Leaf Peeping Map 2023: Plan Your Fall RV Trips

Plan your perfect fall foliage getaway with this interactive leaf color map! It's the ultimate visual planning guide to the annual progression of changing leaves…

Discover the best destinations to experience nature's spectacular show as the leaves change color this season. Simply explore this interactive map to find where red, orange and yellow hues will peak near your travel dates.

The map provides a visual guide to follow autumn's colorful transformation across North America. View precise predictions of the fall foliage season from week to week. Get ideas for your RV route and plan to hit the road when scenery will be at its most breathtaking.

Spend your fall trip immersed in nature's vibrant beauty thanks to this easy planning tool. Start discovering your next leaf peeping adventure today!

“Leaf peeping” is travel jargon for viewing, photographing, or simply enjoying fall foliage.

As you know from many of our posts, Jennifer and I can never get enough of fall foliage. Every year, landscapes transform as if God decides to get out his paintbrush and remind us of the surrounding beauty.

Leaf peeping has become so popular that RVers even plan trips around the changing leaves. And luckily, there’s an amazing interactive tool to help you do just that!

PLUS we have a BONUS map for you at the end of this post from Hipcamp! You can cross reference these two maps and find some wonderful new places to camp this fall season. Make sure you check it out.

If you buy something through our links, we may get a small commission at no extra cost to you. It helps keep our lights on so we can continue to provide helpful resources for RVers. Read our full affiliate disclosure here.

Fall Foliage Prediction Map

The above fall foliage prediction map, or leaf peeping map, is created by SmokyMountains.com. It gives you a nationwide view of the changing leaves.

**You can check travel dates by using the slider bar at the bottom. The different colors denote different stages.**

Green denotes no change yet and brown means that the leaves are past their peak. The colors in between show the colorful progression of fall.

It’s so easy to use, and frankly, it's fun! I couldn’t help sliding the bar back and forth to see the colorful flow overtake parts of the country.

How Accurate are its Predictions?  

Just like you can’t completely predict the weather, leaf predictions can never be 100% accurate. However, SmokyMountains.com has published this predictive leaf peeping map for nearly a decade.

It started out as a fun project to meet the needs of their customers. SmokyMountains.com offers 2,000+ cabins and vacation rentals in Gatlinburg and the Smoky Mountains. So, it’s easy to see how the leaf peeping map could benefit their customers.

But what started as a fun project for their clientele rapidly grew into a top fall resource that tens of millions of people use annually.

The founder of SmokeyMountains.com and creator of the map, David Angotti, is also an Airline Transport Pilot. As such, he was required to fully understand weather patterns and was highly trained to use meteorological tools. The combination of his expertise and love for travel led to this highly accurate tool.

What Data Does the Map Use?

I love to know how things work and algorithms, in particular, impress me. The algorithm SmokeyMountain.com created analyzes several million data points, including:

• NOAA historical temperatures
• NOAA historical precipitation
• NOAA forecast temperatures
• NOAA forecast precipitation
• Historical leaf peak trends
• Peak observation trends
• Historical model outputs from previous years

It outputs approximately 50,000 predictive data pieces that forecast county-by-county the precise moment when peak fall will occur.

And last year, they announced how it's more accurate than ever, with mid-season updates.

“Due to the complexity of applying a humongous, multi-faceted dataset, we have historically published our map annually without mid-season updates,” creator David Angotti explains. “However, for the first time ever, we plan to release a mid-season update in late September. By applying the mid-season update, we believe the accuracy and usefulness of the tool will be increased.”

How is the Fall Foliage Prediction Map Useful?

As RVers, you probably instantly see the usefulness for travelers. We’ve all too often mistimed our trips and begrudgingly enjoyed the “leftovers.” A tool like this changes that.

Now, you can perfectly time your trip for the:

• Best Fall Color Drives in New England
• 20 Delightful State Parks for RVing in the Fall
• 5 Awesome RV Destinations for Fall Color

It’s also a great opportunity to pull out your RV Lifestyle Adventure Guides for:

• Adirondack Park and Finger Lakes
• Yellowstone National Park
• Michigan’s Upper Peninsula
• Michigan's Lower Peninsula
• The Great Lakes Shoreline

Even if you've been to the above places before, it'll be like visiting a whole new place if you go at peak times.

Unexpected Uses

However, clever folks have used the fall foliage prediction map for more than travel.

“The vast majority of individuals use the leaf map to simply check when leaves will peak near their home or use it to plan a leaf peeping trip,” David Angotti says. “However, through the years, we have heard some fascinating stories about how the tool was leveraged.”

He goes on to share some of the favorite stories from leaf peeping map users.

One example is a bride in the northeast changing the date of her outdoor wedding. Another is a director scheduling a movie shoot on location based on our predictions. Even school teachers have used the map to plan field trips and add to their lesson plans.

BONUS Leaf Color Map from HIPCAMP

With Hipcamp’s 2023 Fall Foliage Map, RV campers can:

• Plan Perfect Fall Getaways: Easily determine the optimal week to witness fall foliage in any given county within the contiguous United States.

• Discover Ideal RV Campsites: Find the perfect private Hipcamp or iconic public campsite from which to view the changing colors of fall. RVers can select from secluded forest sites, lakeside RV spots, and mountain getaways across the nation.

• Enjoy Personalized Recommendations: By clicking the “Search near me” button, users can find even more available campsites in a given area and use Hipcamp’s 40+ filters (to include RV filters showcasing hookups and length preferences) to create the perfect camping experience.

The Great Lakes Adventure Guide Bundle

Use the leaf peeping map to its fullest with the Great Lakes and Upper Peninsula bundle. Used together, these resources can lead to the best fall trip you've ever taken.

Mike and Jennifer's Great Lakes Bundle – 2 ebooks!

This bundle is our popular Upper Peninsula RV Adventure Guide PLUS our newest Adventure Guide – The Great Lakes Shoreline Tour! Both ebooks will give you plenty of ideas and resources to enjoy this part of the US.

Explore this Bundle and plan your next trip!

---

Other Nifty Leaf Peeping Resources

SmokyMountains.com also offers some helpful information and fun resources on their fall leaf map site.

You can see a scientific overview of why leaves change colors, colorful illustrations, fall coloring sheets for kids and a list of the Top Places to See Fall Foliage in All 50 States.

We actually recommended this predictive leaf peeping map in one of our RV Lifestyle newsletters last year. For those who want more helpful tips and resources sent to your email, you can join our newsletter and receive a free packing list!