Quick Vermont Foliage Forecast For Rest Of Holiday Weekend/Week

I haven't had the chance yet to get much leaf peeping 
photography in yet this year, but luckily the forecast is in
our favor today and most of the rest of the week. This
is a quick meh snapshot I took near Bakersfield, 
Vermont late Saturday afternoon.

 We're in the midst of the big weekend for fall foliage tourism here in Vermont and so far, things are spectacular.  

I'll have more on fall foliage, climate change and other leaf peeping topics this coming week, but a quick forecast now to get you through the weekend:

The first piece of advice has little to do with the weather, really. 

But here's a little secret for those in those jammed up tourist towns like Stowe, Manchester and Woodstock.

If you really want to enjoy the fall foliage in peace, and really find some especially beautiful areas, don't be afraid to explore. 

 I take random roads in very rural areas, just to see what I find.  These roads usually end up coming out somewhere familiar, even if you get lost briefly.  Just stay away from big towns that draw a lot of tourists. 

Of course, you want a reliable vehicle that won't break down in the middle of nowhere without cell service. You also don't want to be stupid and forge ahead on a road or trail that is not designed for a car. And stay off property that has "no trespassing" signs, please.

Do all that, and it's a lot better than what people dealt with in the big tourist draws on Saturday. I'm told there was a half mile line of cars on Interstate 89 queued up to get off at the  Stowe/Waterbury Exit, and Route 100 from Waterbury to Stowe was almost a  parking lot.

The weather has been great for fall foliage due to a lack of storminess this year that would tend to strip leaves off the trees. It did get somewhat breezier and remains so today, so a few places that have been at peak foliage for a good week already might have lost some luster.

But most areas in Vermont are just coming into peak foliage, so the breezes have not had much of an effect on the foliage in the vast majority of the state.  The leaves just aren't quite ready to come down yet. 

The foliage season, like many recent seasons, is running a little late this year due to a warm autumn, so the tourists and locals should stay happy for the next several days.

It's rather cloudy this morning, and the type of clouds out there don't really enhance the foliage. The clouds are kind of dull and featureless and not the kind of contrasty dark clouds that can make some dramatic photos.

But cheer up.  It looks like more sunshine should break through this afternoon to help make the colors pop.

Tomorrow looks awesome for fall foliage viewing.  The sun will be out most of the time and it will be warm. 

Tuesday to me looks like the best day of all to leaf peep.  The day will probably start out with patchy dense fog. That means you should try to get out early. As the sun breaks up the morning fog and the sun appears, the eye candy is amazing. 

The rest of the day will be unseasonably warm with highs well into the 70s. You might want to wear shorts and bring the sunscreen for any outdoor excursions. The foliage viewing should remain great through the rest of the week.

There is a chance of increasing wind and rain by Saturday, which could dull the colors. But the Champlain and lower Connecticut River valleys are not even at peak color yet as of this writing, so there's plenty of leaf peeping to do if you miss out this week.