Where to find autumn leaves before they begin to fall
As we get into the heart of fall, the leaves are strutting their stuff out there. We get a lot of questions about where to find current information about fall foliage, but in researching this topic, I was surprised to find there isn't much real-time information out there.
What I did find was this one link that has some information on typical best places to see the leaves. Also, Stevens Pass is always a big local favorite to just take the drive along Highway 2 over to Wenatchee. There is also a National Fall Foliage hotline at 1-800-354-4595, and you push 6 to get the Pacific Northwest, but I just called it and all it had was as short blurb on the Colville National Forrest, which is quite a haul from Western Washington.
So I figure maybe the best information is from you who have already ventured out. Maybe give your best suggestions in the comments below.
On a personal one, I like the small town of Port Gamble, which is over on the Kitsap Peninsula about 10 minutes outside of Kingston -- you drive through it on Highway 104 if you take the Kingston ferry to the Olympic Peninsula. The town is very tiny -- it takes, oh, about a minute and a half to pass through, but it has a certain New England-ish charm to it, and the road takes you under some large canopy trees that usually turn brilliant colors in fall. I haven't been over there this fall yet to see it this year, and not sure it's worth a special trip, but those already heading to the Olympic Peninsula will get a nice little treat.
In the meantime, here are some other articles I found on fall foliage:
