The Weekend Round-Up: October 15-17

A Halloween scene in the city

Happy Weekend!

Links to loads of ongoing activities around the area:
* Best Outdoors in the DC Area
* Local Hikes with Kids
* Indoor Outings
* Pick-Your-Own Ops
* Bike Rides
* On the Water
* Peaceful Places
* Baltimore with Kids

Wicked Fun
Where: Around the DC Area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by activity
This time of year is always a scream with all gobs of ways to get the Halloween party started early. From mini train rides through the woods to haunted tours to festivals inspired by the holiday, details on where the tricks and treats are happening can be found in this annual post.

Drive-In “Spooky” Movie Night
Where: DC Party Box | Rockville, MD
When: Friday & Saturday evenings
Admission: $15/adult, $10/13 & under
Enjoy Spooktacular theater at this drive-in, featuring an LED screen, FM broadcasting, and spooky surprises. In the movie line-up this weekend: Young Frankenstein, Casper, and The Addams Family on Friday and Spooky Buddies, Frankenweenie, and Scooby Doo 2: Monsters Unleashed on Saturday. A Family Movie Bundle is available that includes 2 adult tickets, 2 child tickets, popcorn, drinks, and priority parking. Reserve in advance online, one reservation per car.

60th Anniversary Celebration
Where: Frying Pan Farm Park | Herndon, VA
When: Saturday, 10am – 4pm
Admission: Free
Bring the whole fam to celebrate 60 years of beloved Frying Pan Farm Park! Take tours of the farm, watch a tractor parade, pose for fun photo ops, enjoy farm demonstrations, and lots more. Concessions will be available for purchase from food trucks on site.

A Half-Century Celebration
Where: Potomac Overlook Regional Park | Arlington, VA
When: Saturday, 10am – 2pm
Admission: Free
Potomac Overlook Regional Park is turning 50 and the public is invited to help celebrate! Drop in to explore the garden, meet live animals, learn how you can support our park and get involved, and more. This event is free for all, and no reservations are required. Please leave pets at home. Read more about Potomac Overlook Park here.

Art Safari
Where: Torpedo Factory | Old Town Alexandria, VA
When: Saturday, 12-4pm
Admission: Free
An Alexandria tradition for more than a quarter-century, Art Safari returns for an in-person day of activities for kids and families. Join fellow lovers of art and learning for outdoor Waterfront art activities and select projects in the Grand Hall of the building. Great for kids ages 5+, younger children may need some extra help, but will still have a lot of fun! Masks are required for all visitors over the age of 2, regardless of vaccination status. RSVPs strongly suggested.

Tough Mudder Kids
Where: Mechanicsville, MD
When: Saturday & Sunday
Admission: $25 (look for discount)
Kids can compete in youth-sized version of the Tough Mudder race! The Mini Mudder is recommended for ages 5-7, with participants tackling a 1/2-mile course, working together as a team to get through 10 obstacles to earn their headband. The Mighty Mudder is recommended for ages 8-12, brings the best of the full sized course to life, featuring 15 of the world’s best obstacles, including kid-friendly versions of racer favorites, spread over a one-mile course. It’s as close to the real things as it gets for kids!

Capital Art & Craft Festival
Where: Dulles Expo Center | Chantilly, VA
When: Friday, Saturday & Sunday
Admission: $10/advance, $12/at door, free/12 & under
Think early holiday shopping! This showcase of artisry and craftsmanship will feature art in more than a dozen mediums — jewelry, paintings, prints, glass, leather, photography, pottery, wearable art, and wood, and more. For safety, aisles are wider and masks required. Visit the website for more details!

Loudoun County Fall Farm Tour
Where: Farms around Loudoun County, VA
When: Saturday & Sunday, 10am – 4pm
Admission: Free
The 28th annual Loudoun Fall Farm Tour showcases more than two dozen locations that offer everything from pumpkin patches to alpacas to flowers to vineyards to farmers markets. All of the locations provide an educational component for visitors as well. Among them, Hope Flower Farm will be inviting guests to wander through the blooming dahlia fields, picnic, and take photos on their lovely 25 acre farm. Visit the website for a map of the locations and more info on each one.

Fall for Festival Season
Where: Around the DC Area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
Pick some pumpkins, whiz down giant slides, get lost in corn mazes, go on and hayrides, bounce around on jumping pillows, say “huzzah!” to Ren Fest, and so much more. There are activities galore to help you embrace the autumn spirit, and the KFDC guide to fall festivals has details on all of them.

Djembe Drumming at the Museum
Where: Kreeger Museum | Foxhall/Palisades, DC
When: Saturday, 10:30am
Admission: $20
Add some percussion to a museum outing! The Kreeger Museum is hosting a djembe drumming session on Saturday morning — join teaching artist Manny Arciniega for a drum circle exploring the foundations of rhythm. Of course, make time to explore the collections, too. Both kids and adults will be delighted by the art! Read more about the Kreeger Museum in this KFDC post.

Model Trains + Thomas
Where: Historic Vienna Train Station | Vienna, VA
When: Saturday, 1-5pm
Admission: Free (donations accepted)
Fall is coming and it is time to go to the Historic Vienna Train Station and Museum where you can see and hear HO scale model trolleys and trains, including Thomas and some of his friends, on display and in operation. It’s a great family fun and activity for the young and young at heart. The Station is at 231 Dominion Road NE, Vienna, VA along the W&OD trail just past the Caboose. Masks are required for all visitors age 2 and up regardless of vaccination status.

Pumpkins & Pours
Where: West Grove Urban Park | Chevy Chase, MD
When: Saturday, 4-8pm
Admission: Free
There’s something for the kids and adults at this event! Local craft beer, pumpkins, pizza, and more will be part of the festivities at this event to in the fall and Halloween spirit. Join for drinks from 7 Locks Brewing, delicious food from Flame and Cones Food Truck, and while you’re at it, grab a free pumpkin from Maynes Tree Farm and get decorating. Lawn games and picnic seating will also be available to make an afternoon and evening of it. All ages are welcome, so bring the whole fam!

Luchadora!
Where: Adventure Theatre | Glen Echo Park, MD
When: Saturday, 2pm
Admission: $20.50
See Adventure Theatre’s production about a teen tomboy who trains to become a wrestler with the help of a magic mask maker. This production will take place outdoors in the grassy field next to ATMTC and the Irish Inn (BYO blanket!).

Hadestown
Where: Kennedy Center | Foggy Bottom, DC
When: Through October 28
Tickets: $45-175 (look for a discount)
Welcome to Hadestown, where a song can change your fate. Intertwining two mythic tales—that of young dreamers Orpheus and Eurydice, and that of King Hades and his wife Persephone—Hadestown is a haunting and hopeful theatrical experience that grabs you and never lets go. Winner of eight 2019 Tony Awards® including Best Musical and the 2020 Grammy Award® for Best Musical Theater Album, this acclaimed new show by celebrated singer-songwriter Anaïs Mitchell and innovative director Rachel Chavkin (Natasha, Pierre & The Great Comet of 1812) is a love story for today…and always. Recommended for age 8+.

The Madness of Poe
Where: Synetic Theatre | Crystal City, VA
When: Through October 31
Tickets: $20-60
Join Syentic back in the theater for an evening Edgar Allan Poe’s classic stories envisioned as a kaleidoscopic tapestry of terror. It’s dark and dramatic and highly entertaining with Synetic’s signature physical theatre keeping the audience rapt. Recommended for teen ages and up.

Wizard School Virtual Scavenger Hunt
Where: Watson Adventures Online
When: Saturday, 6-7pm
Admission: $19 (tickets here)
Grab your magic wands for a wizarding adventure that takes you to museums across America in search of art that echoes characters, places, and magical objects in the famed Harry Potter books and movies, all without leaving your home. You’ll track down slithering serpents, Hagrid-like giants and eerie figures as scary as any Dementor. This hunt references the books and provides a surprising bridge to many strange and wonderful works of art. Read about the IRL version of the scavenger hunt here. (And, FYI, we’ve also done Watson Adventures’ online games and have had a blast!)

Milo the Magnificent
Where: Highland Elementary | Wheaton, MD
WhenL Saturday, 11am & Sunday, 2pm
Admission: Free
Wheaton Family Theatre Series is back live and in-person this weekend with a puppetry performance by Alex and Olmsted! Milo the Magnificent is a highly engaging puppet show about an aspiring magician. This wordless comedy, inspired by turn of the century vaudeville entertainers, is as highly physical as it is charming. Using stunningly innovative puppetry, Milo presents a variety of magic tricks which don’t always go as planned. For this event, everyone over 12 years old must show proof of vaccination or proof of negative Covid test results within 72 hours to enter. Masks are required for everyone age 3 and up.

Baysox Fall Festival & Pumpkin Patch
Where: Prince George’s Stadium | Landover, MD
When: Sunday, 11am – 4pm
Admission: $5-15
Join the Bowie Baysox at Prince George’s Stadium for a Fall Festival and Pumpkin Patch. Select a pumpkin from the patch on the outfield at the ballpark and enjoy more activities. Kids can ride on the carousel, jump in the bounce house, play carnival-style, and more. Halloween costumes are encouraged for all! This event will have two time slots: #1 is 11am – 1pm, and #2 is 2-4pm.

Jake Blount – All Ages Music Show
Where: Kennedy Center | Foggy Bottom, DC
When: Sunday, 4pm
Admission: $15-20
The Kennedy Center touts this as a show for all ages with banjo, fiddle and song. DC native Jake Blount is a specialist in the folk traditions of Black and indigenous Americans — his blues and bluegrass music is called a feel-good, awe-inspiring musical experience.

Autumn off the Farm
Where: Around the DC Area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by activity
Farm festivals may be the go-to autumn outing, but there are lots of other fantastic ways to enjoy the season around the area. This KFDC post lists 10 great places to for fall adventures.

Think Outside
Where: Around the DMV
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by locale
It looks like there will be great weather at least part of the weekend, so plan to get outside. There’s no shortage of places and activities around the area for adventures in the great outdoors. This round-up has tons of ideas for al fresco fun. Some specific recs for now: Hike at Huntley Meadows, enjoy a paddling adventure on the Potomac, see animals at Oxon Hill Farm, wander around Dumbarton Oaks, hang out and play at Hains Point.

The Inside Scoop
Where: Around the DC Area
When: Throughout the weekend
Admission: Varies by place
If weather or other circumstances has you seeking fun indoors, there are plenty of options. This post has info on what’s open when, along with links for more about places and Covid policies. Some specific recs for this weekend: Explore the Postal Museum, burn some energy at the St. James, visit the recently reopened National Children’s Museum, check out Life of a Neuron at ARTECHOUSE, get an art fix at the National Gallery of Art.

***MORE GOOD STUFF***
* Local author JoAnn Hill just shared Five Spooky & Mysterious Sites & Stories to Explore Around DC this Halloween Season.
* The Air & Space Museum ‘s annual Air & Scare Halloween event at the Udvar-Hazy Center will take place outdoors this year. Get details and sign up here (and do it soon, time slots are filling up).
* Tom Sietsema’s restaurant picks for this fall.
* We love the retro mini fridge we got for our new basement.
* Hat and mask in one (and so many cute colors)!
* Can’t wait to watch this documentary.
* He makes a good point.
* Go read the latest Humans of NY series. (Have tissues handy.)