LeafQuest: A Fall-Foliage Guide

Posted: 10/07/11 04:24 PM ET | Updated: 12/03/11 05:12 AM ET

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Fall-foliage trips are as essential a part of American autumns as pumpkins and pigskin. To help you decide exactly where to go, MapQuest presents LeafQuest. We've selected three prime leaf-peeping spots in each of 49 states (sorry, Hawaii!), plus Washington, D.C. Look below to see a national (and navigable) map of our 150 fall-foliage suggestions, or browse by state. And be sure to check out homages to autumn by two-time-Pulitzer-nominee Joyce Millman (California), Atlantic entertainment-columnist James Parker (Massachusetts) and ex-Navy SEAL Chuck Pfarrer (Michigan).

LeafQuest State Guides

Colorado Fall Foliage
by Saira Bajwa
Boasting the West’s most picturesque autumnal scene in the Maroon Bells, “Colorful Colorado” is awash in golden fall displays.

New Hampshire Fall Foliage
by Nick Romano
Is there a more classic New England image than a small New Hampshire town on a crisp autumn day? Especially in fall, the Granite State rocks.

Virginia Fall Foliage
by Nick Romano
The fiery leaves on display in the Shenandoah’s Valley’s Skyline Drive is just one reason why the Old Dominion State reigns in fall.

Fall-Foliage Map

Fall-Color Destinations By State

Alabama	Alaska	Arizona
Arkansas	California	Colorado
Connecticut	Delaware	Florida
Georgia	Idaho	Illinois
Indiana	Iowa	Kansas
Kentucky	Louisiana	Maine
Maryland	Massachusetts	Michigan
Minnesota	Mississippi	Missouri
Montana	Nebraska	Nevada
New Hampshire	New Jersey	New Mexico
New York	North Carolina	North Dakota
Ohio	Oklahoma	Oregon
Pennsylvania	Rhode Island	South Carolina
South Dakota	Tennessee	Texas
Utah	Vermont	Virginia
Washington	Washington, D.C.	West Virginia
Wisconsin	Wyoming

LeafQuest Special Features

Cali-Fall-Nication
by Joyce Millman
Though New England hogs the spotlight for autumn-leaf glory, a California writer much prefers her new home's 'disco-queen' fall foliage.

A Tree Glows In Brookline
by James Parker
Between the machismo of summer and the gloom of winter, a Massachusetts writer revels in the feisty fire of fall.

Northern Enclosure
by Chuck Pfarrer
After the perils of Pakistan, an ex-Navy SEAL team leader relaxes and recharges among the glorious fall colors on his private (sort of), 20-mile Michigan lake.