Fall foliage could be extra vibrant next month
As I write this, we’re enjoying a sunny late September day with a high near 80 degrees.
However, I nearly turned on the furnace two nights ago and admit to turning on the heat in my car on the way home from work late at night over the weekend. It’s that wonderful time of year when you go from shorts to a jacket in 24 hours.
Fall has brought a much-appreciated drop in humidity levels and a return to very comfy, pleasant 70-degree temperatures for most days. All of you pumpkin spice drinking, sweater weather loving, apple picking, early Halloween decorating folks should be rejoicing now and there’s more good news on the way: This year’s fall foliage could be extra vibrant.
According to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation & Natural Resources (DCNR), Pennsylvania has a longer and more varied fall foliage season than any other state in the nation or in the world.
The DCNR said only three regions of the world support deciduous forests that display fall autumn color – Eastern North America, the British Isles and parts of northwestern Europe and Northeastern China and northern Japan). Pennsylvania’s location supports 134 species of trees and the best time to see the spectacle of color here is mid-October. One foliage model based on historical temperature and precipitation predicts the weeks of Oct. 17 and 24 will bring the best foliage.
According to United States National Arboretum, a wet growing season followed by a dry autumn with lots of sunshine and cool, frostless nights results in the brightest palette. Another forecasting outlet predicts colors could be extra vibrant this fall but also peak up to a week later than normal.
Western Pennsylvania has a better chance of vibrant color – especially Northwestern Pennsylvania – this year compared to the eastern side of the state which got drenched with record-setting rain from the remnants of Hurricane Ida on top of above normal rainfall in late summer.
It looks like a couple of nice long leaf-peeping drives might be on my calendar next month.
It’s always especially pretty to see the colors as we drive south on I-79 down to Morgantown for a late October West Virginia University football game. Coopers Rock State Forest is just east of there and has a phenomenal overlook to see the fall color vista.
Enjoy this nice sunshine the rest of this week and here’s hoping the fall foliage lives up to its billing this year and treats us to some beautiful surroundings before those first few snowflakes being to fly.
Yes, I wrote snow.
Early adopters of all things fall always seem to forget that after fall comes winter and then they start fretting about snowfall. As for me, I’ll put away my shorts, enjoy the pretty leaves and get ready to wax my snow skis!
Kristin Emery can be reached at kristinemery1@yahoo.com.