Intermountain Region

Fall Colors

Welcome to the Fall Color Report for the Intermountain Region of the US Forest Service. The Intermountain Region consists of National Forest Lands in Nevada, Utah, Southern Idaho, Western Wyoming and parts of California. To find out the report for other regions, contact the Hotline at 1-800-354-4595.

As of October 3, 2008 the fall colors in the Intermountain Region have really begun to appear and in some areas peaked.

The weather in the region has been spectacular arm days and cool nights have caused the leaves to turn slowly. In the past week rain has visited some of the region in particular Nevada and Utah. The next bit of weather in the Intermountain Region may be enough to bring in more colors or force leaves to drop.

Some of the recent reports for fall color are the following:

Idaho

Payette National Forest
The north side of the Hitt mountains provide a nice relatively easy drive though some great fall colors. Start on West Pine Creek 031 just out of Cambridge and loop over Tool Cache and back out of 085 Middle fork of Brownlee Creek road. Nice colors and great long views across Hells Canyon into the Eagle Caps.

Caribou-Targhee National Forest
Highway 20 going up Ashton Hill, near Ashton, Idaho, the colors on the hill side are reds, orange, yellow in with green. Near the Island Park area the Aspen are showing their color along Highway 20.

Nevada

Western Nevada on the Humboldt-Toiyabe National Forest
Color is peaking out along the corridor of Highway 88 near Hope Valley in the vicinity of Alpine County, Ca.

Northeastern Nevada
A large amount in overlapping color especially in Lamoille Canyon can be seen. The aspens range from red, orange, gold and green.

Southern Nevada
Trees are about to peak. Hikes in the Spring Mountains have fantastic colors.

Utah

North on the Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
This weekend will probably be the best for getting a good overlap between the maples and the aspens.  A muted mosaic of reds from the maples can be seen in Wellsville Canyon (Hwy 89/91 from Brigham City to Wellsville), Blacksmith Fork Canyon (Hwy 101 east of Hyrum) and the Logan Canyon National Scenic Byway (Hwy 89 between Logan & Bear Lake).  Fall color driving will probably be good for a couple more weeks. The aspens up near the Bear Lake overlook and between Beaver Creek and the State Sheds are at peak.  The aspens near the Tony Grove turn off are just starting to change and a side tour up the Tony Grove Lake Road (FR 003) will be well worth the time. 

Near Salt Lake City
The leaves are changing right on schedule and in most places are peak colors.

South of Logan near Ogden, Utah
Leaves are peak above Pineview Reservoir and higher elevations.  A drive out to Monte Cristo on Highway 39 should be full of color.

Logan, Utah
This weekend will probably be the best for getting a good overlap between the maples and the aspens. A muted mosaic of reds from the maples can be seen in Wellsville Canyon (Hwy 89/91 from Brigham City to Wellsville), Blacksmith Fork Canyon (Hwy 101 east of Hyrum) and the Logan Canyon National Scenic Byway (Hwy 89 between Logan & Bear Lake). The vibrant colors from a few years ago have only been seen in a couple of small pockets so far. Fall color driving will probably be good for a couple more weeks in the Cache National Forest in Northern Utah. The aspens up near the Bear Lake overlook and between Beaver Creek and the State Sheds are at peak. The aspens near the Tony Grove turn off are just starting to change and a side tour up the Tony Grove Lake Road (FR 003) will be well worth the time. Many side canyons are also displaying the golden hues of the aspens but most routes are not recommended for passenger vehicles.

South of Provo, Utah
This would be a great week to see the fall colors along the Mt. Nebo Scenic Byway Road # 015 (Payson Canyon). The views are spectacular from the vantage point of the scenic overlooks there. A favorite spot for photographers is the Covered Bridge Area along Highway 6  (the first 2 - 3 miles from the mouth of Spanish Fork Canyon). Fall colors are almost at their peak in Hobble Creek Canyon (Springville.)

South Central Utah
Colors are at their peak on the Wasatch Plateau on the Manti-LaSal. The Huntington Canyon, Fairview Canyon, Eccles Canyon and North Skyline Drive are spectacular right now.  Huntington-Fairview-Eccles are paved roads and perfect for a fall drive.

In the southern part of Utah on the Dixie National Forest
Link to Dixie National Forest Fall Colors web page.

Color on the Cedar City and Powell Ranger  Districts are going into full bloom on almost every route including Highway's 143,148, and 14. Those areas especially around Brian Head will be peaked by end of week and for the other areas by end of this weekend. In the Escalante Hell's Backbone is starting to show some brilliant colors in patches and worth the drive. They should be peaking maybe another couple weeks all weather dependant. On the Pine Valley Mountain area there are more patches of the yellows and reds coming in and will increase over the next week or two.

Wyoming

Uinta-Wasatch-Cache National Forest
On the Evanston and Mountain View ranger districts colors are just starting to appear at the lower elevations in the maple and oak. Colors are more of rust and orange and not the brilliant colors seen in the past years at this time. There are a few aspen with some leaves starting to turn but very few…

Bridger-Teton National Forest
The colors are out in force on the Bridger-Teton National Forest. For a showy display of golden aspen, russet mountain ash, purple choke cherry and green lodgepole pine, travel HWY 22 from Wilson to the top of Teton Pass. From there, take your picnic lunch and hike on one of the many trails completed by the Boy Scouts Order of the Arrow this summer. If you go early in the morning, you will have the contrast of low-lying clouds and mist coming off of the mountain for some real spectacular photographs.

Equally beautiful is the vivid color display that is at its peak right now in the Snake River Canyon on the Bridger-Teton National Forest. From Jackson, travel south on Hwy 89 towards the town of Alpine, Wyoming. visitors taking this scenic drive will be treated to a visual panorama set off by deep purple Oregon Grape, red berries on the prevalent Mountain Ash, a multitude of golden aspen leaves, white snow berries, red willow stems, choke cherries, currants and the persistent evergreen Douglas Fir trees. All these colors are highlighted against the blue of the wild and scenic eligible Snake River which bubbles over rocks and swirls in eddies providing white caps and current for visitors delight.

The Greys River Road out of the Town of Alpine, Wyoming is at highest color with ample aspen trees that have turned a gleaming gold over the last few days. The wildness of this drainage is alluring to those that want to experience intense pockets of color from the aspen, lodgepole pine, silver buffalo berry, dogwoods, willows and rocky mountain maple that pepper the area.

The Green River Lakes Road (Forest Road 650) approximately 33 miles north of the town of Pinedale, Wyoming is a popular access point to the Bridger Wilderness and popular with drivers looking for scenic vistas ripe with fall color. The road begins with views of golden aspen in the distance, as you travel along the blue waters of the babbling Green River. 8 miles into the drive the road makes a bend to the east and visitors are greeted with magnificent views of the Wind River Mountains set off by yellow Cottonwood leaves, showy service berries, golden aspen, thick evergreen lodgepole pines, and purple mountain mahogany for a colorful view.

Don’t miss out on the natural beauty of the Intermountain Region and enjoy your national forests.
Remember take only pictures and leave only footprints.

The Intermountain Region experiences wonderful autumn colors. This page is updated weekly during the fall season. A photo gallery has been put together for your enjoyment. The fall color photos were taken by Forest Service employees throughout the Region.

Visit us again for updated colorful photos, as well as to see which areas are recommended for viewing a wonderful, picturesque work of nature.

The Intermountain Region is a spectacular place to be in the fall. Get out and enjoy the beauty of your National Forests.

Utah Skies has submitted some wonderful photos in the past. You can visit their web site at http://www.utahskies.org. If you have fall colors photos you would like displayed on our website, e-mail them to Jody Rose.

It is wise to obtain highway and weather information before leaving home and be prepared for winter weather while in the mountains. Many unpaved forest roads are quite slippery when wet, while some clay based roads simply become impassable.

Visit the Washington Office web site for additional information on viewing fall colors throughout the country.

US Forest Service - Intermountain Region
Last Modified: Wednesday, 08 October 2008 at 17:23:56 EDT