Fall is finally here! Goodbye, soupy weather and mosquitoes. Time to dig out your favorite sweaters, cuff, pick apples, pick pumpkins, and consume pumpkin spice in every imaginable and unimaginable form.

And of course — what better way to celebrate the fall than to indulge in what is inexplicably known as leaf “peeping?”

Right now the leaves are mostly green, but in a few weeks they’ll be at their most beautiful — all the sublime red and gold and bronze colors — and then fall, dead. Arguably more exciting than the cherry blossoms people flock to D.C. for!

Here are some of the best places to peep — to furtively glance — at this year’s leaves.

In the District

Of course, Rock Creek Park, blanketed in trees, cannot disappoint. Check out the Boulder Bridge hike, a 3.5 mile loop along forest and creek and one of Theodore Roosevelt’s favorite haunts.

If you prefer to keep nature at a little more distance, you can visit the Tidal Basin, which you may associate more with the National Cherry Blossom Festival. It’s gorgeous in the fall too.

There’s also the romantic National Arboretum, where the leaves are typically at their most gorgeous in November. If leisurely peeping and strolling isn’t your thing, you can even do a 5k run on Nov. 12.

Away from the city 

Shenandoah National Park is a popular fall destination, and fall is the park’s busiest time of year. In fact, the National Park Service recommends that you visit during the week. If you can only visit during the weekend, expect packed trails and even more packed parking. If you’re visiting during peak hours, it might be a good idea to come with a backup plan for somewhere less frequented.

Just beyond the Potomac is Scott’s Run Nature Preserve in Fairfax County. It has flattish trails and a little scenic waterfall. Again, parking can be limited, so if this is a weekend trip, you want to get there earlier in the morning.

Most of Maryland’s trees are still green as of late September, but the leaves have just begun to change in Western Maryland. As fall progresses, you can expect fall foliage to peak in parts closer to D.C., like Seneca Creek State Park.

When is the best time to go leaf peeping this year? 

The fourth full week of October will be peak fall foliage season this year for D.C. and much of Maryland, as well as much of the western part of Virginia, according to Smoky Mountain’s handy fall foliage prediction map. Leaves in the eastern half of Virginia will be a tad slower to turn.

According to Shenandoah’s first 2022 weekly fall broadcast, the third week of October is the beginning of the window of peak fall foliage season — the leaves will be at their most striking from around Oct. 20 to Nov. 5. Leaves might turn slightly earlier in that region because of some dry weather late in the summer, but a little moisture in recent days might make up for that.

As of this week, leaves are just beginning to turn. Fall foliage will be more noticeable but patchy in the D.C. area by Oct. 3.

This story has been updated to include predictions for peak fall foliage.