn't just come from trees, flowers, and plants, but also in the form of Shenandoah National Park's wildlife: the white-tailed deer coats are turning to dark gray from their summer brown; black bears forage for this year's bounty crop of acorns and other nuts, roots, and berries as they prepare for a long winter sleep; hawks and vultures soar overhead on the still-warm rising air from the valley and the piedmont below.
This week, views from the Skyline Drive's overlooks will offer seas of green in the hollows and valleys below. At this time, only a few leaves have fallen from the trees on the highest peaks along Skyline Drive. "When will the fall color peak occur?" you may ask. Only time will tell! There's still much green left and that means much more fabulous fall color to come! Make your destination a journey! Come visit Shenandoah National Park and see the beauty and the wonder it holds just for you!
