October 18-22: Too Late for Fall Trip to VT?

Submitted by GreyL88 t3_xuno21 in vermont

Hi everyone! I've always wanted to go to Vermont, and just booked a last-minute trip from October 18-22 with my spouse because that's the only time he can get time off. Is it too late in the year to be pretty there? I just checked the fall foliage tracker and it looks like mid-Oct is pretty late for the foliage there, but maybe it's still pretty? The foliage is not the only draw for us, but we will be pretty bummed if the trees are totally brown. I have about 5 more hours to cancel this flight lol, so hoping I can get some thoughts from Vermonters before then!

ETA: Thanks to all the lovely Vermonters who commented so quickly on this, I was able to cancel our flight and get the refund! Thank you all SO much for the help- will have to save Vermont for another year :)

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yoyo13861 t1_iqwdiah wrote

I just went there Oct 1st, color is reaching peak, as the weather get cold, I think it will hit peak pretty fast, Oct 18-22 pretty much only wooden sticks left

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir68duz wrote

Thank you for replying so quickly!! I went ahead and cancelled it- bummer but I was happy to get the money back and save it for next fall!

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milsurpfarts t1_iqwe0fr wrote

Too late: We call that stick season. It will be chilly and you won’t even have any snow to enjoy. Southern New England or NY might still have some color at that point but not the abundance of brightly colored Maple trees.

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pinkmoon992 t1_iqwel93 wrote

We’re already peaking, my guess is most of the leaves will be blown down by then.. or just yellow and brown

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir6aqsm wrote

Thank you! You all were so helpful I was able to cancel our flight. Don't need it to be peak foliage, but sounds like I'm better off waiting

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[deleted] t1_iqwdz9i wrote

yeah, who wants to take vacation to see brown trees? ugh...the worst.

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slightlyTartLemon t1_iqwiea8 wrote

Forget these dumb dying trees! Ugh! We got a beautiful, untouched dirt bike track where the mall used to be!

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auddii04 t1_iqwtc97 wrote

Woohoo! Hopefully that means I'll miss peak tourists on my trip at the end of the month.

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir68q0e wrote

Lol, you'll miss me. Have fun though! Low season anywhere is the best. Honestly I'd still like to see VT, but what with limited vacation time/funds I want to visit a somewhat prettier time of year.

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auddii04 t1_ir6954o wrote

Definitely enjoy the season! We're thinking about moving, so we waited until after the rush to tour the north east and see where we might like. Not people's typical vacation.

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir6yw92 wrote

Nice! I have a fantasy of buying a second home (don't own a first home lol) in Vermont at some point, despite never having actually been there, so definitely need to visit soon

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir6ablb wrote

I mean nothing against brown trees, but we see enough of them in our area- we have a bit of a fall but it's short and not as beautiful as New England's, of course

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mcnut14 t1_iqwe9e4 wrote

If you're in the Champlain Valley Burlington and south there may be some good color around. It's definitely too late for the mountains.

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merikus t1_iqwjfv6 wrote

Don’t let these people discourage you.

Yes, the absolute peak leaves will be gone. So if that’s your only reason for coming, well, that will be a problem. But the rest of Vermont is still here and there will be far fewer tourists.

Also, I argue that stick season is Vermont’s most beautiful season. So you get to see something that’s amazing that most people write off.

Enjoy your vacation and don’t worry too much about chlorophyll decay.

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir6929k wrote

Thank you for responding! The foliage definitely isn't the ONLY reason for going- I think Vermont sounds beautiful in general. But, since I've never been I do want to see it in some of its foliage finery- I live in northern Virginia, so we have a fair amount of brown/stick season here too :) I cancelled my flight, but will try again next fall.

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jo7468 t1_iqx69am wrote

Seconding that stick season does have a kind of stark beauty, usually prefer it to snow tbh

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bibliophile222 t1_iqwecbv wrote

Usually at that point in the year there are still some scattered yellow leaves, but the majority of the trees will be kinda bare. It's still a pretty state, but rapidly approaching one of the least pretty times of year.

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onebluephish1981 t1_iqwfq3u wrote

Too late, I would say in the next few days if you can swing it.

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir69tqk wrote

Thanks. Yeah, we live just far enough (about an 8-hour drive from northern VA) so that we have to buy a plane ticket and request leave far in advance- all tricky for variable fall foliage patterns.

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Sdwingnut t1_iqya6eu wrote

You haven't told us where in VT. VT is (fortunately) more than just the Burlington area.

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[deleted] t1_iqwf69s wrote

What airport are you flying into?

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir69efk wrote

We were going to do Burlington and then were planning to spend time in southern VT to maximize foliage. We live just far enough to have to fly/thus plan ahead- we'll have to try another year!

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Dangerous_Hope4831 t1_iqwkyn4 wrote

Peak will pretty much be done by the 10th this year. Even Burlington won’t have much by the 18th. The gondola rides for foliage end the 16th and by the 15th things will mostly be dead and brown.

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btwnmtns t1_iqwz2lg wrote

Too early actually! Mid December should be golden for you.

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GreyL88 OP t1_ir69krt wrote

I do love snow, but probably less so if I'm hoping for autumn foliage

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AdventureSheepies t1_iqxzggb wrote

It depends on if we get some hard rain or not, sometimes it's still pretty orange/almost brown in southern VT and in the valleys by then. I love stick season though. No foliage but the air is crisp and the woods are totally different when there's no leaf cover/underbrush.

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