MONTPELIER, Vt. – Many areas of the state will be displaying colorful foliage over the next several days as a cold front moves into the area this weekend.
Around the state, early color is beginning to appear in patches and bands along the higher elevations and in moist low-lying areas with varying shades of orange, yellow and red. Temperatures are expected to dip into the 40s on Friday, followed by sunny and crisp weather conditions over the weekend.
Ginger Anderson, Chief of Forest Management for the Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation, said even if low temperatures around the state remain in the 40s over the weekend, the cold pockets will likely experience light to moderate frost in the coming days.
 “This will advance the spot colors that we are seeing now in the wetland areas, hollows and even on some exposed hillsides,” she said. “Look for more reds in the coming days, and more purples as the white ash begin to color up.”
Best Bets: Interstate 89 from Georgia to Richmond is showing nice reds on the roadside sumacs. Beautiful early color can also be found on Route 108 between Stowe and Cambridge, Route 15 between Jericho and Johnson, Route 12A between Randolph and Roxbury, Route 12 between Montpelier and Morrisville, and Route 116 between Hinesburg and Starksboro. Look for geese near Lake Carmi and in the Morristown area, too.
In the Northeast Kingdom, Route 114 from East Burke through Norton and up along the border to Canaan offers some excellent opportunities for foliage viewing. Also try Route 5A from West Burke up to Lake Willoughby in Westmore, and Route 14 from Hardwick to Orleans.
To the south, early color in the higher elevations is starting to progress quickly. Shades of orange and yellow are the dominate colors with smaller pockets of red. Foliage is evident along Route 9 between Brattleboro and Bennington, and Route 100 between Wilmington, Bridgewater, Killington and Rochester. Also try Route 73 from Rochester to Brandon, Route 140 from Mount Holly to Wallingford, and Route 103 from Ludlow to East Clarendon.
Spots of red, orange and yellow can also be seen along Route 7 between Wallingford and Danby, and Route 7A between Manchester and Bennington.
The cool weather has lowered water temperatures in marshy areas, causing soft maples in these areas to show early to mid-stage color ranging from burnt orange to gold. Suggested drives to see color in these marshy areas include Route 73 from Brandon to Sudbury, and Route 30 from Whiting to Castleton Corners.
In general, higher elevations will offer the most panoramic views of emerging color across the valleys, and many swamp or marsh areas will offer some of the most vivid and varied early season change.
The Vermont Hospitality Council advises making advance reservations because the most popular lodgings may fill early on busy weekends in late September and the first two weekends in October. Some innkeepers may require a minimum two-night stay, especially on busy weekends.
Vermont tourism officials encourage visitors to take advantage of midweek specials during the foliage season as part of its statewide “Midweek Peek” promotion. Deals range from discounted lodging to free Vermont products.
This section of our Web site has several tools for planning your 2009 Vermont Fall Foliage tour including:
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