Foliage smackdown

When it comes to autumn color, New England’s reputation is five-star. So, are Westerners blowing it out their cowboy hats when they claim their golden aspens and cottonwoods can go head to head with Northeastern maples and oaks in October?

"I have never heard any New Englander say, ever, ‘I must go to the Rockies to see fall color.’ No. We wait until winter to see the powder snow for that trip," said Yankee magazine editor Mel Allen.

Allen added that he loves the West’s "mountains, the deserts, the incredible wind-carved rock formations. But no matter how much it wants to sell aspen as the defining color fall, it just doesn’t fly."

Lisa Taggart, contributor to Sunset magazine, acknowledged that "yeah, the East has pretty trees. But going to see fall foliage out West is like finally putting it together: the forest and the trees, with mountains and wildlife and the long light. The whole shebang adds up to wow."

PICKS FOR NEW ENGLAND

Connecticut:

Maine: "Begin in Rangeley, Maine, forcing yourself to leave the lake-studded town, and head north on Route 16, then follow Route 27 through Kingfield, then along the Carrabassett River to Sugarloaf Mountain," suggested Allen, the Yankee editor. "In this 45-mile or so drive, your mouth will drop at least a dozen times, and no more so as you wind around what locals call ‘Oh My Gosh Corner’ and the mountain appears as if dropped from the sky."

New Hampshire: The Kancamagus Highway, which runs between Lincoln and Conway, N.H., on State Route 112, celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. "With no houses, no restaurants, not even gas stations, the Kancamagus Highway is all about breathtaking panoramic views of the White Mountain National Forest, particularly from the height of land at Kancamagus Pass," said YankeeMagazine.com editor Barbara Hall.

Vermont: Route 100 "has been called the most scenic in New England," according to Yankee magazine writer Michael Blanding. "In some circles, it’s known as the ‘Skier’s Highway,’ since it connects Vermont’s giants — Mount Snow, Killington, Sugarbush, and Stowe — like knots on a whip. But the road really comes into its own in autumn, hitting the peak of fall foliage not once but many times as it traces an up-and-down course along the unspoiled edge of Green Mountain State Forest."

Route 169 is described by Yankee senior editor Polly Bannister as "one of New England’s prettiest country roads" as it runs through 32 miles of Connecticut. "In autumn, this National Scenic Byway is at its best: a gentle landscape of trees and stone walls glides its way through historic towns from Woodstock to Lisbon, all with a backdrop of brilliant foliage in a palette of red, orange, gold, yellow and russet," Bannister said.

PICKS FOR THE WEST

California:

Colorado: This state is known for bluebird skies and white-capped mountains. But in autumn, the landscape gets another color: Gold. Aspen and Vail "simply glow gold in the fall; the state is luminous with aspens," said Taggart. You can hike, bike and take plenty of scenic drives, and lodging prices, even in upscale ski areas, are low compared to winter and even summer.

Montana: Cottonwoods, aspens and tamaracks provide the golds and yellows here. One way to experience the scenery is to travel east along Highway 200 from Missoula, along the Blackfoot River. You might see a moose wading in the water or elk moving toward their winter home, the Blackfoot-Clearwater Wildlife Management Area. Turn left at Clearwater Junction and head north on Highway 83 to the Seeley-Swan Valley, where you’ll find the Seeley Lake Giant, the largest known tamarack tree in the country. The tamarack’s needles change from green to gold, and the Seeley Lake Tamarack Festival celebrates the transition, Oct. 3-4.

Utah: The Alpine Loop is a 20-mile road through American Fork Canyon in Utah’s Wasatch Mountain range, 15 miles from Provo. In fall, the maples turn red, the aspens turn yellow, and wildlife is plentiful, including turkeys, elk and bighorn sheep.

"Driving inland from the North Coast in California, Eureka to Redding, is gorgeous," Taggart said. "The pines pop with the deep red leaves of poison oak vines." Other Sunset magazine recommendations: June Lake Loop in the Eastern Sierra; aspen trees in Carson Pass and Hope Valley along state 88 south of Tahoe; Highway 395 from Lee Vining south to Tom’s Place; big leaf and vine maple trees along the Avenue of the Giants and Redwood National Park; sycamores in the Southern California coastal canyons; and black oaks in Yosemite Valley."

AND IN ARIZONA

You can see changing colors late September to mid-October in bigtooth maple trees, scarlet sumac, and of course in the golden aspens.

• Some of the best places to see colors include the White Mountains, where the small communities of Greer and Alpine — especially Picnic Hill east of Alpine — are good leaf-peeping spots; or near Sedona, along Highway 89A north from town about nine miles to Slide Rock State Park.

• Near Flagstaff, the best sites include Hart Prairie Road about a mile beyond the SnowBowl ski area. Check out the chairlift skyride there for a bird’s eye view.

• Near Tucson, check out Madera Canyon, 40 minutes south off I-19, at the village of Summerhaven and atop Mount Lemmon in the Santa Catalinas northeast of town.

• In the Chiricahua Mountains, 70 miles north of Douglas, 36 miles southeast of Willcox and 120 miles east of Tucson, you’ll find oak, ash, maple and aspen.