It may not technically be fall yet, but if you look around Quebec, it sure feels like it.
Luckily for those who are ready to embrace the season, Bonjour Québec has launched its interactive fall foliage map for 2026, and it’s already showing the first real signs of the colour change to come.
Updated weekly, the map breaks different parts of the province down into six stages:
- Beginning Soon (green): the leaves haven’t started changing yet
- Début (yellow): the transformation is just getting underway
- Mid-Point (orange): colours are halfway through their shift
- Near Peak (red): this is as good as it gets
- Final Glimmers (dark red): past peak, but still holding onto colour
- End (grey): the show’s over for the season
Bonjour Québec fall foliage map (September, 2026)Bonjour Québec
As of September 18, most of the areas immediately around Montreal, including the West Island, the South Shore, and spots like Hudson and St-Lazare, are still marked green. In other words, if you’re looking out your window in the city right now, you’re not missing much yet.
That said, a handful of yellow markers have already popped up within an easy drive of the city. Parts of the Laurentians, around Ste-Adèle and St-Hippolyte, have started their shift, along with pockets near Rawdon and St-Alphonse-Rodriguez. A cluster further east, closer to Drummondville and Victoriaville, is showing the same early yellow tint. Based on how the map has moved in past years, these areas should be pushing into orange and red within the next few weeks, so it’s worth keeping an eye on them if you’re planning a fall outing.
Meanwhile, the leaves in areas like Parc national du Lac-Témiscouata in Bas-Saint-Laurent and Chute Manitou in Duplessis are already at the midpoint.
If you want a head start on where to go once things pick up, a few nearby spots are worth bookmarking now.
L’Étang Baker, a heart-shaped lake in the Eastern Townships, is about an hour and a half from Montreal and turns especially dramatic once the trees lining it go red.
Closer to the Gatineau side, Lusk Cave and Morrison’s Quarry are both about two and a half hours out, and both look completely different once autumn colour hits the trees surrounding them. Morrison’s Quarry in particular pairs turquoise water with gold foliage in a way that barely looks real.
The next map update comes Thursday, September 24, and with cooler nights setting in, expect more of the region to start shifting into yellow and orange soon.
In the meantime, feel free to enjoy a pumpkin spice latte (even if you’re still wearing shorts).
