Click here to see a Gazette slideshow of more photographs of fall 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- While unusually cold mid-October temperatures have brought out an abundance of fall colors, widespread rain showers this weekend could hasten the end of an already peaking autumn foliage display.

West Virginia Division of Forestry officials on Thursday urged leaf lovers to make the most of the coming days to get out and take in the annual changing of the colors, because the season is winding up quickly.

If weekend forecasts for statewide rain and scattered mountain snow flurries prove to be accurate, leaves will fall quickly, according to state foresters. This weekend, they say, may provide the last opportunity to see fall colors in such counties as Braxton, Clay, Lewis, Raleigh, Summers and Upshur.

State foresters rate fall colors at 80 percent peak in Fayette County, just in time for weekend Bridge Day activities. To the north, Barbour, Harrison, Marion, Preston, Taylor and Monongalia counties are nearing their peak color stage. Eastern Panhandle foliage is rated at 75 to 80 percent peak, while the state's southernmost counties, McDowell and Mercer, are reported to be at 70 percent peak.

While driving tours are the most popular way to view West Virginia's fall colors, excursion trains and boats will be operating through most of October to add alternative viewing platforms.

In Pocahontas County, the Durbin Rocket will run Thursdays through Sundays through the end of October, departing at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. from the Durbin Depot. Fares are $22 for adults, $20 for seniors and $12 for children 4-11.

The Cheat Mountain Salamander runs from Elkins to Cheat Bridge and back along the scenic Shavers Fork River today and Saturday and again on Oct. 23-24, departing the restored Elkins Depot at 10 a.m. The six-hour round trip, which includes a sandwich buffet and beverages, costs $58 for adults, $56 for seniors and $50 for kids 4-11. The Salamander will also make three-hour round trips to Beverly, departing Elkins at 1 p.m. on Sunday, and again on Oct. 25. Tickets are $25, $22 and $18.

The New Tygart Flyer operates Thursday through Sunday through the end of October, departing Elkins at 11 a.m. on four-hour roundtrips to the High Falls of Cheat, a remote waterfall 23 miles east of Elkins in the Monongahela National Forest. Tickets are $40, $38 and $30.

For more information about, or reservations for, the Durbin Rocket, Cheat Mountain Salamander or New Tygart Flyer, call 304-636-9477, extension 100, 1-888-MTN-RAIL, or visit www.mountainrail.com.

Steam-powered excursion trains will travel the Cass Scenic Railroad's rails into the Pocahontas County highlands on a daily basis through Oct. 25. Trains making the two-hour, four-mile trip to Whittaker Station and a restored railroad logging camp will depart on weekdays at noon and 2:30 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays, the Whittaker Station trains will depart at 9:30 a.m., noon and 2:30 p.m.

Click here to see a Gazette slideshow of more photographs of fall 

CHARLESTON, W.Va. -- While unusually cold mid-October temperatures have brought out an abundance of fall colors, widespread rain showers this weekend could hasten the end of an already peaking autumn foliage display.

West Virginia Division of Forestry officials on Thursday urged leaf lovers to make the most of the coming days to get out and take in the annual changing of the colors, because the season is winding up quickly.

If weekend forecasts for statewide rain and scattered mountain snow flurries prove to be accurate, leaves will fall quickly, according to state foresters. This weekend, they say, may provide the last opportunity to see fall colors in such counties as Braxton, Clay, Lewis, Raleigh, Summers and Upshur.

State foresters rate fall colors at 80 percent peak in Fayette County, just in time for weekend Bridge Day activities. To the north, Barbour, Harrison, Marion, Preston, Taylor and Monongalia counties are nearing their peak color stage. Eastern Panhandle foliage is rated at 75 to 80 percent peak, while the state's southernmost counties, McDowell and Mercer, are reported to be at 70 percent peak.

While driving tours are the most popular way to view West Virginia's fall colors, excursion trains and boats will be operating through most of October to add alternative viewing platforms.

In Pocahontas County, the Durbin Rocket will run Thursdays through Sundays through the end of October, departing at 10 a.m. and 2:30 p.m. from the Durbin Depot. Fares are $22 for adults, $20 for seniors and $12 for children 4-11.

The Cheat Mountain Salamander runs from Elkins to Cheat Bridge and back along the scenic Shavers Fork River today and Saturday and again on Oct. 23-24, departing the restored Elkins Depot at 10 a.m. The six-hour round trip, which includes a sandwich buffet and beverages, costs $58 for adults, $56 for seniors and $50 for kids 4-11. The Salamander will also make three-hour round trips to Beverly, departing Elkins at 1 p.m. on Sunday, and again on Oct. 25. Tickets are $25, $22 and $18.

The New Tygart Flyer operates Thursday through Sunday through the end of October, departing Elkins at 11 a.m. on four-hour roundtrips to the High Falls of Cheat, a remote waterfall 23 miles east of Elkins in the Monongahela National Forest. Tickets are $40, $38 and $30.

For more information about, or reservations for, the Durbin Rocket, Cheat Mountain Salamander or New Tygart Flyer, call 304-636-9477, extension 100, 1-888-MTN-RAIL, or visit www.mountainrail.com.

Steam-powered excursion trains will travel the Cass Scenic Railroad's rails into the Pocahontas County highlands on a daily basis through Oct. 25. Trains making the two-hour, four-mile trip to Whittaker Station and a restored railroad logging camp will depart on weekdays at noon and 2:30 p.m. On Saturdays and Sundays, the Whittaker Station trains will depart at 9:30 a.m., noon and 2:30 p.m.

Departures for the railroad's 11-mile run to a scenic overlook atop 4,842-foot Bald Knob will leave the Cass depot at 11 a.m. on Tuesdays, Wednesdays, Thursdays, Saturdays and Sundays. On Fridays, the high-country destination for the 11 a.m. departure is the town site of Spruce, once a bustling logging town and one of the highest-elevation communities in the east.

Fares for weekday passage to Whittaker Station are $22 for adults and $16 for children. On weekends, tickets cost $25 and $19. For Bald Knob and Spruce trips, tickets are $28 and $20 on weekdays and $31 and $23 on weekends.

For reservations and more information, call 304-456-4300, 1-800-CALL-WVA, or visit www.cassrailroad.com.

The Romney-based Potomac Eagle makes three-hour roundtrips through historic farm country and the remote and scenic Trough section of the South Branch of the Potomac River, home of the state's largest population of nesting bald eagles.

Trains depart Wappocomo Station on W.Va. 28 just outside Romney on Saturdays at 10 a.m. and 2 p.m. through Oct. 24, and at 11:30 a.m. on Oct. 31. On Sunday, the train departs at 2 p.m., and on Sunday, Oct. 24, the Eagle will roll out of Romney at 1 p.m. Weekday departures through Oct. 27 will be at 11:30 a.m. On Nov. 1, the Eagle will make a special trip to Green Spring at 10 a.m., and a trip to Moorefield at 1 p.m. On Nov. 7, the train will run the length of the South Branch Railroad.

Coach class tickets on the regular three-hour trips are $40 for adults, $37 for seniors and $10 for children 6 to 16. For reservations and more information, call 304-424-0736 or 304-822-7464, or visit www.potomaceagle.info.

New River Jetboats provides waterborne leaf-peeping in the New River Gorge through the end of October, except for Wednesdays. Six-mile, half-hour trips from the base of the Hawks Nest Tramway to the shadow of the New River Gorge Bridge operate from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. on weekdays and 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. on weekends.

The 16-passenger jetboat travels at speeds up to 30 miles per hour. Fares are $25 for adults, $23 for seniors and $10 for kids 5 to 16. For more trip information, call 304-469-2525 or 304-640-0924 or visit www.newriverjetboats.com.

Sternwheeler rides to Blennerhassett Island State Historical Park near Parkersburg will run Thursday through Sunday through the end of October.

Park hours are 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Thursdays, Fridays and Saturdays, and from noon to 4:30 on Sundays. Due to riverfront construction this year, the Blennerhassett sternwheeler will depart from Civitan Park in Belpre, Ohio, just across the Ohio River from downtown Parkersburg, for the 20-minute cruise to the historic island.

Once on the island, visitors can take horse-drawn wagon rides to the upper end of the island for $5, tour the mansion for $4 for adults and $2 for children, or rent fat-tired bikes for do-it-yourself touring for $4 per hour. Sternwheeler passage is $8 for adults and $3 for kids 3 to 12.

Reach Rick Steelhammer at rsteelham...@wvgazette.com or 304-348-5169.