This week is the perfect time to take one lastminute hike up the mountain since it will be “peak week” for fall foliage.

Leaf colors will be in full form before they begin to fall after this week, giving facilities one more thing to clean-up on campus.

The 2004 fall season has been fairly average compared to other years and this year’s delayed peak is due mostly to the temperate night climates that were mostly in the 40s, as opposed to last year’s thirty-degree late September and early October nights.

Although it might seem too early to start pulling winter coats and boots out of storage, this year’s early winter prediction suggests otherwise.

According to just-released reports from the Accuweather.com Winter Storm Prediction Center, the Conn. area is headed for an early arriving winter with the first accumulating snowfall predicted for before the thanksgiving holiday.

It also looks like it is going to be a colder winter with both higher than average temperatures and snowfall, which may delight skiers and snowboarders, but evoke groans from cranky students who will be less than thrilled about walking to class on frigid mornings.

The Hamden, Conn. area is expected to have anywhere between 40-54 inches of snow compared with average snowfalls of 36-48 inches in past years.