When do the leaves change in Sacramento?
Sacramento's canopy is the surprise of California autumn — one of the country's great urban forests, with street after street of scarlet liquidambar, ginkgo and Japanese maple in East Sacramento and Land Park. Add cottonwoods along the American River Parkway and Apple Hill's orchards in the foothills, and the season stretches for weeks.
Peak: November 13–November 17
Color builds from October 31 · mostly bare by December 7
Method: daily ERA5 temperatures (Open-Meteo) drive a photoperiod + chilling phenology model, sampled at Sacramento’s own coordinates rather than a regional average. Dates are computed for Sacramento itself at 22 m elevation. Estimates, not promises — street trees vary block to block. Check locally before you plan around a weekend.
Fall activities in Sacramento
Where locals go
Things to do in fall in Sacramento
Orchards, cider, haunts, and harvest season — the iconic fall stops within a day trip of Sacramento.
Cool Patch Pumpkins
22 miCorn maze
Color nearby peaks November 15
A corn maze cut fresh into a new pattern every year on flat farmland outside Dixon, roughly halfway between Sacramento and the Bay Area on Interstate 80. Plan an hour and a half to find your way through, then let kids loose in the corn bath and hay castle while you pick pumpkins and squash from the patch out front.
Don’t miss: New maze design cut every year · Corn bath and hay castle for kids · Halfway between Sacramento and the Bay Area
in California
Bishop's Pumpkin Farm
29 miPumpkin patch
Color nearby peaks November 13
A Wheatland farm built around a u-pick pumpkin field big enough that most families ride the farm train just to get across it, plus a corn maze, carousel, and petting zoo for the younger kids. It opens for a preview weekend in late August, then runs daily from early September through mid November, about 40 minutes north of Sacramento.
Don’t miss: U-pick pumpkin field with a farm train · Corn maze and carousel · Daily, Sept 4 to Nov 15, 2026
in California
Coloma
37 miHistoric town
Color nearby peaks November 3
The Sierra foothill town where James Marshall found gold in the American River in 1848 and set off the Gold Rush, now preserved as a state historic park with a reconstructed sawmill and old storefronts along the river. Pan for gold in the shallows, then drive twenty minutes up into Apple Hill for the rest of the afternoon.
Don’t miss: Site of the 1848 gold discovery · Gold panning on the American River · Gold Rush era buildings and museum
in California
Placerville
39 miHistoric town
Color nearby peaks November 1
The Gold Rush town that miners once called Hangtown, its Main Street still lined with brick storefronts and historical markers from the 1850s. It sits right below Apple Hill, so most visitors treat it as a stop on the way up rather than a destination itself, but the old town rewards a half hour of walking around before the orchards.
Don’t miss: Gold Rush era Main Street · Historical markers from the 1850s · Gateway to Apple Hill
in California
Abel's Apple Acres
42 miOrchard
Color nearby peaks October 30
A Placerville orchard that opens Labor Day weekend and stays open through Christmas Eve, with a mining themed adventure and a life-size maze running weekends and holidays. Stop at the activity center for a barbecue lunch between rounds of apple picking on the Carson Road side of Apple Hill.
Don’t miss: Mining adventure and life-size maze · Weekend and holiday BBQ lunch · Open Labor Day weekend through Christmas Eve
in California
Apple Hill
43 miOrchard
Color nearby peaks October 29
El Dorado County's Apple Hill district strings dozens of family orchards, cider presses, and pie stands along Carson Road above Placerville, a Sierra foothill harvest tradition since the 1960s, running weekends from September through December.
Don’t miss: Dozens of family orchards · Cider pressing and pie stands · U-pick apples and pumpkins
in California
Guides
Frequently asked
- When do leaves peak in Sacramento in 2026?
- Peak color is predicted for November 13–November 17 (best estimate November 15). Color starts around October 31 and trees are mostly bare by December 7. These dates are computed for Sacramento itself — at 22 m elevation — from the same weather model as the tracker.
- When is fall foliage season in Sacramento?
- Sacramento colors during autumn (September–November). Sacramento's canopy is the surprise of California autumn — one of the country's great urban forests, with street after street of scarlet liquidambar, ginkgo and Japanese maple in East Sacramento and Land Park. Add cottonwoods along the American River Parkway and Apple Hill's orchards in the foothills, and the season stretches for weeks.
- What's the best foliage near Sacramento?
- Sugarloaf Ridge State Park (56 mi). For a longer trip: California (145 mi, peak ~November 13); Nevada (247 mi, peak ~October 18); Oregon (378 mi, peak ~October 20).
- What are the best things to do in fall in Sacramento?
- Beyond the leaves: Cool Patch Pumpkins (22 mi); Bishop's Pumpkin Farm (29 mi); Coloma (37 mi); Placerville (39 mi); Abel's Apple Acres (42 mi). All of them are mapped on this page.
- What are the best things to do in autumn near Sacramento?
- Come autumn — autumn (September–November) — locals head for Cool Patch Pumpkins (22 mi); Bishop's Pumpkin Farm (29 mi); Coloma (37 mi); Placerville (39 mi); Abel's Apple Acres (42 mi). Each is on the map with the distance from Sacramento.