Or Wisconsin...the Door County Peninsula, for instance, is a scenic resort area and only about a 4 hour drive from O'Hare Airport. We were in Door County the first week of October, 2023; fall color had started but had not reached its peak; the daytimes were pleasantly warm, the evenings crisp and cool. The U.P. would be chillier and fall color would arrive a little earlier as it is farther north.

You may be too late for peak fall colors in the UP. However, nothing is certain anymore. Additionally, you may find many places closed for the season. I like the UP but it has limitations.

Door County Wisconsin is usually very busy in October and reservations are a must.

California scenery is much more spectacular in the mountains. Fall colors in the west aren't as stunning as the east because of the drier climate. I can't speak to fall in California, however, except that my California cousins are always impressed with the vibrant colors in the Midwest including green foliage in the summer.

UP of Michigan gets peak colors in late September. You coukd be past peak therr. Thrn fall colors change later as you move south

Sure you can fly just about anywhere for 4-5 days then fly to LAX before you fly home.

Don’t know what interests you

Fall color change varies so keep that in mind. I would still stay in that section of the country as the fall colors are truly spectacular when at peak.

In October fall colors are among the best in the nation in the eastern sierras. California also has some of the best weather so its a wonderful time to go see Sacramento, hire a car and look at Tahoe, Yosemite, Sierra Nevada places, Death Valley(?) , stay somewhere close - ish to LA the last night and drive to the airport the next day. its also great for animal viewing.

https://roadtrippingcalifornia.com/fall-colors-in-the-eastern-sierra/

As much as I love my home state, October is kind of peak fire season for us, and after two years of insanely high rainfall totals and the concomitant (there's a 50-cent word for ya!) growth of the brush means elevated wildfire risk. The possibility of having your road trip be marred by road closures or smoky, hazy atmosphere is enough for me to recommend you stay in the UP.

Another possibility for your roadtrip would be to fly out of Minneapolis-St. Paul (MSP), which would allow you to see some more of Wisconsin as well as Minnesota. It will be past peak colours by then but not yet brown-dead winter. Of course, if you end up at Sleeping Bear Dunes by far the easiest would be Detroit or Chicago.

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Thanks all for the advice and suggestions.

I have toyed with flying out of Minneapolis but thought it was too far with not enough to see between Whitefish Point area and Minneapolis. I will revisit that idea.

My OH has never been to Yosemite and I love reading John Muir, hence my interest in that area. Thx for the great link re eastern Sierras. No suitable accommodation available in Yosemite for our dates so would have to stay elsewhere. Not keen on smoke though. We have been to Bryce, Zion and GC on previous trips so probably won’t do that this time.

Thanks again.

There's not a lot of accommodation actually IN Yosemite—there are a couple of hotels and Housekeeping Camp, etc. Most people stay nearby, like in Yosemite West, El Portal, Foresta, Incline, Groveland, Fish Camp, or even Mariposa or Oakhurst.

There is also Sequoia and Kings Canyon National Parks which have similar (though not as iconic) scenery, which are a little easier to come by accommodation, also in John Muir country.

The smoke thing is when there's a fire. Not really possible to know.

As for driving to Minneapolis from Whitefish Point, you could stop and see Door County in between which is about halfway. Or you could swing a bit south to, say, Nelson, Wisconsin and drive up the Great River Road through Red Wing to Minneapolis-St. Paul. Gorgeous scenery, small river towns, bald eagles, etc.

The other possibility is to end your trip at MQT or CIU airport and just connect through either ORD on American Eagle, or through DTW on Delta back to LAX.