On October 19, Discover Flagstaff's Leaf-o-Meter marked the mountain area "past peak." For anyone at Forest Highlands, that sounds like the end of fall color. It isn't. The color has just moved down SR 89A to the canyon below, on a schedule that runs weeks behind the high country.
The timing is unusually tight this year. The Forest Service order that has kept West Fork Trail No. 108 closed since the Pocket Fire runs through 11:59 p.m. on Saturday, October 31, "unless rescinded." If it ends on schedule, the canyon's best-known trail reopens in the same weeks the Forest Service says the canyon's trees are still turning.
Oak Creek Canyon Changes Color on Its Own Schedule
The Coconino National Forest's fall colors page explains the difference in elevation terms. Color at higher elevations "often begins to appear in late September and peaks throughout the month of October," and many trees around Flagstaff hit their peak in early October. The canyon is different:
"...deciduous trees in the Red Rock Ranger District's Oak Creek Canyon continue to display stunning hues well into November."
So the drive from Forest Highlands to Oak Creek Vista is also a drive from a finished season to one still underway. The same page notes that Lockett Meadow Road, a common October drive north of town, is closed to all traffic, including people on foot and on bikes. With that option gone, the canyon is the main place left for late color within easy reach of the south side.
What the October 31 Order Covers, and What It Doesn't
The Pocket Fire was reported June 19, 2026. It burned 27,393 acres and was fully contained July 30, and the Forest Service lists its cause as undetermined, likely lightning given where it started. The West Fork order that followed, Forest Order 03-04-00-26-007, was signed September 25 by Acting Deputy Forest Supervisor Zachary Fisher.
The order is narrower than the "West Fork is closed" shorthand suggests. It covers National Forest land within 100 feet of the West Fork of Oak Creek drainage, from Forest Road 231 east to the Red Rock-Secret Mountain Wilderness boundary, along with all of Trail No. 108 inside the wilderness. The stated reason is rockfall and flood debris during and after rain in the burned watershed. West Fork Trail No. 108 is the only site the order lists under "Rec Sites Affected."
That leaves Call of the Canyon, the paved lot where most people start the West Fork hike, in an unclear spot. Its Forest Service page, last updated September 25, shows normal fall hours of 8 a.m. to dusk from October 1 through March 31. The fall colors page, updated three days earlier, still calls the site "closed due to the Pocket Fire." The Red Rock Ranger District, at 928-203-2900, is the office listed for the order. A call there sorts out the lot and the trail at once.
If the trail does reopen, Call of the Canyon charges its own fee. The Coconino Hospitality pass is $15 per vehicle per day for up to five people, $25 for a week, or $50 for a year, and walk-ins, cyclists and extra passengers pay $4 each. The Red Rock Pass and America the Beautiful pass are not accepted there. The lot takes vehicles up to 24 feet long. Weekly and annual passes are sold in person only.
Most of the Canyon Has Been Open Since September 17
West Fork is the exception. The broader Oak Creek closure, in place since the fire began in June, lifted Thursday, September 17, and reopened the creek and nearly all of its recreation sites. In its September 14 release, the Forest Service said July and August monsoon storms had already washed ash, sediment and burned material through the creek. It added that those storms sped regrowth of grasses in the burned area, which moves the watershed toward greater stability. West Fork was held back longer because that watershed burned more heavily.
For the last week of October, here is where the named sites stand on their Forest Service pages:
| Site | Status as posted | Note for late October |
|---|---|---|
| Pine Flat Campground | 2026 season listed as April 10 to October 24 | Season window has passed |
| Cave Springs Campground | 2026 season listed as April 10 to October 24 | Season window has passed |
| Manzanita Campground | Open year-round | Available through the color season |
| Grasshopper Point | Posted hours run April 1 to October 31 | A different schedule begins November 1 |
| Halfway Picnic Site | Labeled open | Day use |
| Encinoso Picnic Site | Labeled open | Day use |
| Banjo Bill Picnic Site | Closed by order | Closure runs through January 27, 2027 |
Two longer-standing orders apply across the canyon whatever happens on October 31. The Sedona and Oak Creek Canyon order bars camping and any fire outside Forest Service-installed fire structures, charcoal included. It exempts developed campgrounds such as Manzanita and runs from January 2023 to January 2033. A separate order prohibits glass containers within 300 feet of Oak Creek through December 20, 2027, with exceptions that include vehicles.
The Dates That Close the Window
The canyon's color may last into November, but its schedules start contracting in the same weeks. Here are the dates in order, starting with the last day of October:
- Saturday, October 31, 11:59 p.m. The West Fork order expires unless the Forest Service rescinds it earlier or issues a new one.
- Sunday, November 1. If the order lapses on schedule, this is the first day Trail No. 108 is open. Grasshopper Point also moves to its post-October hours that day.
- Friday, November 20. Slide Rock State Park's last day on its longer schedule of 8 a.m. to 6 p.m., with entry and the swim area closing at 5 p.m. From November 21 the park runs 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., with entry closing at 4 p.m.
- Late November. The information booth at Oak Creek Vista generally runs 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. from early April through November, weather permitting.
- Thanksgiving Day. The overlook and its Native American marketplace, normally open year-round, close for the holiday.
Down the Switchbacks
The first stretch below Oak Creek Vista had its own work zone this year. ADOT scheduled guardrail replacement along the three miles of switchbacks between Pine Flat Campground and the Vista, mileposts 387 to 390, with alternating one-lane traffic and a 12-foot width limit. The project was set to finish by late summer 2026. AZ511 has current road conditions for 89A before a weekend drive.
Farther down, the canyon's businesses are working through their first fall since the shutdown. In July, Indian Gardens Cafe and Market co-owner Caleb Schiff told ABC15 the business was ready to welcome guests with its full staff back. Orchard Canyon on Oak Creek, formerly Garland's Lodge, is taking bookings for October and November 2026.
Slide Rock is the one stop where fall looks different from a usual year. Arizona State Parks says apple picking will not be offered this fall. Instead, the park is holding Apple Packing Shed open houses on Saturdays and Sundays from 10 a.m. to noon, and it notes that days and hours may change with the season. Entry is $20 per vehicle for one to four people plus $5 for each additional person, and children under six are free. There are no reservations or walk-ins, and no waiting on the road before opening or when the lot is full.
From Forest Highlands, all of this sits on one highway. The West Fork order is set to expire at 11:59 p.m. on October 31, and the canyon's deciduous trees, by the Forest Service's account, hold their color well into November.
The quieter months after this window are when we at Randall Dagenais Luxury Group do a lot of planning with Forest Highlands owners. If you'd like to talk over a home in the pines with a team that keeps track of this road, we're glad to hear from you. Contact Us.
