It happens every year.
As the days grow shorter, trees prepare for winter by ceasing production of the chemical chlorophyll, which keeps their leaves green.
The results can be spectacular, as those leaves are transformed into brilliant tones of orange, yellow and red.
When will colors change in Kansas?
That annual spectacle is expected to begin the week of Sept. 29 along the Sunflower State’s western edge, says a 2025 fall foliage map published online by the National Park Service.
By the week of Oct. 12, leaves will be changing colors throughout Kansas, that map said.
It predicted the peak of color would come throughout most of the Sunflower State’s western half the week of Nov. 3, and throughout most of its eastern half the week of Nov. 10.
Following are seven of the best places in Kansas to enjoy the view.
Baldwin City
This community in Douglas County in northeast Kansas is so closely identified with fall foliage that since 1958 it has hosted the annual Maple Leaf Festival, which takes place this year Oct. 18 and 19.
Inspiration for the event comes in part from the “hundreds of beautiful maple trees, which form an umbrella of brilliant color over the city each fall,” said the leisure and sports website lasr.net.
The festival is one of the state’s largest autumn events and features “parades, quilt shows, street food, and pumpkin everything,” said the worldatlas.com website.
Native Stone Scenic Byway
The 75-mile Native Stone Scenic Byway, which runs through the Flint Hills, gets its color from the many groves and creeks along the route, said the travelks.com website.
“Fall is a festival of colors as the highway cuts through the rolling terrain — highlighting both the natural wonder of rock formations and the amazing craftwork of masons who built walls, bridges and buildings with native stone,” it said.
The byway’s beginning and ending points are eight miles south of Manhattan, at Interstate 70, exit 313, and at the intersection of K-highway and Glick Road, in western Shawnee County.
Ted Ensley Gardens
The view becomes particularly colorful each fall in the Woodland Garden just north of the Garden House in Ted Ensley Gardens at Topeka’s Lake Shawnee.
As visitors sit on a shaded stone bench in those gardens, “The colorful foliage of Painters Palette draws the eye to the north,” said a K-State Research and Extension website highlighting the Woodland Garden. “Do not miss the spectacular display of the wahoo tree in the fall as you continue to the seated arbor overlooking Lake Shawnee. From this vantage point, you can view our secret garden — a sunny spot where we have tucked away our latest Monarch Waystation.”
Frontier Military Historic Byway
The Frontier Military Historic Byway follows paths established by the Army in the 19th century while running 167 miles between Fort Leavenworth on the north to Fort Scott on the south, eventually reaching the Kansas/Oklahoma border.
It is the longest byway in Kansas, passing by “forts, museums and other historical gems,” and offers many places to pull off and enjoy the foliage, said the kstravel.com website.
“Pull on your comfy sweatshirt as you take in the colorful woodlands of the Marais des Cygnes Wildlife Refuge and Marais des Cygnes Wildlife Area,” that site said. It cautioned travelers to “Be on the lookout for deer!”
Chautauqua Hills Loop trail
“A fall foliage wonderland” is the description the onlyinyourstate.com website gave to the seven-mile Chautauqua Hills Loop trail at Cross Timbers State Park, about 12 miles west of Yates Center in Woodson County in southeast Kansas.
If you’re looking for fall foliage that’ll knock your socks off, Cross Timbers State Park is an excellent place for adventure,” that website said. “However, there’s one particular trail — Chautauqua Hills Loop — that takes fall foliage to the next level. Lace up your hiking boots and pack some trail snacks, because this adventure is one you’ll want to experience in person.”
Flint Hills National Scenic Byway
“Nature’s fiery color display is perfection on a mild autumn day on the Flint Hills National Scenic Byway,” said the kstravel.com website. “Stretching more than 47 miles across the Flint Hills of Kansas, the byway is a two-lane, paved road and a favorite fall foliage drive.”
The byway runs along K-177 highway from Council Grove in Morris County in central Kansas to Cassoday in Butler County in south-central Kansas, offering views of one of the last remaining stretches of tallgrass prairie and access to historic sites that include the Tallgrass Prairie National Preserve, which features a historic mansion and schoolhouse.
Alcove Spring
Fall brings colorful foliage to Alcove Spring, near Blue Rapids in Marshall County in northeast Kansas, said the touristsecrets.com website.
The site is known for the springs located there, an intermittent waterfall and its historical significance as a stop for Native Americans, fur traders and pioneers using the Oregon Trail, the “8 Wonders of Kansas Geography” website said.
The location was named by pioneers from the ill-fated Donner Party, who stopped there in 1846, then continued west before some of them resorted to cannibalism after they became snowbound in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
As reported in the Topeka Capital Journal
