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Bad news for your autumn Instagram feed: This year’s fall foliage might be more “meh” than “majestic.” After months of dry weather, trees across New York are browning and dropping their leaves before they can turn those fiery reds and golds the Northeast is famous for. According to the U.S. Drought Monitor, more than 40-PERCENT of the country is currently experiencing drought—more than twice the usual amount for this time of year—and it’s hitting the Northeast particularly hard.
RECOMMENDED: The annual Central Park fall foliage map is officially here, tracking the color-changing schedules of 18,000 trees
“I think it might be a little bit of a short and less colorful season, for the most part,” Brad Rippey, a meteorologist with the U.S. Department of Agriculture, told the AP. “The color is just not going to be there this year for some hillsides.”
In a normal year, New York’s foliage transitions in perfect harmony: the Adirondacks peak first, followed by the Catskills, Hudson Valley and, finally, New York City’s ginkgo-lined streets in late October or early November. But this season’s combination of drought, unseasonably warm days and fewer cool nights has thrown that rhythm out of sync. Leaves are drying up, skipping the technicolor stage entirely and falling early.
The most recent I LOVE NY Fall Foliage Report still shows bright spots—peak color this week in parts of the Thousand Islands-Seaway region and central New York—but even those displays are expected to fade quickly. Upstate favorites like Lake Placid and Ticonderoga hit their stride earlier than usual, while Central Park’s maples and oaks may go straight from green to gone.
Still, not all hope (or color) is lost. Andy Finton, senior conservation ecologist with The Nature Conservancy in Massachusetts, offered a dose of optimism: “Our trees and our forests have an inherent resilience,” he said to the AP. “They are still very resilient and I am constantly surprised at how wonderful the fall season is despite these stresses.”
For city dwellers desperate for a glimpse of gold, the Parks Department recommends heading north soon—think Bear Mountain or Harriman State Park—before the show wraps up. By early November, the last of the color should sweep through the five boroughs, led by the ever dramatic ginkgos of the West Village.
If you were waiting to book that upstate cabin or Hudson Valley train ride, don’t. In 2025, leaf-peeping season is more like leaf-blinking season—catch it while you still can.