Great Smoky Mountains Natl. Park — Leaves are starting to change in the highest elevations of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.
"If we get the rain, it looks like a very optimistic and a very good fall color season," University of Tennessee Forest Management Professor Wayne Clatterbuck said. "In the 40s at night, up into the 60s/70s, even 80s during the day is just ideal."
Clatterbuck said Tennessee is a unique spot for fall foliage because of the elevation changes.
"You don't have to isolate to one specific date if you're willing to drive and see different places across the elevation change," he said. "In the mountains, it'll happen in the first or second week of October because it's higher elevations and cooler... then it'll progress down."
He said the lower elevations could see peak color around the third or fourth week of October, followed by the valley in late October or early November if the weather cooperates.
"If we have some moisture, it will elongate the season and make it a little bit more vibrant with all the different species and different colors," Clatterbuck said. "The moisture gives you the vibrancy and the color. If it's more of a drought, you're still going to have color, but it'd be more dull."
He said peak foliage season has changed from when he was analyzing the colors 15 or 20 years ago.
"Leaf color has really been delayed for about a week because of the warmer temperatures that we have in the fall now," he said. "Usually Alabama football weekend was the peak. It's not that way anymore. It's usually the following week around Halloween."