When to peep leaves in North Carolina

Driving the news: The next six weeks will be huge for leaf peepers — and people who just call it “looking at the leaves change.”

• The travel brand smokymountains.com recently published its 2021 fall foliage map, which shows most of the N.C. mountains (and the Charlotte area) going from patchy to peak color to past peak by the last week in October.

Why it matters: North Carolinians love some leaves. We’re home to the Blue Ridge Parkway, the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and a significant chunk of the Appalachian Trail.

If you’re committed to the thrill of the chase, you can keep catching peak times if you move from west to east.

• The highest elevation spots, including Grandfather Mountain and Mt. Mitchell, are set to peak next week, High Country Host says.
• But Piedmont (at the foot of the mountain) cities from Winston-Salem to Chapel Hill and Raleigh shine in the fall, too, just closer to mid-October.

Here’s how quickly things will change (all images courtesy of David Angotti, smokymountains.com):

October 4

October 11

October 18

October 25

Of note: After the leaves fall, of course, the time changes. Clocks go back Nov. 7 this year.