It’s not Vermont apple-picking or a New Hampshire hay ride, but it’s a fall category all its own: urban leaf peeping. Instead of escaping the city for bucolic landscapes, this activity celebrates the juxtaposition of steel high-rises and colorful leaves. Not to mention that for many people, city walks are more accessible than remote trailheads or countryside locations.
From New York to Vancouver, here are six walks that spotlight fall in the city.
New York City
Central Park
To best appreciate the splendor of fall in Central Park — showcased in many a romantic comedy — take a stroll into the lesser-known North Woods section.
The area encompasses 40 acres in Central Park’s northwest corner and features three waterfalls along a knotted clump of wooded trails. The quietness of the North Woods also makes it a great spot for bird-watching: It was the roost of Flaco, the much-celebrated owl escapee.
Enter the park from the West 103rd Street entrance, right next to the subway stop for the C and B lines. Take the paved walking path down past the northern edge of the Pool toward the Grotto, where stone steps lead you down to a series of arches that feel like a scene out of “The Secret Garden.” On your way, take in the greenish-yellow beech tree leaves, the scarlet-hued black tupelo and the sweetgum trees that mark the path.
From the arches, turn north along an unpaved trail uphill into woodland designed to evoke the Adirondacks. There, you’ll find the Blockhouse, a vestigial fort from the War of 1812 on a hillside overlooking the Harlem Meer. Loop back toward West 106th Street to complete your one-mile wander at the Great Hill, a onetime British encampment during the Revolutionary War, which is lined with oaks and elms. A full map, provided by the Central Park Conservancy, can be found here.
For another vantage point, head to the Metropolitan Museum of Art on the park’s east side. After taking a moment to appreciate the yellowing littleleaf linden trees on the plaza outside, make your way to the Met’s rooftop, a small patio surrounded by hedges with panoramic views of Central Park and the city beyond. The view is best at the northwest corner of the patio, where a guardrail creates a break in the hedges to reveal more of the glorious foliage below.
Montreal
Mount Royal Park
Mount Royal Park in Montreal, known by locals simply as “the mountain,” is a beloved landmark that gave the city its name (Mount Royal is the anglicized version of Montreal).
Come autumn, the park’s almost 700 acres of trees, including oak and ash, transform into reds, deep browns and oranges. To see them, take the four-mile Olmsted Trail around the parks’ various nooks. Or join a fall walking tour for $25 put on by “les amis de la montagne” (“friends of the mountain”).
If it’s close to Halloween, indulge in a ghost tour of the park’s cemeteries (there are four) for 29 Canadian dollars, or about $21. In the park’s main cemetery you will find the grave of Sir John Abbott, the third prime minister of Canada (1891-92). A marble obelisk marking his burial site rests below the orange-red leaves of a Kentucky coffee tree.
After leaf peeping, exit through the northeast corner of the park and walk over to Patati Patata Friterie de Luxe for their requisite poutine to complete your day.
Boston
Arnold Arboretum
Crossing through the Arnold Arboretum’s wrought-iron gates will make you feel as if you are being transported beyond Boston’s city limits, even though the 281-acre nature preserve is solidly centered in the city. The 153-year-old arboretum is the oldest such tree preserve in the country.
Enter through the Forest Hills gate in Jamaica Plain and take the Forest Hills Road to the Beech Path and wander around Bussey Hill. The arboretum — like Central Park, designed by Frederick Law Olmsted — has more than three miles of paved paths that take you through its eclectic collection of trees, including 70 species of maples.
The park hosts free autumn-themed tours led by docents who will explain the seasonal changes and experts who can explain the science behind the colors.
You can also wander through the arboretum yourself, taking in all the reds, yellows and oranges.
Feeling more ambitious? Continue along the Emerald Necklace, a seven-mile chain of 1,100 acres of city parks with some 8,000 trees. The network stretches from Boston Common in Beacon Hill through Brookline to Jamaica Plain, ending with Franklin Park, the city’s largest public park and home to the infamous bear cages — rusted, overgrown vessels that used to hold bears for the park’s long-gone zoo.
Vancouver
Stanley Park
Stanley Park, on a peninsula in English Bay, is, at more than 1,000 acres, one of the biggest city parks in the world. In the middle of it, a roughly mile-long trail will take you around Beaver Lake, home to Canada geese, herons, ducks and other water-loving birds.
In the fall, ruby-red maple trees and golden Scouler’s willow trees contrast with the majestic Douglas firs that ring the lake. After you wrap up your walk, continue on to the park’s Prospect Point Lookout less than a mile away for sweeping views of the bay, the surrounding foliage and the mountains beyond. The park also has more than 27 kilometers (nearly 17 miles) of walking trails varying in length and difficulty, so you can find the perfect option to match what you’re looking for.
For even more fantastic vistas, walk or bike the six-mile sea wall trail around the perimeter of Stanley Park, offering views of the bay.
End your visit with a trip to Stanley Park Brewing Restaurant & Brewpub for craft beer and more views of the park.
Nashville
Centennial Park
Centennial Park may have entered the broader consciousness through a Taylor Swift lyric, but for Nashville locals, its 132 acres have long been a fall destination for nature walks and festivals such as the Tennessee Craft Fair and Celebrate Nashville.
A one-mile walking trail loops around the park’s great lawn and Lake Watauga. It is a flat, serene, winding path that takes you through beeches, elms, magnolias and willows.
For more exploration, check out the park’s Parthenon, featuring a 42-foot statue of the Greek goddess Athena. The replica of the Greek monument is also an art museum, with 63 paintings on view, including Sanford Gifford’s “Autumn in the Catskills,” which features some bonus New York foliage.
When you have seen the sights, head to Red’s Hot Chicken on the park’s edge for a Nashville specialty: spicy fried chicken.
Seattle
Burke-Gilman Trail
The Burke-Gilman Trail in Seattle winds 20 miles around Lake Washington and cuts across the northern portion of the city. The paved path makes for easy walking, biking, running and, in the fall, leaf peeping.
The terrain along the lake’s western edge is mostly flat and takes you through both wooded areas and open promenades with views of the water. While the Burke-Gilman Trail has multiple access points, for this excursion you will park at Magnuson Cafe & Brewery to grab a quick brunch before taking the pathway at the north end of the parking lot and crossing the street to the trailhead.
Along the way, you will pass the trail’s bigleaf maples with their mustard yellow hues while crunching over fallen leaves. At points, the wide trail splits into narrower trails lined with tall birches.
Walk two miles until the path brings you to Metropolitan Market, where you can pick up a snack or drink before hitting the trail back to your car.
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Claire Fahy reports on New York City and the surrounding area for The Times.
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