When do the leaves change in Baltimore?
Baltimore's stream valleys do the heavy lifting. Patapsco Valley and Gunpowder Falls state parks wrap the city in oak and tulip-poplar gold, Cylburn Arboretum is a quiet pocket of maples, and the wooded shores of Loch Raven Reservoir glow on a still morning. Druid Hill Park brings real color inside the city itself.
Peak: October 28–November 2
Color builds from October 21 · mostly bare by November 21
Sampled at Baltimore’s own coordinates rather than a regional average. Dates are computed for Baltimore itself at 29 m elevation. Street trees vary block to block, so check locally before you plan a weekend around it.
Maryland is sampled at 4 weather points, then moved 4 days later so the model agrees with 1 published peak date from smokymountains.com. Maryland is running 5 days earlier than its own average this year. Peak dates spread about 7 days inside Maryland, so the high ground turns well before the valleys. How the forecast works
Fall activities in Baltimore
Drag the date slider to see when color moves through the country around Baltimore, or tap a pin for that stop’s own peak window.
Great Falls Park
40 miNational park
Peak October 28
The Potomac drops 76 feet over jagged bedrock cascades at this 800-acre National Park Service site near McLean, with cliffside trails past…
in Virginia
State park
Peak October 25
Cunningham Falls tumbles 78 feet down a rock face in the Catoctin Mountains, the largest cascading waterfall in Maryland, reached by a…
in Maryland
Winterthur
65 miGarden
Peak October 29
Henry Francis du Pont's 979-acre former estate near Wilmington, opened as a museum in 1951, pairs a renowned American decorative-arts…
in Delaware
Where locals go
Things to do in fall in Baltimore
Orchards, cider, haunts, and harvest season. These are the iconic fall stops within a day trip of Baltimore.
Original Fells Point Ghost Walk
Ghost tourColor nearby peaks October 30
An all-ages walking tour of Baltimore's waterfront Fells Point, run by Baltimore Ghost Tours since 2001 and departing from Broadway Square…
Ellicott City
Historic townColor nearby peaks October 29
Three Quaker brothers founded this mill town on the Patapsco River in 1771, and its steep Main Street still holds the granite storefronts…
Color nearby peaks October 29
Once home to figures from Baltimore's old Enchanted Forest storybook park, Clark's Elioak Farm folds those fairy tale statues into a…
Fall festival
Color nearby peaks November 1
A wooded fairground in Crownsville turns into a 16th century village every fall weekend, with jousting, jesters, and more than a hundred…
in Maryland
Brad's Farm Market
25 miFarm
Color nearby peaks October 29
A seasonal produce farm and market on Asbury Road in Churchville, Harford County, open April through October.
in Maryland
Larriland Farm
26 miFarm
Color nearby peaks October 28
Three generations deep in Woodbine, Larriland Farm has grown its own produce since 1973 rather than buying it in, and the pick-your-own…
in Maryland
Frequently asked
- When do leaves peak in Baltimore in 2026?
- Peak color is predicted for October 28–November 2 (best estimate October 30). Color starts around October 21 and trees are mostly bare by November 21. These dates are computed for Baltimore itself, at 29 m elevation, using the same weather model as the tracker.
- When is fall foliage season in Baltimore?
- Baltimore colors during autumn (September to November). Counting from the first turn to bare branches that is about 31 days, and the best of it falls in the week either side of October 30.
- What's the best foliage near Baltimore?
- Great Falls Park (40 mi); Cunningham Falls State Park (50 mi); Longwood Gardens (64 mi). For a longer trip: Maryland (13 mi, peak ~October 31); Delaware (63 mi, peak ~November 4); New Jersey (116 mi, peak ~November 3).
- What are the best things to do in fall in Baltimore?
- Beyond the leaves: Original Fells Point Ghost Walk (1 mi); Ellicott City (10 mi); Clark's Elioak Farm (14 mi); Maryland Renaissance Festival (20 mi); Brad's Farm Market (25 mi). All of them are mapped on this page.