Best Waterfalls for Autumn Foliage
Autumn transforms a waterfall photograph: orange, red, and gold against the white water. The best foliage waterfalls are in cool-temperate broadleaf forests, peaking late September to early November depending on hemisphere. All ten on the map.
1. Bash Bish Falls, Massachusetts
Berkshires fall in late October — Bash Bish's bedrock pool surrounded by sugar maple turning red. Short walk from parking.
2. Letchworth Falls, New York
'Grand Canyon of the East' — gorge with three major falls surrounded by oak-hickory forest. Peak foliage mid-October.
3. Kegon Falls, Nikko, Japan
97-metre plunge in Nikko National Park, surrounded by Japanese maple peaking late October. Elevator to lower viewpoint.
4. Nachi Falls, Japan
133-metre plunge in Wakayama — Japan's tallest. Peak red maple late November-early December (warmer Honshu).
5. Plitvice in autumn, Croatia
Plitvice's beech and oak forests turn gold in mid-October — combined with travertine and turquoise lakes, the most photographed autumn waterfall site in Europe.
6. Akiu Falls, Japan
55-metre fall near Sendai. Peak maple and beech early November. Combined with onsen hot-spring resorts.
7. Bukhansan Falls, Korea
Falls in the Bukhansan range surrounding Seoul — combined with hiking in Korea's most-visited national park during golden October.
8. Vermont waterfall network
Moss Glen Falls, Texas Falls, Bingham Falls — strung along Vermont highways with peak foliage in early October.
9. Cascade Falls, Quebec
Multiple cascades in the Mont-Tremblant area, ablaze in red maple peaking late September.
10. Watkins Glen, New York
19 waterfalls in 3 km of finger-lake gorge — boardwalks and stone bridges through hemlock-and-oak forest. Mid-October peak.
See them all in one view
All of these are pinned on our interactive map.