October 28, 2005

OHIO FALL COLOR UPDATE #5
Fall Color Site

	REGION CONDITION 10/28/05
	PARK/PRESERVE/FOREST	COUNTY	STATUS
	CENTRAL
	Alum Creek State Park	Delaware	Peak
	Mount Gilead State Park	Morrow	Peak
	Blackhand Gorge State Nature Preserve	Licking	Peak
	Deer Creek State Park	Pickaway	Fading
	NORTHEAST
	Mohican State Park and State Forest	Ashland	Peak
	Malabar Farm State Park	Richland	Peak
	Eagle Creek State Nature Preserve	Portage	Peak
	EAST
	Guilford Lake State Park	Columbiana	Peak
	Salt Fork State Park	Guernsey	Peak
	Blue Rock State Park and State Forest	Muskingum	Peak
	Beaver Creek State Park	Columbiana	Peak
	SOUTHEAST
	Lake Hope State Park	Vinton	Peak
	Hocking Hills State Park and State Forest	Hocking	Peak
	Jackson Lake State Park	Jackson	Peak
	Burr Oak State Park	Morgan	Near Peak
	Tar Hollow State Forest	Ross	Peak
	Lake Alma State Park	Vinton Jackson	Peak
	SOUTHWEST
	Shawnee State Park and State Forest	Scioto	Peak
	Hueston Woods State Park and State Nature Preserve	Preble	Peak
	Paint Creek State Park	Ross	Near Peak
	Caesar Creek State Park and State Nature Preserve	Warren	Peak
	WEST
	Sycamore State Park	Montgomery	Near Peak
	J. Bryan State Park/ Clifton Gorge Nature Preserve	Greene	Near Peak
	Indian Lake State Park	Logan	Peak
	Buck Creek State Park	Clark	Peak
	NORTHWEST
	Van Buren State Park	Hancock	Peak
	Maumee State Forest	Fulton	Peak
	Harrison Lake State Park	Fulton	Peak
	COLOR CONDITION KEY:
	CHANGING - Still mostly green with less than 25 percent color showing. NEAR PEAK - Significant color showing - anywhere from 30 to 60 percent. PEAK - Peak colors - as much as 85 percent color showing. FADING - Mostly colored, but colors fading and leaves falling to forest floor. Note that reported conditions are subject to rapid change with wind or rain.

COLUMBUS, OH – Bursts of spectacular Fall Color are appearing in virtually every part of the state, with sugar maples, hickories and oak varieties especially showy this week, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources (ODNR).

"Most of our state forest and state park managers across the state are reporting ‘peak’ or ‘near peak’ color conditions,” said Casey Munchel, fall color specialist with the ODNR Division of Forestry. “The frosts we have experienced over the last few days have accelerated the break down of leaf sugars, causing colors to intensify in many hardwoods.” 

Surprising strong color continues in the northeast where woodlands are traditionally starting to fade by late October. Both Punderson State Park in Geauga County and Mohican State Park in Ashland County are reporting peak Fall Color.

Sunny skies and temperatures in the 50s and 60s are forecast for most of Ohio this weekend, making it a pleasant time to get outside for hiking, biking, horseback riding or leisurely drives through the countryside.

Zaleski State Forest and Lake Hope State Park in Vinton County are reporting peak color for the annual Rural Ohio Appalachia Revisited (ROAR) Day from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturday, October 29. Local artisans will be in the Hope Dining Lodge to demonstrate woodcarving, basket making and other regional crafts. The Hope Schoolhouse will host storytelling and other activities.

Who Put the Whoo in Halloween? is the question at Van Buren State Park in Hancock County on Friday evening and Mary Jane Thurston State Park in Wood County on Saturday evening as naturalists bring together a display of live owls, and myths and legends about Halloween. Great Seal State Park in Ross County will host its third annual Great Seal Scream at 9:30 a.m. on Saturday with a professionally sanctioned 18-hole disc golf tournament. Pike Lake State Park in Pike County will be the site of a Buckeye Trail Hike, beginning at 8 a.m. Saturday. Malabar Farm State Park in Richland County will again hold hayrides and a barn dance on Saturday evening.

Updates on the best Fall Color viewing locations across the state are available by calling 1-800-BUCKEYE. Internet users can also find fall color information at ohiodnr.com or discoverohio.com.

Ohio's 74 state parks, 20 state forests and 130 state nature preserves provide excellent locations to sample Fall Color. Here are the most current reports from selected locations: