Peaking in Southern California

75 – 100% – Julian — With rain washing across northern California this past weekend, we looked to Southern California to see where the color might be peaking.  The historic gold mining town of Julian, east of San Diego is reporting lots of red, gold and yellow among its oaks and apple orchards.  Julian is located in the Cuyamaca Mountains at 4,235 ft in elevation.

75-100%  – Big Bear — Through last Friday, few of the trees near Big Bear Lake (other than those in wind lanes) had dropped their leaves and the color was nearing peak.  Locations such as Grey’s Peak were reported by bloggers on Cal Photo to “still have plenty of leaves about 85 % and worth the drive” for lovely views of “orangy-browns, lemon yellows and some splashes of deep red or peach here and there, though rare.”  Following is a file video of what the fall color experience is like at peak in Big Bear.

75-100% – Oak Glen — Similarly, the apple orchards near Oak Glen near Yucaipa in San Bernardino County were reported to be peaking this past weekend, later than in previous year, as has been seen consistently across California, this year.

Reports are that from 4,000 ft down to 2,000 ft the color is now appearing across California, as it works its way down in elevation.  If you’re looking for color in Southern California, the Orange County Register provides this guide to identifying local color:

• Tupelo Tree, orange
• Scarlet Oak, red
• Gingko biloba, yellow
• Burning Bush, red
• Nandina, orange and red
• Spiraea Goldflame, yellow
• Acer Rubrum, red
• Chinese Pistache, red, yellow, orange