Rabbitbrush: Prelude to Fall Color
Just before the fall foliage starts in Nevada and Eastern California, you might notice small bushes loaded with yellow blooms. These plants are called rabbitbrush, or more specifically rubber rabbitbrush. The plant also goes by gray rabbitbrush, yellow rabbitbrush, or chamisa. You’ll find it growing along roadsides or covering whole […]
Hope Valley Autumn Color Is Near Peak
Before we take off on our journey to view the fall foliage in eastern Nevada, we’re issuing a Go Now alert for Hope Valley, California. As of Friday, October 2, much of the valley is Near Peak to At Peak. Overall, I’d rate it at 60% of the trees are […]
A Gold Mine of Fall Color
The eastern side of Hope Valley, California was “a gold mine of fall color,” according to my husband, professional photographer Patrick Wilkes. We hiked up the gated dirt road next to Desolation Hotel the evening of Thursday, September 24, and we were surprised at how far along the color was […]
Mount Rose Highway Fall Color Report 2026
There’s good news and bad news about the Mount Rose Highway (State Route 431),. If you want to see aspens turning color in autumn, this is one of the closest places to Reno. The good news? There is some fall color. At the upper reaches of the highway, about 50% […]
Great Basin National Park: How is the Fall Color in 2026?
I have fond memories of Great Basin National Park, Nevada’s only national park. There was the time I jumped up on the picnic table to get away from the skunk that wandered into our campsite. My brother called him Hunk the Skunk. Don’t worry, though. That was the only time […]
Hope Valley Starting to Turn
Patchy color is showing up at the eastern end of Hope Valley. Hope Valley is in California. But because it’s near Gardnerville, Minden, and Carson City, Nevada, and relatively near Reno, it makes for a convenient autumn drive. That’s why we decided to report on it in Nevada Fall Color. […]
First of the Fall Color: Maples of Northern Nevada
This year, many maples are changing much earlier than usual in Northern Nevada. Some just have patches of scarlet while others are at least half red. Last year, we wrote about why some maples were changing color in July. But last year the early change was isolated. In 2026 in […]
Wildflower Hikes in Northern Nevada and the Sierra
In early June, flowers are adding splashes of color to a few trails in Northern Nevada, as well as one trail that’s a short drive across the state line into California. Where can you find some wildflower color? Here are a few ideas: Fay Luther Trail, Gardnerville As of June […]
Wildflowers Near Las Vegas: Red Rock Canyon in Bloom
Southern Nevada photographer Cindy Van Der Velde went in search of spring wildflowers near Las Vegas and found plenty of color in the higher elevations of Red Rock Canyon during the third week of April. She found that at the lower elevations, most of the wildflowers are already fading. But […]