Fall 2026 · Ozark color usually peaks in late October · checked October 9, 2026
Fall colors near Northwest Arkansas: scenic drives & when leaves peak
Where to drive and walk for fall color from Fayetteville, Bentonville and Eureka Springs: the Pig Trail, the Boston Mountains Scenic Loop, Hwy 21 through Boxley Valley and Scenic 7, plus overlooks and short walks close to home. Arkansas Tourism says color in the Ozarks typically starts in earnest by the second week of October and peaks in late October, but heat, rain and the first cold snap move it every year. We don't forecast. Route facts come from ARDOT, Arkansas Tourism, the Forest Service and the Park Service, and each stop's facts come from the agency or place that runs it.
Orange pins and badges are open this weekend, from each place's posted schedule.
The essentials
When it peaks
- In the Ozarks
- Color typically starts in earnest by the second week of October, with peak color in late October, per Arkansas Tourism. The rest of the state follows from late October into mid-November.
- Where it starts
- Northern Arkansas first: color typically begins in early October and ripples south over about six weeks. Higher elevations usually change before the lowlands around them, wherever they are in the state.
- Start to peak
- Normally two to three weeks after the color starts changing.
- What moves it
- Day length, temperature and rain, so timing and brilliance shift from year to year. Arkansas Tourism's Ozark drives page adds heat, rainfall and the timing of the first autumn cold snap. On Aug 28, 2026 the Forest Service warned of triple-digit heat and a lack of rain.
- Color reports
- We couldn't find a 2026 weekly fall color report on Arkansas.com as of Oct 9. Arkansas Tourism: 501-682-7777.
- Book ahead
- Arkansas Tourism says lodging along these routes fills fast in fall; book early and consider a midweek trip.
Source: arkansas.com
Road notes
- Pig Trail curves
- Arkansas Tourism describes sharp curves and steep grades on Hwy 23, and its byway guide calls the Pig Trail one of the top motorcycle rides in North America (citing USA Today). Expect to share the curves.
- Closures
- ARDOT posts closures, lane closures and construction at IDriveArkansas.com. We couldn't read its closure feed on Oct 9, so check it the morning you drive.
- Fire danger
- The Forest Service has warned of heightened wildfire activity in Arkansas since Aug 28. Check the Ozark-St. Francis alerts page and county burn bans before you build a fire.
- Elk in Boxley Valley
- The Park Service counts about 100 elk along the six miles of Hwy 43 and Hwy 21 between Ponca and Boxley. It's a through highway: pull completely off the road to watch.
- Hunting season
- Hobbs State Park closes the Hidden Diversity, Pigeon Roost, Sinking Stream, Shaddox Hollow and Wolf Den trails for hunts Oct 17–21, Nov 7–8 and Nov 14–18, 2026. Wear orange on Forest Service and AGFC land.
- GPS
- White Rock Mountain and Thorncrown Chapel both warn that car GPS sends people the wrong way. Load directions before you lose signal.
Source: ardot.gov
Scenic drives from NWA
The first four are designated scenic byways on ARDOT's list. Hwy 16 and US 62 aren't designated, but they connect them to Fayetteville and Eureka Springs.
National Forest Scenic Byway, 19 miles
Pig Trail Scenic Byway (Hwy 23)
Hwy 23 from the Ozark National Forest's south boundary near I-40 north to Hwy 16 at Brashears
- When:
- Year-round; Ozark color typically peaks in late October (Arkansas Tourism)
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Designated a National Forest Scenic Byway in 1989. Arkansas Tourism says the road often runs through a tunnel of foliage, with sharp curves and steep grades. It crosses the Mulberry River and the 165-mile Ozark Highlands Trail. Turner Bend, a store and outfitter at the river crossing open since 1911, sells food and rents canoes. From Fayetteville you reach it on Hwy 16 east to Brashears.
State scenic byway: two roads, 42 and 38 miles
Boston Mountains Scenic Loop (US 71 & I-49)
US 71 and I-49 between Fayetteville and Alma
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Two very different crossings of the highest part of the Ozarks. US 71 (42 miles) twists through the mountains past overlooks and small towns. I-49 (38 miles) crosses on high bridges and through the Bobby Hopper Tunnel, the state's only highway tunnel. Drive one down and the other back. Devil's Den, White Rock Mountain and Lake Fort Smith State Park are short side trips. ARDOT still lists the interstate half under its old number, I-540.
State scenic byway, 35 miles
Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway (Hwy 21) & Boxley Valley
Hwy 21 from Hwy 64 north through the Ozark National Forest to the Buffalo National River
- When:
- Year-round; the Park Service says fall and winter are the best times to see Boxley Valley's elk
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Runs ridges through the area where the White, Buffalo, Kings and Mulberry rivers and Big Piney Creek begin, and crosses the Ozark Highlands Trail. At the north end, Hwy 21 and Hwy 43 run six miles through the Boxley Valley Historic District, home to about 100 elk (Park Service). Cave Mountain Road to Hawksbill Crag leaves Hwy 21 in the valley.
State scenic byway, 290 miles in all
Arkansas Scenic 7 Byway (Ozark section)
Hwy 7; the Ozark section runs north from Russellville through Jasper to Harrison
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Arkansas's first state-designated scenic byway runs from near El Dorado to Harrison. North of Russellville it climbs into the Ozark National Forest and through Jasper, with a vista Arkansas Tourism calls the Grand Canyon of the Ozarks. North of Jasper, Hwy 7 leads to the Park Service's Erbie and Ozark campgrounds on the Buffalo (gravel roads).
Connecting road (not a designated byway)
Hwy 16 east of Fayetteville
Hwy 16 east from Fayetteville through Madison County
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Arkansas Tourism's Pig Trail route follows Hwy 16 and Hwy 23 between Fayetteville and Ozark. Farther east on Hwy 16, county roads from Boston lead to Kings River Falls Natural Area, and the Park Service notes Hawksbill Crag's trailhead can be reached on gravel roads from Hwy 16.
Connecting road (not a designated byway)
US 62 west from Eureka Springs
US 62 between Eureka Springs and Garfield
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Thorncrown Chapel sits 1.5 miles west of Eureka Springs on US 62. Farther west, AGFC's Devil's Eyebrow trail starts at a gate on the south side of US 62, 0.5 mile east of the Hwy 37 junction at Gateway; its old logging roads give views of Beaver Lake from Trimble Mountain in fall and winter. It's 11.8 miles of steep hollows on an open hunting area, so wear orange.
Overlooks & short walks close to town
Under an hour from most of NWA, and easy to fit around a weekend.
City overlook with a 1930s cross, plus 4.5 miles of city trail
Mount Sequoyah Overlook & Sequoyah Woods
150 N Skyline Dr, Fayetteville (Mount Sequoyah Center); Sequoyah Woods parking along Paddock Rd
- When:
- Year-round
- Hours:
- The center doesn't post Overlook hours; city parks close at 11 PM
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- The center's history page says sugar maples were planted in 1922 and that the changing leaves are picturesque in fall, among maples, oaks, hickories and dogwoods. The Overlook looks out over the city, with the 1930s cross. On the east side of the mountain, the city's 97-acre Mount Sequoyah Woods has about 4.5 miles of natural-surface trail.
City lake loop, 5.5-mile nature trail
Lake Fayetteville
1330 E Lake Fayetteville Rd, Fayetteville (marina)
- When:
- Year-round; closed Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's Day
- Hours:
- Sunrise to sunset
- Admission:
- Free to walk; lake access fees apply to fishing and boating
- What's there:
- A 194-acre lake inside 458 acres of park, with a 5.5-mile nature trail and 4.3 miles of paved trail around it, per the park page (the city's trails page gives 5.5 paved and 6.9 natural, so expect a few miles either way). Park at Veterans Park, North Shore or the lot south of the Botanical Garden of the Ozarks.
Museum grounds, 5+ miles of trail
Crystal Bridges trails
600 Museum Way, Bentonville
- When:
- Year-round
- Hours:
- Grounds and trails daily, sunrise to sunset
- What's there:
- More than 5 miles of trail on 134 acres around the museum. The North Forest Trail is a 1.4-mile hard-surface loop, the longest on the grounds list; the Tulip Tree Trail is 0.75 mile of crushed granite, and the Crystal Spring Trail 0.25 mile.
State park on Beaver Lake, 12,173 acres
Hobbs State Park-Conservation Area
20201 E Hwy 12, Rogers
- When:
- Year-round; several trails close for hunts Oct 17–21, Nov 7–8 and Nov 14–18, 2026
- Hours:
- Visitor center daily 8 AM–5 PM · 479-789-5000
- Admission:
- Free (no entry fee)
- What's there:
- Arkansas's largest state park. Short options: the 1.5-mile Shaddox Hollow Trail (closed on hunt dates) and the half-mile Historic Van Winkle Trail. The Ozark Plateau Trail is closed for repairs (park notice, Oct 9).
Overlook hike, 3 miles, moderate, about 2 hours
Yellow Rock Trail, Devil's Den State Park
Devil's Den State Park, 11333 W Arkansas Hwy 74, West Fork
- When:
- Year-round
- Hours:
- Visitor center daily 8 AM–5 PM · 479-761-3325
- Admission:
- Free (no entry fee)
- What's there:
- A 300-foot climb on a National Recreation Trail to an unobstructed view of the Lee Creek valley from atop the Yellow Rock, past cedar glades and the park's first building. The park's Devil's Den Trail is closed for repairs (park notice, Oct 9).
Day-trip overlooks
Forest Service and Park Service land south and east of Fayetteville. Expect gravel and spotty cell service.
Mountaintop rim trail, 2 miles, easy
White Rock Mountain
21923 Bowles Gap Rd, Winslow
- When:
- Grounds open year-round
- Hours:
- Day use sunrise to sunset · office 10 AM–7 PM · 479-369-4128
- Admission:
- $3 per vehicle for day use (waived for cabin and campsite guests)
- What's there:
- An easy 2-mile trail around the rim, with four CCC-built shelters for the view. From I-40 at Mulberry, take exit 24 north on Hwy 215 about 12.3 miles, then about 8 miles of Forest Service roads 1505 and 1535. Search "White Rock Mountain Recreation Area" in Google Maps instead of trusting car GPS. Recreation.gov puts the top at 2,309 feet; Arkansas Tourism says 2,260.
Clifftop hike, 1.5 miles (Forest Service)
Hawksbill Crag (Whitaker Point)
Whitaker Point (Hawksbill Crag) Trailhead, via Cave Mountain Road from Hwy 21
- When:
- Year-round, open 24 hours
- Hours:
- Open 24 hours
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- Arkansas Tourism names Whitaker Point among the state's fall foliage overlooks; the crag juts out over the Upper Buffalo Wilderness. The Forest Service lists the trail at 1.5 miles with steep cliffs. No restroom or drinking water at the trailhead. More in our waterfall hikes guide.
Bluff views and short walks near Ponca
Steel Creek & Boxley Valley (Buffalo National River)
Steel Creek, off Hwy 74 east of Ponca; Boxley Valley on Hwy 43 and Hwy 21
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free (no entry fee)
- What's there:
- Roark Bluff at Steel Creek is a sandstone wall about three-quarters of a mile long and more than 200 feet tall (park near tent site 24). Beaver Jim's Homestead is a half-mile loop on a hilltop above the river at Ponca. The Park Service says everything on its upper-district half-day list is within 5 miles of Ponca.
Glass chapel by architect E. Fay Jones
Thorncrown Chapel
12968 Highway 62 W, Eureka Springs
- When:
- March–December
- Hours:
- 9 AM–5 PM; can close as early as 12:30 PM for special events
- What's there:
- 1.5 miles west of town on US 62. From November through the third week of December there's one Sunday service, at 11 AM. The chapel says GPS often sends people the wrong way; use the map link on its site.
Worth the drive
National scenic byway, 54 miles
Talimena National Scenic Byway
Hwy 88 in Arkansas (18 miles) and OK 1 in Oklahoma, starting at 1911 US-59, Mena
- When:
- Year-round
- Admission:
- Free
- What's there:
- A long day from NWA, almost all of it in the Ouachita National Forest; the Ouachitas run east to west. It climbs Rich Mountain, Arkansas's second-highest peak at 2,681 feet, where Queen Wilhelmina State Park sits on top. The park's page carries an ARDOT notice of road work on Hwy 88 West with one-lane sections and possible delays, so check IDriveArkansas.com first.
Open this year, but the details above aren't all posted for 2026. Check their site before you drive.
Call ahead
These come up in older roundups, but nothing official confirms a 2026 season yet.
- Devil's Den Trail (Devil's Den State Park). Closed for repairs per the park's notice on Oct 9, 2026. The Yellow Rock Trail is the overlook hike in the meantime. Call 479-761-3325 for a reopening date.
- Ozark Plateau Trail (Hobbs State Park). Closed for repairs per the park's notice on Oct 9, 2026. Call 479-789-5000.
Quick answers
- When is peak fall color in Arkansas?
- Late October in the Ozarks, per Arkansas Tourism, with the rest of the state peaking from late October into mid-November. Heat, rain and the first cold snap shift it every year, and peak normally comes two to three weeks after the color starts.
- When do the leaves change in Northwest Arkansas?
- Arkansas Tourism says Ozark color typically starts in earnest by the second week of October. Higher ground changes first, so the Boston Mountains along the Pig Trail and Hwy 21 usually turn before the valleys around Fayetteville and Bentonville.
- How long is the Pig Trail Scenic Byway?
- 19 miles of Hwy 23, from the Ozark National Forest's south boundary near I-40 north to Hwy 16 at Brashears (ARDOT). From Fayetteville you reach it on Hwy 16. Arkansas Tourism warns of sharp curves and steep grades.
- What are the scenic byways near Fayetteville?
- Four designated byways are within a day's drive: the Pig Trail (Hwy 23, 19 miles), the Boston Mountains Scenic Loop (US 71, 42 miles, and I-49, 38 miles), the Ozark Highlands Scenic Byway (Hwy 21, 35 miles) and the Ozark section of Scenic 7 through Jasper to Harrison.
- Is there a fall foliage report for Arkansas this year?
- We couldn't find a 2026 weekly color report on Arkansas.com as of Oct 9. Arkansas Tourism's fall pages give the usual timing; call 501-682-7777 for the latest.
- Where can I see fall color close to Fayetteville?
- Mount Sequoyah's Overlook and the 4.5 miles of trail in Mount Sequoyah Woods, the 5.5-mile nature trail at Lake Fayetteville, and the 3-mile Yellow Rock Trail at Devil's Den, which ends at a view of the Lee Creek valley.
- Where can you see elk in the fall in Arkansas?
- Boxley Valley, the six miles of Hwy 43 and Hwy 21 between Ponca and Boxley, where the Park Service counts about 100 elk and calls fall and winter the best times. Pull completely off the highway to watch.
Dates, hours and prices are as each business posted them on October 9, 2026, and they change. Spot something out of date, or run one we missed? Tell us.
Nobody paid to be on this list. Inclusion is editorial.