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Foliage Update: November Continues Autumn's Glory
November 7, 2025 at 01:46 PM EST
By WeatherBug Meteorologists, Alyssa Robinette and Andrew Rosenthal
November’s second weekend will bring one last burst of color across the eastern U.S. While most northern regions are past peak, the southern valleys and lower elevations are still glowing with warm yellows and rusty oranges.
Astronomically, the first day of fall was September 22, when the sun’s perpendicular rays crossed the equator. Each day is getting shorter, and this causes a chemical reaction in the leaves that leads to the color changing. As days become cooler and shorter, the trees’ ability to make chlorophyll, a pigment that keeps the leaves green, decreases and causes the leaves to become red, orange and purple.
Northern Mississippi, northern Alabama, western Tennessee, and southern Kentucky are showing moderate foliage, with areas closer to the Ohio River still showing peak colors with golden tones and muted oranges dominating the hillsides. Arkansas, especially the Ozarks, still offers vibrant late-season color, while middle Tennessee retains scenic patches along river valleys and wooded ridges.
As always, numerous highways will get you to the best colors. Conveniently, Interstate 24 runs northwest-to-southeast across the best foliage, and continues along that track from Nashville toward northern Alabama and Georgia’s moderate foliage. Interstate 40 through Tennessee is a standout, especially from Nashville east toward Knoxville and the Cumberland Plateau. Interstate 55 through Arkansas and northern Mississippi offers glimpses of autumn along river corridors, while Interstate 65 from Louisville south into Alabama provides a scenic north-south option through colorful valleys.
The leaves are just hanging on across the Northeast, but moderate to peak foliage remains across the southern Appalachians. Likewise, peak colors can be found across lower elevations from Virginia to Georgia.
Interstate 81 through Virginia and into Tennessee remains a prime route for catching the last bursts of Appalachian color. Interstate 64 through the Shenandoah Valley offers sweeping views of lingering foliage, while Interstate 77 through southern West Virginia and into North Carolina provides a winding path through moderate color zones. For a more southern experience, Interstate 85 through Georgia and the Carolinas offers glimpses of emerging color in lower elevations.
This weekend will be one of change weather-wise, with sunshine and mild conditions across the East on Saturday giving way to significantly cooler temperatures for Sunday. Showers may also accompany the cold front ushering in these temperatures, with snowflakes flying along the Great Lakes.
Over the course of the autumn, WeatherBug Meteorologists will provide an outlook on the foliage conditions across the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. This will include an updated map of conditions and details of these great colors. WeatherBug will also give some suggestions of roads to take for a leaf-peeping road trip, and a forecast for the weekend so you can know what to expect as you visit the colors.
Be sure to check your WeatherBug every week throughout the season to find out which region sees the best colors.
Astronomically, the first day of fall was September 22, when the sun’s perpendicular rays crossed the equator. Each day is getting shorter, and this causes a chemical reaction in the leaves that leads to the color changing. As days become cooler and shorter, the trees’ ability to make chlorophyll, a pigment that keeps the leaves green, decreases and causes the leaves to become red, orange and purple.
Northern Mississippi, northern Alabama, western Tennessee, and southern Kentucky are showing moderate foliage, with areas closer to the Ohio River still showing peak colors with golden tones and muted oranges dominating the hillsides. Arkansas, especially the Ozarks, still offers vibrant late-season color, while middle Tennessee retains scenic patches along river valleys and wooded ridges.
As always, numerous highways will get you to the best colors. Conveniently, Interstate 24 runs northwest-to-southeast across the best foliage, and continues along that track from Nashville toward northern Alabama and Georgia’s moderate foliage. Interstate 40 through Tennessee is a standout, especially from Nashville east toward Knoxville and the Cumberland Plateau. Interstate 55 through Arkansas and northern Mississippi offers glimpses of autumn along river corridors, while Interstate 65 from Louisville south into Alabama provides a scenic north-south option through colorful valleys.
The leaves are just hanging on across the Northeast, but moderate to peak foliage remains across the southern Appalachians. Likewise, peak colors can be found across lower elevations from Virginia to Georgia.
Interstate 81 through Virginia and into Tennessee remains a prime route for catching the last bursts of Appalachian color. Interstate 64 through the Shenandoah Valley offers sweeping views of lingering foliage, while Interstate 77 through southern West Virginia and into North Carolina provides a winding path through moderate color zones. For a more southern experience, Interstate 85 through Georgia and the Carolinas offers glimpses of emerging color in lower elevations.
This weekend will be one of change weather-wise, with sunshine and mild conditions across the East on Saturday giving way to significantly cooler temperatures for Sunday. Showers may also accompany the cold front ushering in these temperatures, with snowflakes flying along the Great Lakes.
Over the course of the autumn, WeatherBug Meteorologists will provide an outlook on the foliage conditions across the eastern two-thirds of the U.S. This will include an updated map of conditions and details of these great colors. WeatherBug will also give some suggestions of roads to take for a leaf-peeping road trip, and a forecast for the weekend so you can know what to expect as you visit the colors.
Be sure to check your WeatherBug every week throughout the season to find out which region sees the best colors.