Fall Foliage

Fall was once Maine’s best-kept secret. No longer! Visitors have discovered our lively harvest festivals, sparkling clear weather, and of course, Mother Nature’s brilliant display. Against a backdrop of rocky coastline and mountain pines, Maine’s vivid maples and oaks set the scene for hiking, biking, paddling and golf. Fall brings food and wine celebrations, agricultural fairs, and music festivals. Colorful farmers’ markets and produce stands beckon. Apple orchards invite you to “pick your own.” Birders spot migrating hawks, warblers and shorebirds. And there’s more: Fall is peak season for Maine lobster, too.

To help you plan your Maine foliage tour, in September and October the Maine Department of Conservation posts weekly reports on foliage conditions throughout the state on its Web site located at http://www.mainefoliage.com. The first foliage report for 2011 will be September 14th. Also, for current foliage condition updates, the Maine Office of Tourism offers a toll-free foliage hotline from mid-September through Columbus Day: 1-800-MAINE45 (624-6345).

The melting of hues from green, to yellow, to burnt orange and reds begins as early as mid-September in Fort Kent in the North, and as late as the end of October in Kittery, at Maine's southern tip. The actual process of change begins in August as the warm weather wanes and Maine's 57 species of broadleaved trees begin preparing for autumn. The trees refuse to slip quietly into hibernation. Instead, nature marches out with much fanfare, trumpeting the bright oranges and yellows of sugar maples, the purples of white ash, the scarlet of red and mountain maples, and the rich browns of black and white oak. Mixed in are the deep greens of pines and other conifers. Few sights satisfy the soul like the brilliant colors splashed across Maine's forests each autumn.