Vermont Foliage Report: September 29, 2020
Foliage Conditions
All foliage conditions are present across Vermont this week. Splashes and bursts of color have spread to whole hillsides painted in vibrant yellows, reds, and oranges. Most of the state is well into the middle phases of the season, and many areas, including the northern Green Mountains and the Northeast Kingdom, are experiencing peak or near-peak conditions. On exposed ridges, windblown leaves have already fallen from many trees, adding a layer of color on the ground as well as in the canopy, while there’s still considerable green in the forests of the Champlain Valley, in southern regions, and in sheltered areas like coves, benches, and valleys where great color is yet to come.
We’ve enjoyed delightfully warm, sunny weather early this week, with rain and cooler air forecast for later in the week. With the return to more seasonable weather and temperatures, and locally windy conditions expected, the color change is likely to accelerate. Savor every scene you take in and keep exploring across the state for a full array of foliage stages! If you catch a crimson-hued sunset over the trees this week, linger a little longer to enjoy the moon rise, as our foliage viewing aligns with the full harvest moon on October 1.
Seasoned leaf peepers may see the changing colors as slightly ahead of the schedule we’ve observed in the last few years, but they are still well within the historical range of late September and early October peak in most of the state. Many viewers are also sharing accounts of extra vibrancy this year —particularly of red tones— which can be enhanced by moderate drought such as what we’re presently experiencing in some locations.
Recreation Recommendations
Whether you’re taking in the foliage on a sunny day or a gray and drizzly one, you can’t go wrong—sunshine lights up the leaves, but a gray backdrop provides a striking contrast. Consider a hike in the Lake Willoughby area at Moose, Wheeler, Bald, or Pisgah Mountains, or along the Worcester Range at Mounts Hunger, Worcester, or Elmore, or a mid-week mountain bike or paddle at Blueberry Lake in Warren or Little River State Park in Waterbury.
For many anglers, fall is one of the best times of year to fish. Fall fishing and foliage watching pair perfectly together, and one of the best ways to combine these two outdoor activities is on a hike into a remote mountain brook trout pond. Tucked away in the southern Green Mountain National Forest are a handful of small ponds— Little Rock, Big Mud, Griffith, Stratton, Bourn and Branch—that offer unique fishing opportunities in Vermont. The ponds are stocked by helicopter each year with fingerling brook trout. In these simple, pristine waters, the stocked trout have little to no competition, so they survive, grow well, and reach impressive sizes. Fish up to 18 inches are possible. Similar pond opportunities for brook trout occur in the Northeast Kingdom on waters like Job’s, Martins, Unknown (Ferdinand), Unknown (Avery’s Gore), Cow Mountain, Notch, West Mountain, and Noyes ponds.
COVID-19 Safety
Staying active and getting outside are more important now than ever, and there’s no reason to miss out on experiencing all of Vermont’s autumn outdoor offerings this year. But please be sure your foliage experiences follow COVID-19 health and safety guidance. Learn more about COVID-19 recreation safety at https://fpr.vermont.gov/recreation/outdoor-recreation-and-covid-19.
If you’re planning a visit to Vermont from out of state, please go to www.vermontvacation.com to learn more about travel guidance first.
Here are a few tips for recreating safely during the COVID-19 pandemic:
- Minimize risk to others: Go out only if you’re healthy, have not been exposed to someone who has tested positive for COVID-19, and have not recently traveled from a location with a COVID-19-related travel advisory. Please only drive to your destination with members of your household.
- Keep your distance: Give people who aren’t members of your household six feet or more of space and please leash your dog.
- Engage in Low-Risk Activities: Please plan your trip responsibly, and do not take unnecessary risks that burden our healthcare system and emergency responders.
- Practice Good Hygiene: Wash hands often with soap and warm water for 20 seconds. If those aren’t available, use a hand sanitizer containing at least 60% alcohol. Avoid surfaces that are touched often, such as doorknobs, handrails, and playground equipment.
- Wear a Cloth Mask or Face Covering: Any time you know others may be present, you should have your mask on, even while running or biking. Keeping it at the ready is ok if you can quickly and safely pull it up over your nose and mouth, doing this well before you come within six feet of others. Although disinfecting your hands after touching the mask is advised, wearing a face covering is intended to protect others.
- Avoid Crowded Recreation Areas: it’s best if we don’t all go to the most popular trailheads at the most popular times of day. Early morning or evening tends to be less crowded, and the same goes for opting for a mid-week excursion rather than a weekend one. Dispersal is key! You can plan your trip on www.trailfinder.info. If you arrive at a parking lot and it is full, find another trail.
- Slow down, step back, and let people know when you’re approaching: Awareness and consideration are key. Everyone should yield to everyone right now and making some noise as you approach is recommended. A friendly “Hello!” followed by a pause to figure out your next move is the best tactic. If you find yourself coming up behind a slower walker, and there’s not six feet to pass safely, slow down instead. If somebody is getting too close to you, step back to allow enough space.
- Step off the trail when needed: If the trail isn’t wide enough to allow for six feet in passing, step off the trail at a 90-degree angle, being careful not to tread on plants if at all possible. Once you’re six feet off, wait for the approaching group to clear the area before retracing your footsteps. If you’re a mountain biker, lay your bike down by the side of the trail first. By whatever means you may be moving on the trail, don’t cut a new trail parallel to the existing track.
- Keep single file (even on wide trails): Keep your group single file (this may mean you have to hike more slowly than you want to): do not spread out all over the trail. When you let someone pass, step off to the side and stay put — don’t walk or ride alongside the path. The same goes for when you encounter ice or mud in the trail — stay on the trail and go right through it!
- Don’t stand across the trail to chat: it is great to see friends and acquaintances (who’s that behind the awesome plaid cloth mask?) but stopping on either side of the trail to chat just creates a breath “gauntlet” that others must either pass through or go off-trail to avoid.
- Embrace an arrive, play, and leave mentality: Do not gather in groups before or after activities.
- Hiking with Children: If you are hiking with children, set expectations before getting out of the car. Remind them not to run up to people or dogs, and to cough and sneeze into their elbows while turned away from people. Children older than 2 years in age can and should be encouraged to use cloth masks or face coverings. Remind your kids often of the new rules; they will need lots of kind and consistent reminders of what this new behavior needs to look like — be sure that you are modeling it!