This year, Ohioans were treated to one of the best fall color seasons in recent memory with vibrant hues of red, orange, and yellow spreading across most of the state, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).
“While there may still be some patchy areas of great fall color, unfortunately the fall color season is coming to a close,” said ODNR Fall Color Forester Jamie Regula. “This has been one of the most beautiful seasons we have had in a long time!”
If you still want to catch a glimpse of beautiful fall foliage, check out:
- Alum Creek State Park
- Pike Lake State Park
- Raven Rock State Nature Preserve (permit required)
- Shawnee State Forest
While you are enjoying the final days of this fall color season, make sure you snap a photo! Share your photo with us for a chance to win an Ohio State Parks Passport. Head to the Ohio’s State Parks Facebook page and submit your best fall color photo by direct message. We will post all entries in a folder on November 4. The five photos with the most reactions (loves, likes and cares specifically) from Nov. 4-8 will receive an Ohio Parks Passport – perfect to journal your adventures in all of our state parks. Only one photo per person can be submitted and it needs to be a scene/image taken at an Ohio State Park. (ODNR employees or their immediate families are not eligible to participate. By submitting the image, all individuals are certifying that they took the picture and agree to allow ODNR to use the picture.)
It may be the end of fall color season but fall fire season is still underway. Fall fire season runs from October through November. Many people don’t realize there are about 1,000 wildfires in Ohio each year that burn from 4,000-6,000 acres of forests and grasslands in Ohio’s unglaciated hill country.
In Autumn, the warm, dry, windy weather, combined with leaves falling from the trees to the ground with dying, dried plants can create ideal conditions for wildfires. Winds can easily push fires and embers outside of fire rings and burn piles into the woods and become out of control. So if you have a campfire or are burning debris in your yard this fall, it is important to remember that burning is banned between 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. during fire season, and if you do burn anything at night, be sure to monitor the fire and make sure it is completely extinguished before leaving it unsupervised.
As fall continues in Ohio, check out ODNR’s official guide to autumn in the Buckeye State. The website includes:
Our last weekly fall color update and information to help plan a fall color adventure;
Ideas for scenic road trips;
Unique overnight accommodations at Ohio State Parks; and
Fun activities to do around the state.
ODNR and Ohio. Find It Here. encourage people to share fall color photos using #FallinOhio and #OhioFindItHere. For more fall color photos, follow ODNR, Ohio State Parks, and Ohio. Find It Here. on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram at @ohiodnr, @OHStateParks ,and @Ohio.FindItHere.
As fall turns to winter, don’t forget to give the gift of the outdoors this holiday season with a State Parks gift card or gift certificate. Visit reserveohio.com to order an Ohio State Parks Passport or Ohio State Park poster as a gift for your favorite outdoor lover.
