VERIFY QUESTION
Fall foliage: one of North Carolina's proudest attributes. Every fall season, the rolling mountains of the Blue Ridge Parkway show off magnificent seasonal colors. When is the best time for North Carolinians to plan a mountain leaf peeping trip?
VERIFY SOURCE
- BlueRidgeMountainLife.com Fall Foliage Forecast
- SmokyMountains.com Fall Foliage Map
- Travel and Leisure Magazine
- Good Morning Show Meteorologist Eric Chilton
VERIFY PROCESS
Leaf color intensity is affected by rainfall and temperatures, and North Carolina is nine and a half inches above average for rainfall and more than 10 degrees above normal for fall temperatures.
Chilton said that is why some trees could just brown out lose their leaves, or the colors could appear duller this year.
The Blue Ridge Mountain Fall Foliage report pushed back all of the dates by five days. Tuesday, it pushed back the dates for higher elevations another three to five days. This week, there is some color at higher elevations. Next week (Oct. 11-17), high elevation spots like Grandfather Mountain will peak. The next week (Oct. 15 - 25) is when the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and Blowing Rock should peak. The following week (Oct. 24-31) is when lower elevation areas, like the Pisgah National Forest, will peak.
VERIFY CONCLUSION
Plan your mountain leaf peeping trip for the last week in October, if you want to see the most vibrant colors.
Have a VERIFY question? Reach out to Meghann Mollerus:
E-mail: Mmollerus@wfmy.com
Facebook: Meghann Mollerus News
Twitter: @MeghannMollerus
