The summer crowds have gone home, prices have dropped and the forests are turning red and gold. Fall is the best time of year to explore the region, and you do not need a plane ticket to do it. These five destinations are all within a few hours’ drive or train ride of Riverton.
Mountains and waterfalls
Early mornings at Silver Lake, half an hour above Greywater, are worth setting an alarm for. Mist lifts off the water around the small wooden pier, and the beech and maple forests on the slopes are at their most colorful from mid-October. A six-kilometer path circles the lake, and the lodge at the north end serves trout and mushroom soup until the end of November.
The waterfalls that gave Cedar Falls its name are at their fullest after the first autumn rains. A marked trail climbs past five cascades in about two hours. Afterwards, the Saturday farmers’ market on the main square sells apples, honey and plum brandy from nearby villages.
Coast and countryside
In summer, Port Alden is packed. In fall, the harbor belongs to the fishermen and the ferries. Take the morning boat to one of the islands, walk the empty coastal path and come back for grilled sardines on the quay as the light goes down.
In the wine villages of the Valley Region, harvest weekends run until the end of October, with open cellars, grape-stomping for children and long tables in the village squares. Book a room early: guesthouses in the smaller villages fill up fast.
For something wilder, the moorland west of Westmoor turns copper and purple in autumn. Red deer are often seen at dusk on the trail from the visitor center, and the old railway line has become a flat 20-kilometer cycle path.
Fall visitors are our best visitors. They come for the landscape, not just the beach, and they stay longer.
Helena Weiss, regional tourism board
Before you go
Weather in the mountains changes quickly at this time of year, so pack layers and check the forecast before setting off. Some lodges and boat services switch to winter timetables at the start of November. And leave space in the car for a sack of apples on the way home.
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