“Autumn seemed to arrive suddenly that year. The morning of the first September was crisp and golden as an apple,” J. K. Rowling once mused. Local fall foliage predictors are echoing the same sentiment.  Due to drier than usual spring and summer seasons, we're anticipating this year’s color to be more spectacular than we've experienced in many years. Your friends at Mast General Store and the Fall Foliage Primer hope to help you get the most out of your leafing tour this year.

Starting on September 23rd, keep track as the color progresses across Western North Carolina and Upstate South Carolina with the Fall Foliage Primer at www.fallfoliageprimer.com. This helpful guide provides information about things to see and do this fall along with color updates from Waynesville, Asheville, Hendersonville, the High Country (Boone and Valle Crucis) in North Carolina, as well as Greenville, South Carolina. Mast Store “leafers” stationed in each of these communities offer weekly local reports and pictures beginning the last week of September through the first week of November. Recommendations and directions to favorite fall foliage treks are also provided as a part of the weekly reports.

As you plan your autumn adventure, we offer a few tips in conjunction with the Fall Foliage Primer:

•    Make your hotel reservations early as weekends and some weekdays in October tend to book quickly. You may also find better rates and smaller crowds when booking Sunday through Thursday evening.
•    Prepare your eyes for delight! Polarized sunglasses enhance fall colors and binoculars help bring distant views into focus.
•    Charge up your batteries and bring along your camera. This season’s weather changes from fog to sun within moments, creating dramatic images you’ll cherish long after fall has faded. Check out our enhanced fall photography tips in the Fall Foliage Primer for even better ways to capture the endless beauty.
•    Prepare to layer by bringing along plenty of warm clothing. Temperatures vary greatly as you drive from the city up into the mountains. If you’re in need of a bit more warmth, stop by Mast General Store to pick up necessities for your excursion, from coats and hats to gloves and hand warmers.
•    If you’re not sure where to begin your journey, ask any Mast General Store associate for directions to the area’s most colorful routes. Associates can also recommend local fall festivals, places to eat, and the best farms for picking apples and the perfect pumpkin.

This season offers an enchanted backdrop to every outdoor excursion.  Leaves of brilliant reds, cheerful oranges, and rich golds are a feast for the eyes and a delight for the senses. It’s been said that fall is when everything bursts with its last beauty, as if nature had been saving up all year for the grand finale. With the help of the Fall Foliage Primer, you will find it easier to enjoy nature’s grand show this year!