Holy crap, fall is ahead of schedule!!!

“I can't believe it. No one can and everyone's talking about it... Around 25 percent of the leaves have changed color, like, over the weekend!

Typically, I figure fall colors peak around from the first to second weekend in Oct. It's looking like they might be GONE by then this year!!! This is truly amazing. I'm trying to think what kind of odd weather we had this year to make the leaves go early, but can't recall, unless maybe it was hot more than normal... oh yeah, and perhaps it was hot earlier than normal... STILL??!?!?!???!!!!!!!!

How are colors elsewhere? Heading up to Duluth and the North Shore this weekend for the first time ever... how's color there?”

“not to much here, jsut a few early bird trees, but nothing spectacular.”

“Thank you for that "North Shore" report, Spirit Coyote... but not the North Shore I had in mind. hehehehe ;-P ;-P”

“well, you didnt specify which north shore :P”

“Hey lizs...why don't you stop bny my place and pick up some(or all) of these....
”

“Awww, those are adorable!!! I just LOVE black cats with the white noses and feet, Tuxedo Cats!”

“How many dang threads did you put these cats on, SC? ;-)

That's the one I picked, lizs.”

“Could it be related to rainfall? I know that around here there have been predictions of great color this year because of the prime conditions...lots of rain so the trees aren't thirsty, warm days, and cool nights. Not sure how that might affect the peak though.”

“Even in Tennessee the leaves are starting to come down. Bout time. I'm sick of hot weather.”

“colors are really changing by me... Duluth is probably ahead of us.... we're about 20-25% I'd say.... You might hit 50% up there this coming weekend...”

“The gingko trees on our street don't change until around Thanksgiving or Christmas....”

“richdude....hey bro!!!!”

“It was getting cooler here, but it is warm tonight.

We have had plenty of rain, the trees are green, but I am betting the color will be pretty spectacular this year.”

“What up Opie”

“taking the mrs's out into the smokies saturday. we gotta hit the sipsey again guys”

“I'm thinking about going to Sipsey in October”

“When is the trip planned? November?”

“Hey Lizs..

Try here.
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/fall_colors/index.html?region=ne

I love Arizona, but I do miss the fall color on the North Shore. We don't have the oaks and maples. Mostly aspen-type yellows.”

“Hiya, cindy lu!

Any North Shore recommendations, "gotta-sees?"

And how are you doing? Was just thinking about you, wondering about a stop at Banning, if going up Thursday after work.”

“Split Rock Lighthouse.
Palisade Head
There are a few State Parks along the North Shore as well. One has a series of waterfalls kinda like this one.

High Falls
”

“Trees are just starting to change in the higher terrain around here. In a few weeks we should have some nice colors this year.”

“Purdy!! Thanks for suggestions!”

“funny, the St Croix Valley hasn't changed much...gotta couple of trees but nothing like it can get...I think the high heat and drought conditions last summer (what a sad phrase "last summer") might have had some effect on the timing...”

“I noticed many of the dogwoods between here and Charlotte are scarlet already. The sycamores around here have changed color a full month (or two) early and are starting to drop their leaves. The fox grape vines around here are already turning too.”

“It's an early fall in Glacier, too! Nice now, but I don't know what's in store for October. It was very hot and super dry all summer.”

“48 degrees here. No color change-but then there are a lot of oaks and pines in the village.”

“I had to go to a trout stream near Forestville/Mystery Cave State Park (LOL, sometimes I LIKE my job! neener!) and just could not believe the color changes.

Was attempting an interview with the local guy named head of an area DNR fisheries office. Got to watch them electrofishing (for the second time this year) along with an area high school class on "Fisheries." (gotta like that for an ag class!) It was pretty funny -- EVERY member of that class had hip waders on. LOL! Course, they didn't attempt to go into the water until the shock current was shut off, even with the waders on.

Beautiful day, even though it was cloudy, windy, in the 40s and sprinkling at times Spent an hour and a half out there. Love that! And am still in shock at the amount of leaves changed sooooooo early!

And the new head of the fisheries office was telling me how, at a BOW (Becoming An Outdoors Woman) at a class over the weekend at Eagle Bluff Environmental Learning Center (you Root River padddlers will remember it!), the former pro woman wrestler MADUSA (guess that's how it's spelled) was there. Interesting story. Drinking with her and her outdoor gal buddies she dragged along went into the wee hours of the night. Guess I shoulda gone to that for a story!!!! Just looked this up; wowsers: http://www.madusa.com/”

“The way the colors have changed where I live, the colors along the North Shore will be peaking this weekend. Just in time for you. My son and I may be up there today or tomorrow. By the time we get back it will be to late to advise you. Hence my 100% guaranteed accurate prediction. Also, they were changing markedly on Isle Royle 10 days ago.”

“Happening out here in Southern Colorado too, even down here in the lower altitudes in Colorado Springs, (6,035 ft.). Probably going to get a hike in the next couple of weekends, got a feeling the high country will be turning very fast this year due to a lot of rain thru August which is kinda rare around here.

B.J. Ondo
Colorado Springs, CO.”

“yep, sposed to be some good color on the Aspens this weekend and next.”

“Just came through Salt Lake City/Provo on the way home and they have snow already on the mountains.”

“Site that has fall color maps

http://www.weather.com/outlook/driving/fallfoliage/?ff_fileToView=nc&list=y”

“colors were pretty close in NW Wisconsin and the southern UP, more so west I would say”

“Yup, color is changing really fast here in northern Wisconsin.”

“In the mountains of Idaho the color change is happening now, from black to white. There are lots of fires this year. I had to change packing trips because of them. Even entered a closed are that I didn’t know was closed until I got home. Now it is snowing in many of those areas.

http://www.ruralnetwork.net/~dpinney/fullsize.html”

“Lizs - Just got back from the North Shore (Superior Hiking Trail) and the leaves are actually behind what they are in NW Wisconsin. Go figure. Probably 7-10 days before peak up there, but a cold snap could change things.”

“Weather broke about a month early here in the desert.”

“I left Tri Cites 2 hours ago...48 degrees going to 40 tonight.

It is pretty cool here in Townsend too. Wont be long before we see a little color, but I still figure we are three weeks away at best.”

“Dang this Global Warming is killing me....”

“Posted by nimblefoot: “Lizs - Just got back from the North Shore (Superior Hiking Trail) and the leaves are actually behind what they are in NW Wisconsin. Go figure. Probably 7-10 days before peak up there, but a cold snap could change things.”

Like I said..leaves change later along the shores of Lake Superior...

Only 10% so far in the St Croix River Valley...

http://www.travelwisconsin.com/search/FallColorReport.html

http://www.northshorefallcolors.com/report/index.htm
last edited: 9/21/06 8:41:22 AM”

“I left the windows open last night and damn it was cold when I got up.”

“42 degrees at wake up this morning. Needed a HOT shower!”

“It was 43 degrees here...colors are popping out all over the place! I LOVE IT!!”

“Wow, fall is here now. I'm only running my A/C 11 hours a day instead of 24/7.”

“Dang, My AC aint been on in a week....”

“I haven't run the AC yet this year.”

“A/C six days this year”

“Elmer Fudd shot ours....then Uncle Hoppy put on this girl hunter outfit.....”

“Yesterday was the first day I didn't have to run my A/C at all.”

“Man i havent run mine since the end of August”