Utah in October?

[george_tobler]

Hello all, I was in Utah (Moab area) this past July and had a

fantastic time taking photos. Unfortunately I was only able to stay

for two days though I now have the opportunity to return! I would be

able to go back for about a week starting on Oct. 15th; is this a

good time to go as well? I know you can't predict the weather but

I'm wondering if this time of year it is still clear during the days

with good chances of Thunder Storms in the afternoon. I was able to

get some fantastic Storm shots during sunset last time I was there...

this time I want to spend about a week doing the same. Any

suggestions/comments?

 

Thanks in advance!

[todd_caudle1]

A follow-up to George's post: When do fall colors peak in Arches and vicinity? (cottonwoods, mostly)

[curt wiler]

I have experienced good color in Southern Utah at the very end of October, in some of the valleys. I am sure it is hard to generalize, however, because of the major differences in altitude as you move around. It is probably too late now for thunderstorms, however, as temperatures are approaching freezing at night and snow may be found in some of the higher elevations.

 

Best of luck, and take advantage of what you find in this wonderful area.

[dan_smith]

You would be better off calling the park rangers. Utah this year is varied, with most of the state being on a drought. This fall we in Northern Utah have no fall color, just brown & then the leaves drop... what is not burning. Logan Canyon and other favorite spots have been disappointing to the Velvia crowd and some reports from Southern Utah are the same. (coming last night from returning elk hunters who are also photographers)

[tom_thurston]

I just returned from visiting Zion and Bryce. The drive from Zion to Bryce follows the Sevier river valley. I was very impresed with the deep yellow and full foliage of the cottonwoods along the river. I'm not sure how they'll be near Moab. I think the elevation in the Moab area tends to be a bit lower (so they may not have turned color as much yet), and they haven't had quite as much water this year as the Zion/Bryce area.

[leif_rudd]

I just returned from Arches two weekends ago (sorry I didn't see your post earlier). I'm curious about the colors you hoped to find in Arches. With so little large plant life there, save the Pinon-Juniper scrub, and with very few of the understory plants turning (due to the drought, as someone else noted), there's little autumn color. For someone's next year's trip, the road into town from the east, which goes past the LaSal Mountains gets you near some nice aspen. The seeing was disappointing, due to the high level of atmospheric haze. Macro photos and low-angle light photos worked; almost everything else I shot turned out bluish and overexposed, despite my frequent use of a UV/haze filter, 81B filter and bracketing. I was disappointed in myself, but also was not thrilled with the conditions. You can see a few of my highlights <a href="http://www.photo.net/photodb/folder?folder_id=150893">here</a>. For optimum sun angle on many of the park's notable features, later in the year is better.