Autumn colours of Alpine valleys
October is the finest month to visit Alpine valleys. Why leaves change colour at all, and where the views are best.
When larches turn golden in October, Alpine valleys get their most photogenic weeks of the year.
The colour change is chemistry: as days shorten, trees withdraw chlorophyll from their leaves, revealing the yellow and orange pigments that were there all along.
Where to go
- valleys with larch forests turn latest and brightest
- morning fog below, sunshine above — arrive early
- weekdays are far quieter than weekends