You Can Take a Free Shuttle to New York's Adirondacks This Weekend to See the Fall Foliage Peak — Here's How

As New York’s fall foliage turns more technicolor in the early weeks of October, the state is making it easier to enjoy the autumnal colors at their peak in the Adirondacks.

A free shuttle, running from the gateway to the Adirondacks (aptly called the Frontier Town Gateway in North Hudson, New York) to four stops near popular trailheads, returned last weekend. It will run this coming weekend on Oct. 8, Oct. 9, and Oct. 10 from 7 a.m to 7 p.m. No reservations are required, and each shuttle can seat 20 people. Dogs are not allowed.

The shuttle makes a loop, starting at Frontier Town Gateway and then stopping at Marcy Field in Keene, New York, as well as at the Giant Mountain, Roaring Brook Falls, and Rooster Comb trailheads.

The service is technically an expansion of the Route 73 Hiker Shuttle, which started in 2021 to help get hikers to trailheads without having to navigate often-crowded parking lots. The fall foliage expansion of the hiker shuttle runs for only five days this fall (the first two of which were last weekend). There's also a Garden Shuttle that runs from Marcy Field to the Garden Trailhead on Saturdays and Sundays from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. The project is the result of a partnership between the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC), Essex County, and the Regional Office of Sustainable Tourism (ROOST).

“The most beautiful fall foliage in the world is right here in our state, and New Yorkers deserve to take in the scenery in a safe and convenient way," New York Governor Kathy Hochul said in a statement last week.

Hikers scouting the best fall foliage in New York State can follow this interactive map that tracks when the leaves will peak. Learn more about Adirondacks shuttle program (including the fall foliage shuttle and the Route 73 Hiker Shuttle) here.