Fall Showed Up in Clark County. The Forecasts Still Don't Agree on What's Next.

By early September, Clark County was still running the air conditioning. Portland had recorded

measurable rain exactly once in 55 days. The Camas Farmers Market was still setting up under full

sun every Wednesday afternoon. Then, right on schedule, a system rolled down from Alaska and

pushed the region into what forecasters are calling a fall-type pattern: cooler air, more clouds, the first

real shift since June.

Here's the part that makes this fall harder to plan around than most. The two major outlooks for

September through November do not agree with each other. The Climate Prediction Center is calling

for a good chance of above-average temperatures and drier-than-normal conditions through

November. The Old Farmer's Almanac is calling for the opposite: a cooler, wetter fall, with September

alone potentially bringing up to three inches more rain than usual. Both cannot be right, and neither

one is a guarantee.

So what do you do with two forecasts pointing in opposite directions? Mostly, you stop waiting for

permission from the weather and start paying attention to what's actually happening around you this

month. Plenty of fall is already here whether the thermometer agrees or not.

The season is already closing out downtown

Camas' Wednesday market wraps for the year on September 30 with its Harvest Festival, the last

stop before vendors pack up until next June. It's running out of a temporary spot on NE Birch Street

this year while the city works through construction downtown, so it's worth double-checking the

location before you head over. Vancouver's Saturday and Sunday market at 8th and Esther keeps

going a full month longer, through October 31, before it shifts into shorter winter hours.

Where the color actually shows up first

If you want to see the season change rather than just feel it, Lacamas Regional Park in Camas is the

easiest place to start. Its trails wind around Lacamas Lake, Round Lake, and Lacamas Creek, and

they tend to pick up color earlier than most of the county. The 1.2-mile Round Lake Loop is short

enough for an after-work walk and still gets you past a run of vine maples turning early. Fallen Leaf

Park, a smaller lake ringed with maples and alders, connects right into the same trail network if you

want to keep going.

Pumpkin season means picking your farm, not just your patch

Clark County has more than one pumpkin patch worth the drive, and they lean toward different kinds

of Saturdays. Bi-Zi Farm on NE 119th Street in Vancouver runs a corn maze and hayrides alongsidethe patch. Pomeroy Living History Farm, northeast of Battle Ground off Lucia Falls Road, adds a

working historical farm and a kid-sized hay maze to the mix. Closer to Salmon Creek, the patch near

I-205 and 134th keeps things simple with a straw maze and a corn maze, a short drive from most of

north Vancouver.

What this actually means for the rest of the month

None of this depends on which forecast turns out to be right. The market booths, the changing

maples, and the pumpkin patches are all already running on their own calendar, not the Climate

Prediction Center's. The honest advice is to keep a rain jacket in the car, not put away the sun hat

quite yet, and get outside for the parts of fall that show up on schedule every year regardless of what

September ends up doing.

The bottom line

Clark County's fall this year is genuinely uncertain on paper and genuinely already underway in

practice. The forecasts will sort themselves out eventually. The farmers markets, the trails, and the

pumpkin patches are not waiting around for that to happen, and neither should you.

Thinking about a move before the season turns for good? We're happy to walk a home with you while

Clark County still looks like this, not just in listing photos. Reach out anytime.

Frequently asked questions

When does fall actually start feeling like fall in Clark County?

There's no single date for it. The calendar marks autumn's start around September 22, but the season

usually starts to feel real once a system rolls down from the coast and breaks up the summer pattern,

which is exactly what happened in early September this year. Some years that shift holds. Some

years it doesn't, and warm, dry weather returns for a few more weeks.

Is this going to be a wet fall or a dry one?

Depends which forecast you trust. The Climate Prediction Center leans toward a warmer, drier

September through November for the region. The Old Farmer's Almanac predicts the opposite, a

cooler fall with meaningfully more rain in September. The honest answer is to plan for either one.

When's the last chance to catch a farmers market in Camas this year?

September 30, at the Harvest Festival that closes out the market's 2026 season. It's running from a

temporary spot on NE Birch Street this year, so it's worth confirming the location before you go.

Vancouver's downtown market keeps running through October 31 if you want more time.

Where's the easiest walk to see fall color close to Vancouver?

The Round Lake Loop Trail at Lacamas Regional Park in Camas is a good starting point, at about 1.2

miles and a short drive from downtown Vancouver. It tends to pick up color earlier than most of the

county thanks to the vine maples along the water.