PORTLAND, Ore. (KOIN) — This is it, Portland! We have finally made it to the point of the season where we’re seeing those peak fall colors.
The colors around the Willamette Valley are now starting to grandstand. We have been waiting patiently after the colorful season was put on pause due to the dry and warm weather. This is going to be short-lived, as the weather starts to become more active this time of the year.
You should start to notice the maples around the area transitioning to red or yellow. Most of the trees that had maybe 50% of the foliage already turning, should be closer to full. This is now the time to get out and about for those after walks to check out the colors around the area.
Notice in the graphic below that there is a section of the state that is now past the peak color. This is an estimation based on live cameras, sunlight, weather and the type of trees.
For those of you that wanted to travel across the state to check out the fall colors, you may want to head south instead of east.
As we have discussed in previous fall articles, the time was going to come abruptly and you will have to capitalize on the moment quickly — because, unfortunately, the weather isn’t going to be as cooperative as it would be earlier in October.
There will be more rain, wind, and clouds to disrupt the viewing process. You will also start to notice more trees dropping leaves in the coming week as well. We are expected to jump from peak to post-peak quickly.
Based on the conditions we mentioned above, it will be tough to hold on to our peak for very long. Make sure you use the dry time and sun breaks to your advantage this week.
When can we expect those sun breaks and dry moments?
We will have that chance late Tuesday afternoon. Planning for the future though, you should have some sun breaks on Wednesday. We may get lucky for a little bit of sunshine early Thursday and before our next system on Friday.
Overall, there won’t be a lot of blue sky to pair with the colors this week. Your best bet is to still take advantage of the dry time, which will be around Wednesday and Thursday.
We will have one final update early next week. Fingers crossed that we can keep some of these leaves on the trees for a bit to enjoy the last wave of color.