The autumn season always brings beautiful scenery with it. As the leaves turn to reds, oranges, yellows and browns, familiar neighborhoods and parks are transformed into fall wonderlands.
Throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, there are plenty of places that are perfect for viewing fall foliage—whether you want to take fall photos for your social media profiles, go for a hike before the weather gets cold or just enjoy nature.
Want to go off the beaten path? We’ve included Fall Foliage Reports, which track the state of fall foliage during the season and highlight when specific areas are at their peak. You might even be able to find scenic views near you.
Maryland
Fall Foliage Report (as of Sept. 2025)
58th Annual Autumn Glory Festival
Oct. 8-12
Garrett County, MD
Garrett County is so well-known for its autumn scenery that it’s been the subject of a local festival for over 50 years. The festival originally began with a series of community turkey dinners hosted by local turkey farmers, and has grown to celebrate all things fall.
Over the course of five days, Garrett County towns host a multitude of fall-themed events. This year’s lineup includes an antiques market and craft fair, community turkey dinners and a banjo, fiddle and mandolin-playing competition.
This year’s festival introduces two driving tours designed to take visitors through some of the best places to view fall wildlife, as well as several historic sites.
visitdeepcreek.com/autumnglory
Oregon Ridge Park
Cockeysville, MD 21030
The diverse landscape of Oregon Ridge Park—which boasts a meadow and stream in addition to its forest—makes it a perfect backdrop for unique fall photos. It’s also ideal for people who enjoy taking walks during the fall season because of the many hiking trails that weave throughout the park.
If you want to learn more about the plants and animals that populate the area during the fall, take a trip to the Oregon Ridge Nature Center, which sits on the park’s premises and features several nature-focused exhibits and live animal displays.
The area that is now Oregon Ridge Park once had a long history as an iron ore and marble-mining site during the 19th century. If you want to add another educational component to your visit, you can search for the historical displays and mining town remains that litter the park.
baltimorecountymd.gov/departments/recreation/parks-directory/oregon-ridge-park-and-lodge
Soldiers Delight Natural Environment Area
5100 Deer Park Road, Owings Mills MD 21117
A large barren with few trees might not come to mind when thinking about the best places to view fall foliage, but the area’s scale offers some great views. It’s also one of the most accessible hiking areas for people who live near Owings Mills, only a short drive away.
From a preservation standpoint, Soldiers Delight has some interesting history as the largest remaining serpentine ecosystem in the eastern United States, meaning that it sits atop a layer of serpentinite. Some of the plants in the area are very rare and difficult to find in other parks because they have adapted to the unusual soil composition. It’s a good place to see endangered plants and insect species, and one of the state’s most unique environments.
visitmaryland.org/listing/attraction/soldiers-delight-natural-environmental-area
Virginia
Virginia Fall Foliage Report (as of Oct. 2025)
Shenandoah National Park
3655 US Highway 211 East, Luray, VA 22835
One of the best places to view fall foliage at Shenandoah National Park is on Skyline Drive, a 105-mile road that spans the length of the park. When the park was first established in 1921, Skyline Drive was hailed as its greatest feature—and while that might be subjective, it’s still a common recommendation for people seeking the area’s best autumn landscapes.
The span of road is lined with trees, giving a perfect view of the park’s fall colors. It’s also one of the best places to see the park’s animal populations, as deer and black bears often cross the drive while traveling through the area.
If you’d rather walk than drive, you can hike to the summit of Old Rag Mountain or take the portion of the Appalachian Trail that stretches through the park.
Wintergreen Resort
39 Mountain Inn Loop, Nellysford, VA 22958
Visiting a ski resort during the fall might seem like an odd choice. But Wintergreen Resort sits in the midst of the Blue Ridge Mountains, where autumn colors are on full display during the season. The resort has 30 miles of hiking trails, as well as a chairlift ride that offers a unique opportunity to see the trees from above.
It also might be ideal for people willing to invest multiple days into a trip to see fall foliage. Outside of skiing and hiking, the resort’s many amenities include a golf course, racquet sports courts and a spa.
If you can’t wait for winter activities, the resort offers tubing throughout the year. During the spring, summer and fall, they use a material called Neveplast instead of snow.
wintergreenresort.com
Virginia Creeper Trail
Trail starts at Whitetop Station Visitor Center | 1595 Whitetop Gap Road, Whitetop, VA 24292
We’ve talked about walking, hiking and driving, but we haven’t discussed the best places to bike during the fall. One of the best-known biking trails is the 34-mile-long Virginia Creeper Trail, which is widely praised for its beautiful scenery.
It may be long, but it’s accessible. If you start your ride at Whitetop Station, the trail is almost completely downhill until Damascus. This makes it ideal for amateur bikers.
If you want to stop and smell the flowers, there’s also plenty of other things to do right by the trail. One of the most notable is going to see the wild pony population of the Grayson Highlands and Mt. Rogers National Areas, who graze freely and are fairly friendly, though visitors are advised not to feed them.
