memorable north shore mn fall colors
fall colors mn report
2024 Duluth and North Shore MN peak fall colors forecast and updated fall color report. We tell you what to expect and recommend the best drives and trails. Plus we have North Shore MN fall colors maps.
Autumn on the North Shore comes early, stays late and leaves lasting impressions. Colors start with a leaf, a streak of red, or an occasional tree, isolated and orange. This is the season of the maple in the valleys behind the headlands rising out of Lake Superior. From ridgelines, colors wash down the hillsides, surrounding deep green-black stands of pine.
Maple hillsides are found from around Beaver Bay northeast to the US-Canada border and inland a few miles from Highway 61.
As temps cool closer to the big lake, the second color season takes place. Poplars, birch and tamarack turn yellow and the entire Highway 61 corridor is lovely. Rainfall and temps affect both when the colors occur and how long they last, so it is variable each year.
When are peak fall colors on the north shore?
Typically maples begin to turn around Labor Day and are at peak from about September 21 through October 10. Depending on weather – especially wind – the maples last another few weeks.Â
In early October, the birch and poplar closer to Lake Superior start to run yellow and the second season starts. The yellow season runs into the start of November.
Peak Fall Colors Duluth MN
Duluth is at the southwest end of the North Shore and peak fall colors happen for most of the month of October.
Starting Labor Day, We are providing weekly [or more frequently] fall color reports with suggested routes for the best viewing.
Tips:
Keep the sun at your back for the best viewing, (look west in the morning and east all afternoon). Don’t worry if it is overcast, sometimes the colors look best when they contrast against a grey day.Â
Download a North Shore map. After fall color touring, see something new
Attractions & Tours
2024 Fall Color Report
blown away, late season gold
21 October
Well the temps have dropped and the wind has blown and blown stripping many trees of their leaves. Following the odd pattern of the year though, there are lots of pockets of color along the shore. The yellows and golds are spotty along Highway 61 and inland.Â
What you will see
The shore is past peak on maples and the golden birch/aspen season. That said, you will find stretches and hillside patches of gold and yellow. Lots of lovely leaves to shuffle through on paths.
Where to see the best color right now
Where to see maples:
They are past peak, so any color you see is a bonus.
Where to see golden birch:
Intermittently along Highway 61, the first mile inland plus the Gunflint Trail. Tamarack stands are becoming shimmery gold and lovely. The 5 miles near Grand Portage and the Canadian border is especially pretty right now with the basalt cliffs, smattering of gold-leaved trees, and massive stretch of Lake Superior.
We are pleased to offer you 101 photos from the season. We try and be as honest as we can about what to expect on the North Shore, from fall colors, to available eateries. Thanks for coming back and checking often!
This Season’s Photos
(bottom of the page) a slideshow of the 2024 fall color season
This week's recommended fall color tours
Colors are just starting at the top of the ridges and in the valleys behind. No recommendations for the week other than get outside and keep an open for the seasonal changes.
Find trails first and then drives. And scroll to see photos from the season!
mile 36.8
mile 58.9
mile 86.1
mile 51.0
gunflint mile 24.0
gunflint mile 11.0
Attractions
Check out these North Shore Favorites
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mile 58.9
One of my favorite medium hikes! The Tettegouche Lake loop is part of a trail system accessed on the back side of Tettegouche State Park. It begins with an old road bed climbing 285-feet over three-quarters of a mile, includes four overlooks and a dip down to the historic Tettegouche Camp [where cabins are available for rent]. I like to go counter clockwise from the junction and see the overlooks, then take a little break at the Camp where I decide if I am going to add on more loops or head back. In the autumn, consider the ‘circling the lakes’ as the valleys are filled with colorful maples!
Length: 3.5 miles
Difficulty: moderate to difficult due to hills
Driving directions can be funky: from Highway 61, drive north on MN 1 for 4.3 miles, turn left on Lax Lake Rd for 3.1 miles, parking will be on left.
