Fall foliage

Fall foliage in Kentucky

Fall 2026 · updated daily

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Kentucky’s color begins in the eastern highlands and moves west.

A long sandstone arch seen across a valley of red, orange and gold trees.
Natural Bridge, in the Red River Gorge areaPhoto: Matzke · CC BY-SA 3.0 · source
Cumberland Falls seen from above, with a rainbow in the mist and orange and gold trees along the cliff.
Cumberland Falls, in the Daniel Boone National ForestPhoto: Ben Childers, USDA Forest Service · Public domain · source

The Red River Gorge and the Daniel Boone National Forest turn in the third week of October;

A sandstone cliff above a valley filled with red, orange, yellow and green trees.
Courthouse Rock, on the Cumberland PlateauPhoto: Corey Heitz · CC BY 2.0 · source

the Cumberland Plateau and the Bluegrass follow at the end of the month;

the western lakes and the Mammoth Cave country finish in early November.

Maple, hickory, sassafras and dogwood give the east a wide range of color, while oaks and sweetgum dominate the lower west.

In a typical year

Bordering states

Color: Fallcast, the same map as the app. Basemap © OpenStreetMap contributors, Protomaps. Place outlines: U.S. Census Bureau.