Fall foliage season 2020 in Pennsylvania is predicted to run from mid-September through the end of October, according to the Fall Foliage Prediction Map produced annually by SmokyMountains.com.
Pulling together thousands of data sets ranging from historical rainfall records to long-range weather forecasts to elevation, the interactive online map produces a county-by-county fall foliage forecast for the entire continental U.S.
For the leaf-peeping season we are entering, the map provided the following forecast:
- Week of September 14 – Minimal change creeping into the northern tier and northeastern corner of Pennsylvania.
- Week of September 21 – Patchy color in the northern tier and northeastern corner of the state, while minimal change will arrive in the northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania.
- Week of September 28 – Partial color in the northern tier and northeastern corner of the state, patchy in the northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania, and minimal change across the rest of the state.
- Week of October 5 – Near peak in the northern tier and northeastern corner of the state, partial color in the northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania, and patchy across the rest of the state.
- Week of October 12 – Peak in the northern tier and northeastern corner of the state, near peak in the northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania, and partial color across the rest of the state.
- Week of October 19 – Past peak in the northern tier and northeastern corner of the state, peak in the northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania, and near peak color across the rest of the state.
- Week of October 26 – Past peak in the northern tier, northeastern corner of the state, northwestern quarter of the state and the mountain areas of central and western Pennsylvania, and peak color across the rest of the state.
- Week of November 2 – Past peak statewide.
While it may be a bit abbreviated this year because of weather conditions from August through September, Pennsylvania generally has the longest fall foliage season on Earth, according to the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources.
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The geographic regions and ecoregions that span the state also give Pennsylvania a more varied fall foliage season than elsewhere on the planet.
DCNR notes, "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. Forests in other regions are either tropical or dominated by conifers.
"Pennsylvania’s location between 40 and 42 degrees north latitude and its varied topography from sea level on the coastal plain to over 3,000 feet in the Laurel Highlands supports 134 species of trees and many more shrubs and vines that contribute to the display of autumn color.
- If you’re looking to go leaf-peeping this fall, you can find places to stay in Pennsylvania on VRBO.
“Pennsylvania is the meeting ground of northern trees that flourish only on mountain tops farther south and southern species that are at the northern limits of their range.”
Contact Marcus Schneck at [email protected].