Fall Color Report for October 27, 2024
This past week the NPS opened up a portion of the Blue Ridge Parkway from near Bamboo Gap north of Blowing Rock to Beacon Heights below Grandfather Mt. Today I drove down to Linville and got on the BRP at Beacon Heights and headed north. Around 1 pm it was socked in with low hanging clouds and visibility was very poor. I was driving only 25 mph it was so foggy.
But even in such conditions, there was much to see. Plus, the BRP assumes a completely different persona when it’s foggy out. It makes you focus on what’s happening locally, like in your immediate vicinity. The photos attached to this posting show closeups of the plants and scenery and I think demonstrate that there is still much to see under such conditions.
At the end of my trip, at the Thunderhill Overlook near Blowing Rock, the clouds were dissipating and I was able to get a few shots of longrange color. As I noted in a previous posting, color will be best below 3,000’ elevation and should peak between now and early November.
This October was one of, if not THE, warmest on record. If you remember, back in September we thought leaf colors would come early, due to the cool snap we had then. But then it warmed up in late September and most of October, and so this year, peak fall color was 7-12 days later than historic norms. I would place the peak for this year at 3,000’ elevation between Oct 20-Oct 28.
Enjoy the photos! And remember, people in the High Country still need assistance so you should check ahead if you’re heading to the Asheville region, which as hit harder than the Ashe-Watauga-Avery area (not to minimize the damage we had in our area, which was extensive). You want to make sure it’s ok to come to the area (and it could use your tourist dollars!) but you don’t want to interfere with recovery efforts. And finally, don’t forget that most Christmas tree farms are operational and gearing up to sell their trees to you. Choose and cut farms are advertising now, and if you can’t make it up here to get your own tree, they will be available at big box stores and other locations off the mountain.