The Eastern Sierra often has two distinct fall colors seasons, about 10-14 days apart. Sometimes they overlap, but trying to catch that can leave you with dead leaves in one area, and un-turned green leaves in the other.
We've been treating the two main opportunities separately for a while now, but it's not an exact science. Timing can vary from year to year, and extreme weather events are possible. A particularly cold storm can mess with the typical scenarios. Fortunately there are often pockets of color that don't get hit as hard by an early October storm, and places that will turn a little early in that second wave.
Now in my tenth year living here chasing the locations and their annual progression, you can join me in my annual pursuit, in one of two workshops in October:
www.jeffsullivanphotography.com/blog/eastern-sierra-fall-... 