Field notes · 2026 estimate
When to see peak color at Prentice Cooper State Forest
Peak fall color is predicted around November 5. Plan for the strongest viewing window from October 31 to November 10.
The prediction comes from 14 years of fall color records at this spot, checked against what observers on the ground saw. Where state foliage spotters report peak (New York, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Missouri), it has landed inside our ±5-day window about two years in three. An unusual summer or autumn can still move it further. Explore fall color around Marion County and across Tennessee.
That is 5 days later than usual (November 1): the six weeks to October 13 ran 6.1°F warmer than the 2001–2025 average, and a warmer run before peak delays the color. This will settle about ten days before peak, as the weather comes in.
Nearby locales
Other places to see color near Prentice Cooper State Forest
1 to 2 hours
- Stringer's Ridge Park27 mi · 1 hr 41 minPeak: Nov 3Status: Moderate color
- Tennessee River Gorge29 mi · 1 hr 45 minPeak: Nov 3Status: Early color
- Tennessee Riverpark31 mi · 1 hr 46 minPeak: Nov 3Status: Moderate color
- Cloudland Canyon State Park40 mi · 1 hr 58 minGeorgiaPeak: Nov 4Status: Moderate color
Over 3 hours
- Long Hunter State Park119 mi · 3 hr 22 minPeak: Oct 18Status: Peak color
- Cherohala Skyway104 mi · 3 hr 24 minPeak: Oct 29Status: Moderate color
- Georgia Highway 197118 mi · 3 hr 26 minGeorgiaPeak: Nov 3Status: Moderate color
- Nashville Area (Radnor Lake, Percy Warner Park, Harpeth River)123 mi · 3 hr 28 minPeak: Oct 31Status: Moderate color