This WA National park is named best for bright fall colors. When leaves will change in WA

As summer weather is cooling down, many await the beautiful colors autumn brings. But just as other seasons fly by, the gold and orange fall foliage will only be at its peak for a few weeks.

For Washington state and most locations nationwide, the peak colors of fall leaves only last about two weeks, according to the Farmers’ Almanac.

Farmers’ Almanac forecasts that Washington’s fall foliage will peak between Oct. 12 and Oct. 28, and as Washington is known for its evergreen trees, mountain ranges and coast, it is also named the best place for fall leaves in the northwest by the Farmers’ Almanac.

The best spot to view autumn colors, according to the almanac, is Olympic National Park, as the park “showcases the deep reds of vine maples and brilliant yellows of the aspens” for visitors.

When will fall foliage come to your area?

Not all parts of Washington state will have peak fall-colored leaves at the same time.

Washington counties’ peak autumn colors have been predicted by SmokyMountains.com, a U.S.-based park vacation planning company that uses data from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration to predict when areas across the country will have peak colors.

The interactive map allows users to pick a date and track foliage colors by county and see when the leaves first partially change, hit their peak orange colors, or are past their peak.

Northwest Washington will hit its peak autumn colors around Oct. 10, according to the interactive map. The Northeast quarter of Washington will experience peak colors around Oct. 17. The southern half of Washington state will shift into autumn between the second and third week of Oct., as the eastern region will hit its peak colors around Oct. 17, and the western around Oct. 24.

“Our model ingests multiple data points including NOAA precipitation forecasts, historical precipitation, average daylight exposure and temperature forecasts,” SmokyMountains.com founder and researcher David Angotti stated in a news release.

“We process hundreds of thousands of data points from a variety of private and government sources to accurately predict the precise moment fall will occur for the entire United States.”

Why do leaves change color?

While enjoying the warm colors fall foliage brings, you may not realize why the leaves change colors during this season.

Leaves change colors depending on three main factors, according to the United States Department of Agriculture: leaf pigments, length of night and weather.

In the summer, leaves are green because of chlorophyll, a green pigment that turns sunlight into glucose to feed the tree. But as fall approaches and weather and the length of sunlight changes, leaves stop producing chlorophyll and reveal their true colors.

Without the green chlorophyll masking leave’s other pigments, carotenoids and anthocyanin, these autumn-colored pigments that have been hidden throughout spring and summer can now be seen.

Weather also affects how bright fall foliage will be. A recipe of warm, sunny days and cool, but not freezing, crisp nights seem to bring out the most brilliant fall colors, according to the department of agriculture. This weather produces sugar in the leaves, which with light produces beautiful red, crimson and orange colors. The amount of moisture in the soil also affects the colors of fall foliage.