As the season of fall gets underway, apples give way to pumpkins as the seasonal produce of the moment. October is pumpkin month! Pumpkin patches, pumpkin pie, pumpkin spice, and jack-o-lanterns are all fall staples that aren’t going anywhere. If you haven’t had a close encounter with a pumpkin yet this fall, now’s the time! Read on for a run-down of pumpkin patches in the Front Royal area, as well as some carving and eating tips.
​

​A visit to a pumpkin patch in the Shenandoah Valley will be a memory you’ll cherish for years to come. The Front Royal area’s pumpkin farms combine scenic beauty, fun activities, and pumpkins that taste as good as they look. You can pick them right where they grew! Plan your visit during the month of October, as most pumpkin patches close after Halloween.

Hartland Orchard pumpkin patch is the closest to the town of Front Royal. It’s conveniently located just one exit down on I-66. Here, you’ll also find delicious pumpkin pies in the store.
 
If you’re up for a longer drive to a truly rustic pumpkin patch, head down US-340 to Valley Star Farm in Luray. About a thirty minute trip from Front Royal, Valley Star Farm is located in the valley between the Blue Ridge Mountains and the Massanutten mountain range. You’ll enjoy great views of both. In addition to its pumpkins, the farm usually has a range of fun attractions, including a corn maze and a duck race.

Heading in the opposite direction, you’ll find several options for pumpkins and fun. Wayside Farm Fun, Hill High Farm, and Great Country Farms are all in the Winchester/Berryville area. These family-friendly options include various side attractions, such as corn mazes, hayrides, and pumpkin guns. Be sure to check ahead when planning your trip, though. You need to book tickets at to reserve your time slot at both Wayside Farm and Great Country Farms. With a limited number of tickets available, it’s best to plan in advance to avoid missing out.

​When you get your pumpkin home, you have three options: set it out as a decoration, carve it, or eat it (we won’t include letting it rot on the counter because you’re indecisive…). Pumpkins are a simple and tasteful fall decoration. Simply setting one out on your porch can give your home seasonal appeal.

For more involved decorations, carved pumpkins are an obvious choice. Carving pumpkins is a favorite fall activity for both kids and adults. Designs range from simple smiley faces to highly complicated works of art. Don’t throw the seeds away when you scoop them out! Save them and roast them for a snack that’s both delicious and nutritious.

​Finally, pumpkin-flavored baked goods are a delicious way to enjoy fall. In addition to its delicious taste, pumpkin also adds a nutritional boost to your home baking projects. Don’t forget, it’s a vegetable! Pumpkin pie is a fall classic. For breakfast or brunch, try some chocolate chip pumpkin pancakes. Or for a naturally sweetened, gluten free, healthy snack, check out these pumpkin chocolate bars.

​The Shenandoah Valley is a great fall destination. Don’t forget to include some pumpkin-picking as you’re planning your fall in the Front Royal area.
 

Much in life is unpredictable, but with all the uncertainty in today’s world, it’s comforting to know that the seasons continue to come and go as they always have. While life always has itss difficulties, we can still look forward to enjoying another stunning fall in the Virginia hillsides around Front Royal.

​But while they’re all similar no two falls are exactly the same. With the many factors that go into creating the beautiful colors of fall, it should be no surprise that there’s some variation from year to year. Certain colors might be more or less vibrant. The season could begin earlier or later, and could be more or less drawn out.

Since we know a little bit about what causes the leaves to change, we can make some estimates as to how each fall will go. So, even though it’s apparently dangerous to make any kind of prediction in 2020, we’re going to be bold. Here are our best guesses as to the way the fall foliage will play out this year in the Front Royal area.

Splendid Fall Colors Coming Quickly in 2021​
​
​Leaves are living things that come to life in the spring and die in the fall. Weather conditions during the entire lifetime of the foliage will impact its appearance in the fall. Taking a look back at the spring and summer can give us some hints as to how the fall may go. 

Spring 2021 gave us a pretty smooth start to the warmer weather. The days warmed up about when you would expect, and there was no late frost to surprise us (or the trees with their new and delicate leaf buds!). Late frosts or a slow spring can also slow down fall, but spring conditions like we enjoyed in 2021 bode well for fall colors to come when you’d expect them too. According to this fall foliage map, peak foliage will hit the Front Royal area around October 11, 2021.

​The weather conditions of summer can also affect fall foliage significantly. Rains this summer were plentiful, but not overabundant. Just what trees love! While a particularly hot or dry summer might cause tree stress and less vibrant fall hues, the good conditions this summer have prepared the trees to put on an outstanding display this fall.
​

Fall Weather May Reduce the Appearance of Reds
​
Of course, it’s not possible to predict the fall foliage entirely from the weather of spring and summer. When fall arrives in Front Royal, it will bring its own combination of weather conditions that can greatly influence the foliage display we see around us.

​It’s obviously difficult to predict the fall weather in advance. Long-range weather forecasting is far from an exact science. In fact, many meteorologists will tell you not to trust a forecast of longer than ten days. And they may well be right. But it’s still fun to make some guesses.
 
According to the Farmer’s Almanac, a popular long-range weather forecast source, the Front Royal area will experience a fairly rainy October. The resulting lack of sunshine may dampen the red hues around Front Royal this fall. Sunlight supports the production of anthocyanins, the chemicals responsible for the red hues in fall leaves. If fall 2021 follows Farmer’s Almanac predictions, we’ll still see some red, but not as much as in other years. Regardless, there’ll still be plenty of orange and yellow to enjoy!
 
​Our best prediction: fall foliage will peak mid-October in the Shenandoah Valley, with predominantly orange and yellow tones.

​Our best prediction: fall foliage will be slow to arrive in the Shenandoah Valley, but splendid when it comes.
 

The good news is that while we can’t predict the exact condition or timing of the fall foliage, we can tell you one thing for sure. Any visit to the Shenandoah Valley or the Front Royal area during the fall foliage season will be memorable. Even if your arrival doesn’t quite coincide with the perfect peak of fall foliage, you’ll still be able to enjoy glorious colors, beautiful views, and every essential fall activity that your heart desires.

If you’ve ever caught yourself wondering whether this fall is quite the same as the last one, the answer is: probably not. Every fall is different – and while all of them are beautiful, it’s true that some are more splendid than others. Each year, several different factors influences the complex biological process of the changing of the leaves. Small differences in these factors can lead to variations in many aspects of the fall season, including the timing of the color change, the length of the season, and the intensity of the colors.

​Wondering how you can plan you fall “leaf-peeping” when the season is so unpredictable? Read on to learn more about what factors influence the display of fall leaves, and what we’ll be doing to help you stay right up-to-date with the exciting developments of fall in the Shenandoah Valley. We’re keeping our finger on the pulse of the season from right here in Front Royal.
 

Cool temperatures, as well as shortening days, trigger the process by which the leaves on a tree begin to change color and die. While the length of the days stays constant from year to year, the temperatures can vary widely. You won’t really see leaves starting to turn until the cooler temperatures arrive. The onset of cooler weather is a major factor in determining the beginning of the leaf-peeping season.

​Even once cooler temperatures come, the weather conditions of the fall can vary. You might see an unexpected warm spell, an early freeze, clear and sunny days, or pervasive cloudy weather and rain. Each of these weather conditions will result in differences in the fall foliage display. Generally, cool temperatures that remain above freezing tend to generate the most brilliant displays of fall colors. In addition, sunlight increases the production of anthyocins, the chemicals responsible for the red colors of the fall. A sunnier fall will result in more vibrant reds than an overcast and rainy season. An early freeze can dampen the display, and strong winds or rain can cause leaves to fall more quickly, shortening the season.

​Well before the arrival of fall, spring and summer conditions will have set the stage for the foliage display. If the summer has been particularly hot and dry, the trees will be more stressed, and the splendor of the colors will be somewhat dimmed. A stressful summer may even cause some of the leaves to brown or fall prematurely. A late spring is often associated with a delay in the arrival of the vibrant colors of fall.

​
​With so many factors affecting the condition of the fall leaves, it’s impossible to predict exactly how the season will develop. The good news is that we’re here to help. Discover Front Royal's Leaf Report 2021 is a super informational tool for all things fall in our area. It’s also an excellent as a tracking tool to help you check the condition of the leaves from far away. There’s even a 'Live Leaf Cam' so you can have a real-time view of the fall foliage before you leave home! We’ll be updating this page frequently with reports and images from the Front Royal area to help you stay up-to-date and plan your visit. Don’t forget to follow us for updates, and more fun fall information and tips.

​Just one fall visit to the Shenandoah Valley will be enough to explain why the area is such a sought-after fall destination. The tree covered slopes of the Blue Ridge and Allegheny Mountains are like a canvas under the hands of a master craftsman; each year they come alive with a new, yet familiar, work of art. From Skyline Drive, atop the Blue Ridge Mountains, you can see mile after mile of trees ablaze with color. October remains Skyline Drive’s most visited month of the year, proof of the enduring popularity of these fall foliage vistas. Situated at the northern entrance of Skyline Drive, Front Royal makes a great home base for a Skyline Drive leaf-peeping trip.

But trees can’t get their energy from just “raw sunlight.” That’s where the leaves come in. They’re the food factories of the tree. It’s their job to transform sunlight into usable energy. However, keeping the leaves alive also uses up some of the tree’s energy. In the winter, there’s not enough sunlight for the tree to keep growing and supporting the leaves. So each year, trees go into a kind of hibernation. They stop growing. They stop reproducing. They rely on food stores. And their leaves die and fall off.

So why the crazy colors? In order to transform sunlight into tree food, leaves use a chemical called chlorophyll. It’s the chlorophyll that gives leaves their green color. As the days grow cooler and shorter, chlorophyll decreases. And as chlorophyll disappears, the other pigments in the leaves to shine through: oranges and yellows. If it wasn’t for chlorophyll, we’d see those oranges and yellows all the time.

Meanwhile, the combination of bright sunlight and cool air triggers the production of another chemical called anthocyanin in many trees. Scientists still aren’t exactly sure what the purpose of anthocyanin is. One theory is that it helps the trees to extract all the possible nutrients from the leaves before they die and fall off. However, we do know that anthocyanin is responsible for the shades of red that combine so beautifully with the oranges and yellows of fall.
​

So this year, when you’re out leaf-peeping and enjoying those stunning fall scenes, you’ll have a better an idea of exactly what’s going on in nature. Discover Front Royal is here to help you make the most out of your trip to the Shenandoah Valley this fall. Use the resources on our Leaf Report 2021 page to help you follow the change of seasons and plan your trip to the fall trip Front Royal area.