15 of the best places to see fall leaves near the Bay Area

Poimiroo’s website provides the most up-to-date information on fall foliage conditions throughout the state. Since 2009, his website developed a network of more than 100 contributors reporting on and photographing the leaves changing colors.

With cool weather just now arriving in the Sierra after a hot first half of September, leaves are starting to turn color in earnest at the mountain range’s highest peaks.

“I think this is going to be a very typical show,” Poimiroo said. “The effect of drought can shorten the display because there is less water and nutrients in the leaves to make them full, vibrant and healthy.” But he notes the main factors determining when the leaves turn color are cold temperatures and shorter days.

Over the years, Poimiroo has found California is the best state to view the leaves turning color.

“In California, we can have intense mountainsides of colors, especially in the Eastern Sierra,” Poimiroo said. Although California can’t compete with whole forests of trees changing colors in New England, it’s a lot easier to predict when and where the colors will show in California.

“That is because our color drops by elevation,” Poimiroo said.

The fall foliage line descends about 500 feet a week throughout the season, Poimiroo explained, making it easy to predict where the best colors will be viewable. He notes that if you miss the peak colors back East, you are out of luck. In California, you can drive to a lower elevation.

Mono, Plumas and Inyo counties are your best bets for seeing the changing fall colors of native California trees in the Eastern Sierra.

“Some people only want to see those big, big, expansive vistas of aspen glowing yellow and orange and red off into the distance, and you really have to do the start of the season,” he added.

Poimiroo’s best-of list starts with the aspen trees at Bishop Creek Canyon in the Eastern Sierra, which are just beginning to approach peak conditions for autumn colors this year. The area is just west of the town of Bishop on U.S. Highway 395 at an elevation above 9,000 feet.

There are three forks to Bishop Creek (known as upper, middle and lower), and it is possible to drive on paved roads to each of them.

In particular, he recommends hiking on the Mount Whitney Trail near the town of Lone Pine. The aspen trees in that area include a stunning mixture of pink, yellow, orange and lime-green leaves. “There is one section of it that is literally a thousand feet of orange, yellow and red color that is out of this world.”

Next on his list is the area around June and Mammoth lakes in Mono County, which has rugged granite canyons to contrast with golden-orange-crimson fall leaves.

One of the most spectacular hikes to see fall colors at their peak is at Lundy Canyon in Mono County, where waterfalls and orange, red, and yellow trees stretch up the mountainside.

Because the colors don’t always change precisely at the same time every year. Poimiroo recommends looking at specific location reports from previous years on his website to plan your visit to the Eastern Sierra, since you will likely have to stay overnight if driving from the Bay Area.

By mid- to late October, the Eastern Sierra will be almost past its peak conditions. Next up are locations within a day’s trip from the SF Bay Area.

The most spectacular display of fall colors within a few hours’ drive is along state Route 88 south of Tahoe through the Carson Pass and Hope Valley to see the maples and aspens. The trees should start changing color in a few weeks.

“One of the great experiences is to be in an aspen forest and to sit there, not talk, and listen to the quaking aspen ruffle, and just listen to the breeze come through,” Poimiroo said. “It’s not just looking; it’s hearing, it’s feeling it, it’s smelling it. It’s just being with that forest.”

Another good choice for leaf peeping is Yosemite Valley, which is less crowded in the fall. Poimiroo notes the start of the fall foliage in the valley is when the eastern sugar maple tree planted by pioneers in the 1800s near the chapel turns color. There are also pink dogwood, bright yellow bigleaf maple, orange and red leaves on black oak trees, and the leaves hanging gold on cottonwood trees in the park from October through the middle of November.

“You’ll get that feeling of crisp autumn, that cold snap on your face,” in Yosemite, he added.

If you want to get off the beaten path to see fall foliage, Poimiroo recommends the Northern Sierra around Quincy in southern Plumas County. Beautiful fall colors come from Indian rhubarb, bigleaf maple trees and black oaks turning orange throughout the forests.

“There you get more of New England field feeling [with] white steeple churches and old downtowns and … villages that kind of stand out against the fall color surrounding them,” he explained.

If you have an SUV or four-wheel drive vehicle, he also recommends Lobdell Lake Road in Mono County to drive through groves of aspen trees.

Even after the leaves have fallen in the mountains, there are plenty of other opportunities to see fall colors in Northern California.

In the foothills, a top location to visit is Nevada City. The town has many sugar maples and liquidambar trees throughout its easily walkable historic downtown area.

California’s orchards, particularly walnut, pistachio, almond, or apple trees, can also be quite beautiful. They turn color in November. Wherever you go, he recommends combining your leaf-peeping with local events.

By the middle of November, the fall foliage season arrives in coastal California. There is minimal natural fall color, but several Bay Area towns also have streets lined with trees that change color, including Danville, Palo Alto, San Rafael, Campbell, Walnut Creek, Saratoga and Cupertino.

The Salinas River, a wildlife corridor running through the Central Coast Ranges south of Monterey, generally comes into color in November. The Santa Cruz Mountains have some fall foliage along Highway 9 through Big Basin Redwoods State Park. 

Many local Bay Area public gardens or arboretums have trees that turn color. Poimiroo recommends Golden Gate Park at the Japanese Tea Garden or San Francisco Botanical Garden, or Tilden Park in Berkeley. “Many exotic trees [like the Ginkgo biloba and Acer palmatum] have been planted in these gardens, and that is what people should be looking for.”

Further north, Ukiah has some foliage that rivals Vermont, and the sugar maple trees are amazing to see against a crystal clear blue sky in Mount Shasta.

Finally, the vineyards of California are another great Bay Area option. Each vineyard has a different species and variety of grapes, and their leaves turn color at other times. That means you should not be disappointed if you make a trip to Wine Country from mid-October into mid-late November. “And, of course, you get to add wine tasting with fall color viewing,” Poimiroo added.