Fall foliage is peaking this week in Louisville and surrounding areas, but before you go raking in the leaves, we wanted to share a few unbe-leaf-able local spots to catch the gold, yellow + orange leaves.

About 12 million acres in Kentucky — 47% of the land area — are covered with forests filled with dogwoods, sumacs, poplars + sugar maples. While it’s impossible to see every inch of the beautiful changing forests, we found 5 spectacular places to take in the autumn scenery.

And while you’re leaf-peeping, here’s some trivia to impress your friends — leaf colors are actually revealed when the process of photosynthesis slows down during the colder days + longer nights. As the leaves stop producing chlorophyll (which creates those lush shades of greens), the eye-popping fall hues shine through.

Walk or bike the Iroquois Park loop to take in the changing trees. | Photo by @theloutoday

🍁 Iroquois Park

5216 New Cut Rd. | Take a walk around the paved 3.3-mile scenic loop of this 692-acre park that has the most tree canopy coverage in Derby City + the largest tree out of all 120 Louisville Metro Parks, a ~120-ft tall Tulip Poplar tree, which is also Kentucky’s state tree.

🍁 Bernheim Forest

2075 Clermont Rd. | Explore the changing landscape on one of Bernheim’s Mid-week Nature Walks every Thursday this month (except Thanksgiving) through Dec. 2. An experienced naturalist will guide the hike from 2-3:30 p.m. Registration is $7 for members + $10 for non-members.

🍁 Skyline Drive

7500 N. Skyline Dr., Floyds Knobs, IN | Cross the bridge + take a drive into the hills of Indiana to overlook both Southern Indiana and Louisville down below. Pro Tip: Make a stop at Mickey’s coffee shop on the way up and snag a hot beverage for the trip.

🍁 Waverly Park

4800 Waverly Park Rd. | While this destination is a haven for mountain bikers, you can take in the fall colors throughout the 300+ acres of woods during a hike, horseback riding, or playing golf at their nine-hole golf course.

🍁 Kentucky’s Big South Fork Scenic Railway

100 Henderson St., Stearns, KY | Board the Shades of Autumn: Fall Color Express, ~3 hours from Louisville, for a 14-mile train ride through the scenic mountains of Southern Kentucky + stop at a historic mining camp. This fall excursion runs through Nov. 7 with tickets starting at $28.