When is fall color in Oak Creek Canyon?

When the color turns, in the agencies' own words

There is no single "peak week" for Oak Creek Canyon. What the official pages give is a window, and they agree on its shape: the high country turns first, and the canyon holds its color later. Coconino National Forest, Fall Colors (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/epic-adventures/fall-colors) — What it says: "Fall color often begins to appear in late September and peaks throughout the month of October, with trees at higher elevations turning faster."; Date on the page: Last updated September 22, 2026. Coconino National Forest, same page — What it says: "Many trees in the higher elevations of Flagstaff reach their prime in early October, but views are still beautiful throughout the season."; Date on the page: Last updated September 22, 2026. Coconino National Forest, same page — What it says: "Deciduous trees in the Red Rock Ranger District's Oak Creek Canyon continue to display stunning hues well into November."; Date on the page: Last updated September 22, 2026. Visit Sedona, reprinting Roger Naylor's AZCentral article, Where to See Arizona Fall Leaves (https://visitsedona.com/blog/where-to-see-arizona-fall-leaves/) — What it says: "Peak season for fall colors usually runs from mid-October well into November."; Date on the page: Undated. Read together, the safest plan is the one the agencies describe. If you want the canyon at its most colorful, aim for mid-October into November, not late September. If your trip is earlier, the Forest Service's own wording points you uphill, toward Flagstaff, where higher trees turn faster. One elevation note helps explain the spread. The Forest Service lists the Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive as running from 4,200 to 6,457 ft, so the top of the canyon and the bottom don't turn on the same day.

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Why some years are brighter than others

The Forest Service explains why one autumn can be vivid and the next one muted. It all comes down to weather, so no page can promise a good year in advance. "Good reds are produced when the days are warm and sunny and the nights are cool (45°F or less, but not a frost), coming one after another." "Yellow and orange are fairly constant, because they are already in the leaf and do not require specific weather situations." "A warm, wet period in the fall will cause the changing to be not so brilliant …". "A severe frost will kill the leaves, ending the show immediately." So the yellows are the dependable part of the show, and the reds are a bonus that depends on a run of warm days and cool nights. A single hard frost can end the season early, whatever the calendar says.

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Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive (SR 89A)

The drive is the easiest way to see the canyon's color, because you're seeing it the whole way. The Forest Service describes the Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/oak-creek-canyon-scenic-drive) as "a 15-mile stretch of state Route 89A between Sedona and Flagstaff, known for its National Scenic Byway designation, dramatic hairpin turns, dense canopies, and views of towering red rock formations." Visit Sedona's reprint calls the drive "astonishing anytime but explodes with color during the cooling autumn months." What the Forest Service publishes about the drive (page last updated September 30, 2025, read October 9, 2026): Route: from the junction of State Routes 179 and 89A in Sedona, north on SR 89A through the canyon. The Forest Service says the canyon "is about 15 miles long till you reach the switchbacks at its northern end," and Oak Creek Vista sits at the top of the rim. Climb: "approximately 2,200 feet" from Sedona. Drive time: "About an hour." Road: "SR 89A is entirely paved and suitable for all vehicles." Stops it names: overlooks such as Oak Creek Vista and Midgley Bridge, and Slide Rock State Park. A fair warning: "If you get carsick easily, the switchbacks at the northern end probably aren't for you." Parking is the part to plan around, and the Forest Service is direct about it: "Be considerate. Parking at popular locations will likely be limited." It asks visitors to "park only in designated areas," and adds: "Avoid blocking roadways and trails." This page doesn't print fill times or roadside workarounds. If a pullout is full, drive on to the next designated stop.

• Slide Rock State Park (Sedona / Oak Creek Canyon)

Huckaby Trail No. 161

Huckaby is the Forest Service's hiking pick for fall color in the Red Rock Ranger District. Visit Sedona's reprint describes it as a trail that "emerges along an elevated ridge, overlooking the multi-hued ribbon of Oak Creek before descending to the stream banks past a colorful collection of vines, shrubs and trees." What the Forest Service publishes for Huckaby Trail No. 161 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/trails/huckaby-trail-no-161) (page last updated July 22, 2025, read October 9, 2026): Difficulty: Moderately strenuous. Length: 2.97 miles. Elevation gain: 170 ft. Time: 1.5 hours one way. Trailheads: Schnebly Hill Road, or the parking area at the north end of Midgley Bridge. Parking pass: "Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful Pass required to park at the trailhead." Two lines on that page matter more than usual in autumn. Near Midgley Bridge the trail "crosses a branch of the creek which requires wading or boulder hopping. Do not cross if the water is high." And the trail "is mostly unshaded except along the creek." The Forest Service suggests you "return by the same route or do one way in either direction with arranged transportation." The Index keeps the short record for this trail at Huckaby Trail No. 161. For what the pass covers and where to buy one, see Red Rock Pass Sedona. This page doesn't print pass prices.

• Huckaby Trail No. 161
• Red Rock Pass Sedona

Slide Rock State Park

Slide Rock sits in the canyon on SR 89A, and Arizona State Parks lists it among its fall-color parks. Its fall colors page (https://azstateparks.com/fall-colors) says the park "is home to a variety of trees that show their true colors every fall," naming Emory oak, Gambel oak, willow, box elder and Arizona sycamore, which "provide a gorgeous contrast against the red rocks and cool water of Oak Creek Canyon." It suggests that "both upland and riparian zones should be explored for best exposure to the colorful nature of this quaint park on a creek." Arizona State Parks gives no fall timing for Slide Rock. The one timing it gives nearby is for Red Rock State Park, a different park downstream, where trees "show their true colors from late October through the first couple weeks of November." That line describes Red Rock State Park only. The same page suggests you "visit Red Rock and Slide Rock in the same day for maximum fall color exposure." Slide Rock charges its own state-park entrance fee. A Red Rock Pass is not Slide Rock admission. For hours, the fee and how the park works, see Slide Rock State Park (Sedona / Oak Creek Canyon). This page doesn't print the fee.

• Slide Rock State Park (Sedona / Oak Creek Canyon)

This season (as of October 9, 2026)

Everything in this section was read on October 9, 2026, and it will change. Check the live pages before you go. West Fork Trail No. 108 is closed. The Forest Service has closed West Fork Trail No. 108 under Forest Order No. 03-04-00-26-007, "West Fork Temporary Area Closure - Extended." The order is "in effect from September 26, 2026, at 12:00 am through October 31, 2026, at 11:59 p.m., unless rescinded." It prohibits "Entering or being in an area" and "Being on a Trail" on "all National Forest System Lands within 100 feet of the West Fork of Oak Creek drainage" from Forest Road 231 east to the Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness boundary, and on "the entirety of the West Fork (Trail #108) within the Red Rock Secret Mountain Wilderness." The Forest Service gives the reason as "rockfall and flood debris hazards within the West Fork watershed affected by the Pocket Fire." Before you plan around West Fork, check the Forest Service alert (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/west-fork-temporary-area-closure-extended) or call the Red Rock Ranger Station at 928-203-2900. Our guide West Fork Trail / Call of the Canyon (Sedona / Oak Creek Canyon) carries the same note. Two more closures on the Forest Service alerts page. "The Banjo Bill Picnic Site is currently closed for public safety." Its order, No. 03-04-06-25-01, is in effect "from January 27, 2025, at 12:00 a.m. through January 27, 2027, at 12:00 a.m., unless rescinded," and the Forest Service says its purpose is "to protect public health and safety within an active rock fall area." On the Flagstaff Ranger District, "Lockett Meadow Road (Forest Road 552) is temporarily closed for maintenance." About that road (FR 552) only, the Forest Service Fall Colors page says: "Lockett Meadow Road is closed to all traffic - including foot traffic and bike traffic." The Lockett Meadow Road order, No. 03-04-08-26-04, is "in effect from July 14, 2026, through November 30, 2026, unless rescinded." Check the Banjo Bill alert (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/banjo-bill-picnic-area-closure) and the Lockett Meadow Road alert (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/lockett-meadow-road-forest-road-552-temporarily-closed) before you go. Slide Rock this fall. The Arizona State Parks Slide Rock page (https://azstateparks.com/slide-rock) says: "The swim area at Slide Rock State Park has reopened, in coordination with the revised USFS closure order for Oak Creek." It also says "The park will not be offering apple picking for the fall 2026 season," and "No walk-ins, drop-offs or bicycle entries permitted: admission only by vehicle via the entry station." Hours change partway through the color season. The page lists "Jan. 31 - Nov. 20 8 a.m. - 6 p.m. Entry and swim area closes at 5 p.m." and "Nov 21 - Jan. 30 9 a.m. - 5 p.m. Entry and swim area closes at 4 p.m." It also says there is "no lining up on the roadway prior to open." Confirm hours on the park's page the morning you go. Trails after the monsoon. A Forest Service release dated September 14, 2026, said that "visitors to Oak Creek should stay informed of monsoon storms and check the weather before swimming or recreating in the creek, as risks always exist and are never wholly diminished." It added that many trails in the wilderness "have been impacted during monsoon, so hikers should be prepared for trails that may have been washed out and possibly disappeared." That's worth remembering at Huckaby's creek crossings. Standing canyon rules. The Coconino alerts page lists "Sedona/ Oak Creek Canyon Camping and Campfire Restrictions" ("Year-round camping and campfire restrictions are in place for the Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon areas") and an Oak Creek glass container prohibition: "Glass containers are prohibited within 300 feet of Oak Creek except within a developed campground or picnic area." Pack a picnic without glass.

• West Fork Trail / Call of the Canyon (Sedona / Oak Creek Canyon)

Getting there without your own car

The scenic drive is a driving trip, and this page doesn't claim that any shuttle runs up Oak Creek Canyon. Sedona's trailhead shuttle has its own routes, listed at Sedona Shuttle — Trailhead Routes. Check there for where it does go. Slide Rock's own page says admission is "only by vehicle via the entry station."

• Sedona Shuttle — Trailhead Routes

Fitting fall color into the trip

Fall is also Sedona's busy hiking season. Best time to visit Sedona covers the seasons, crowds and weather, and Plan a Sedona trip covers how many days to allow and where to stay. If you'd rather pick a different hike, every trail record the Index holds is on Sedona trails, from the primary sources, each with its source and the date it was read.

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• Plan a Sedona trip
• Sedona trails, from the primary sources

Before you go

Check the Coconino National Forest alerts page (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts) the day you drive. Closures in the canyon have changed several times this year. Call the Red Rock Ranger Station at 928-203-2900 if you're not sure a trail or site is open. For current leaf conditions, the Forest Service points to the LEAFometer (https://www.flagstaffarizona.org/plan-your-trip/leafometer/) from the City of Flagstaff's tourism department, Discover Flagstaff. Read it as a Flagstaff gauge, not an Oak Creek Canyon one. Go on a weekday if you can, park only in designated areas, and follow Leave No Trace. Bring a Red Rock Pass or America the Beautiful Pass for trailheads that require one, such as Huckaby. Slide Rock is separate. If something on this page has gone out of date, corrections are free and need no account: report an error.

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What this page will not say

This page gives no peak date, color report or forecast, because no official source publishes one for the canyon. Apart from the Forest Service closures quoted in "This season", it doesn't say whether any canyon parking lot or picnic site is open or closed, and it gives no fill times, parking counts or roadside workarounds. It prints no fees or pass prices; those are on the Red Rock Pass and Slide Rock guides. It doesn't claim a shuttle serves the canyon. It doesn't apply Red Rock State Park's timing to Slide Rock or Oak Creek Canyon. It doesn't name hotels, restaurants or tour companies. If an agency page changes, trust that page.

Sources (dated)

All read October 9, 2026 (PT). Coconino National Forest, Fall Colors (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/epic-adventures/fall-colors), last updated September 22, 2026; Visit Sedona, Where to See Arizona Fall Leaves (https://visitsedona.com/blog/where-to-see-arizona-fall-leaves/), an undated reprint of Roger Naylor's AZCentral article; Coconino National Forest, Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/oak-creek-canyon-scenic-drive), last updated September 30, 2025; Coconino National Forest, Huckaby Trail No. 161 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/recreation/trails/huckaby-trail-no-161), last updated July 22, 2025; Arizona State Parks, Arizona's BEST Fall Colors (https://azstateparks.com/fall-colors), undated; Arizona State Parks, Slide Rock State Park (https://azstateparks.com/slide-rock), read October 9, 2026; Coconino National Forest, West Fork Temporary Area Closure - Extended, Forest Order No. 03-04-00-26-007 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/west-fork-temporary-area-closure-extended), last updated September 25, 2026; Coconino National Forest alerts (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts), read October 9, 2026; Coconino National Forest, Banjo Bill Picnic Area Closure, Order No. 03-04-06-25-01 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/banjo-bill-picnic-area-closure), last updated May 27, 2025; Coconino National Forest, Lockett Meadow Road (Forest Road 552) temporarily closed, Order No. 03-04-08-26-04 (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts/lockett-meadow-road-forest-road-552-temporarily-closed), last updated July 18, 2026; Coconino National Forest news release, Oak Creek temporary area closure lifts this week (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/newsroom/releases/oak-creek-temporary-area-closure-lifts-week), dated September 14, 2026.

About this page

No official page publishes a peak date for the canyon, and this page doesn't give one. As of October 9, 2026, West Fork Trail No. 108 is closed under Forest Order No. 03-04-00-26-007, which is "in effect from September 26, 2026, at 12:00 am through October 31, 2026, at 11:59 p.m., unless rescinded." The dated details are in "This season" below. Before you drive, check the Coconino National Forest alerts page (https://www.fs.usda.gov/r03/coconino/alerts) or call the Red Rock Ranger Station at 928-203-2900. Later than in the high country around Flagstaff, and usually into November. The Forest Service says fall color in Arizona's high country "often begins to appear in late September and peaks throughout the month of October, with trees at higher elevations turning faster," and that "deciduous trees in the Red Rock Ranger District's Oak Creek Canyon continue to display stunning hues well into November." Visit Sedona, reprinting a Roger Naylor article from AZCentral, puts it this way: "Peak season for fall colors usually runs from mid-October well into November." The Forest Service names two Red Rock Ranger District picks for fall color: the Oak Creek Canyon Scenic Drive on State Route 89A, and Huckaby Trail. Arizona State Parks adds Slide Rock State Park, in the canyon itself. The dated count this page can honestly print is the trail records this index already holds: As of October 9, 2026 that is 24 trail records, 6 jeep tour records and 2 trolley tour records. The comparison pages below are the lists.