Fall foliage

Fall foliage in South Dakota

Fall 2026 · updated daily

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A dirt trail beside a log fence, lined with yellow aspens and white birch trunks, with a pine-covered hill beyond.
A trail near Hill CityPhoto: GeneMJ530 · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source

South Dakota’s color is concentrated in the Black Hills.

A tall waterfall dropping down a dark cliff dusted with snow, with yellow leaves at the upper right.
Falls in Spearfish CanyonPhoto: Yanktonranger · CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Yellow and green aspens below a tall granite spire against a deep blue sky.
Aspens below the granite near Sylvan LakePhoto: Chris M Morris · CC BY 2.0 · source

Aspen and birch in the northern hills around Spearfish Canyon turn in the last days of September and the first week of October, with the oak and ash of Custer State Park and the southern hills following through mid-month.

A row of tall cottonwoods in yellow and green leaves, reflected in a still pond under scattered clouds.
Cottonwoods at Gavins Point, on the MissouriPhoto: Sam Stukel, USFWS Mountain-Prairie · CC BY 2.0 · source

East of the Missouri, cottonwoods and bur oaks along the river and in the glacial lakes country go gold in the second and third weeks of October.

In a typical year

Bordering states

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