Expect a colorful autumn

Seymour Oktoberfest has come and gone. Farmers have started their harvests, although in fits and spurts because of the rain.

Harvest dinners have started drawing crowds with their menus of turkey and all the trimmings.

And Fort Vallonia Days is set for this weekend.

All that means southern Indiana’s hills and valleys are trading in their palette of greens for one slashed with reds, oranges, yellows and purples and shades in between.

And that rain that’s been delaying farmers is expected to prolong and brighten the artistry of autumn this fall.

Brown County may have the notoriety and accompanying congestion, but Jackson County has more than its share of scenic vistas, whether you’re talking about Skyline Drive near Brownstown, Starve Hollow near Vallonia, the Hoosier National Forest near Freetown or even Sixth Street in Seymour.

What’s your favorite place for watching leaves in Jackson County?

That’s an easy question for Tina Stark, director of Jackson County Visitor Center.

 “It’s got to be Jackson-Washington State Forest, particularly Skyline Drive if you want to see some vistas,” Stark said. “The approach to Skyline Drive is so beautiful.”

Fall can make Stark nostalgic for her childhood, playing in the leaves from large trees at her grandparents’ home.
“Sometimes if I want to play in the leaves again, I’ll do that in the forestry,” she said.

Stark’s also smitten with the Hoosier National Forest in northwest Jackson County.

Has anyone outside the county discovered its fall beauty?

Stark thinks so.

“Several years ago there was a story in Midwest Living magazine, and there was suggestion that anyone going to Brown County for the fall leaves should also check out Jackson County, so I think people are discovering us.”

Brad Schneck, property manager at Starve Hollow State Recreation Area and Jackson-Washington State Forest, also points to Skyline Drive as a must-see. But he would also direct people to the campground and area around Knob Lake.

“We’ve had some beautiful photos taken up there,” he said.

Peering outside his office window Tuesday morning, Schneck said he could see an “orangeish-dark red of nearby black gums, yellows from persimmon trees and maples turning orange and yellow.”

Schneck would also steer you across the river to an area of the forest in Washington County.

“There are some beautiful drives and scenic roads with hardwoods on both sides of the road in Washington County, including Rooster Hill Road off Indiana 135 through the Delaney Bottoms,” he said. “You get to see the variety of trees going uphill from the poplars, maples and beech and other softer woods near the road, then you’ll run into cherry and others on through the hardwoods up the hills such as ash, oak and hickory. As the soils change from the bottom to the top, so do the species composition.”

Schneck said this year’s wet weather should produce some vivid colors for leaf watchers. It could also result in leaves hanging on longer, he said.

What are Schneck’s favorites?

“Sugar maples always stand out with their brilliant reds and oranges, but I’m also partial to the oaks, both from a forest product standpoint and environmental standpoint and the brilliant colors they create, too,” he said.

Cooler nights are in this week’s forecast, and Schneck said that should really start the colors flowing, just in time for folks heading to Vallonia for the annual Fort Vallonia Festival.

“We consider that a holiday at Starve Hollow,” Schneck said. He expects Starve Hollow’s campground to be full this weekend as a result of the festival. “We’ll have people pulling in all week to camp, and then they’ll spend the weekend at the festival,” he said.

State’s tourism site has  5 leaf cams available

Jackson County’s not included, but five areas of Indiana are online via leaf cams.

Leaf watchers can check on the status of fall colors in Indianapolis and four southern Indiana tourist destinations by visiting the leaf cam section of the state’s tourism Web site.

The five leaf cams on VisitIndiana.com show the turning leaves at Fort Harrison State Park in Indianapolis, French Lick Resort, Brown County, the Corydon Capitol State Historic Site and Spring Mill State Park in Mitchell.

The Web site will feature the leaf cams through Nov. 13.