Believe it if you see it! This year's fall colours are better

Your eyes are not deceiving you - those yellows, oranges, and reds you're seeing on the trees this fall are brighter and more vibrant than in years past.

Experts say last autumn was warm and dry; weather that bakes the leaves and burns the colour out of them.

But the weather this season has combined perfectly to produce more vibrant colours than normal.

"They need the right temperature range at the right time," explains Sean Thomas, a forest and environment change professor at the University of Toronto.

"So cool temperatures but above freezing, in conjunction with high light."

West of the Ottawa Valley, Algonquin Provincial Park offers some of the most stunning views the Canadian Shield has to offer.

"The colours here, all the way up from about Orillia north, the colours are absolutely beautiful," said Ken Koprowski, who was visiting Algonquin Park Wednesday from Strathroy, Ont.

"The reds and the oranges and the yellows, I thought we'd be too late to see them," he said. "But we picked a good time."

Also visiting the park from his cottage in Huntsville, Josh Staadegaard says he's watched the leaves evolve daily.

"The last 24 hours there's been a lot of fall and what was a vibrant, super amber orange has now changed to a dark red, which obviously is nice to see too."

Thomas says there is one tree that stands out above the other to paint the canopy.

"Basically because of sugar maple," says Thomas. "So you have this dominant tree that can have just unbelievable red colours and cover the whole landscape."

Experts say it is late in the year to view fall colours, and any left could be pulled down in heavy rain or wind. Their suggestion is to get out and view them soon if you have not already.