{"id":24002,"date":"2018-09-20T10:00:17","date_gmt":"2018-09-20T14:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/?p=24002"},"modified":"2018-10-11T06:48:58","modified_gmt":"2018-10-11T10:48:58","slug":"fall-foliage-and-festival-report-sept-22-23-2018","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/2018\/09\/20\/fall-foliage-and-festival-report-sept-22-23-2018\/","title":{"rendered":"Fall Foliage and Festival Report: Sept. 22-23, 2018"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"Map<\/a>Welcome to the Fall Foliage and Festival Report for the first weekend of fall, Sept. 22 and 23, brought to you by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources.<\/a><\/p>\n

Soon the landscape will explode with vibrant colors of orange, red and yellow. Kids will be jumping into leaf piles you just raked and we\u2019ll all \u201cfall\u201d back, setting clocks back an hour and grabbing that extra bit of sleep.<\/p>\n

Having sweated our way through a typically hot and humid Maryland summer – exceptionally wet as well –\u00a0you might be looking forward to the autumnal equinox (also called the September equinox) happening Saturday at exactly 9:54 p.m. This is also the best time to view Mars as the planet will be at its brightest. Join the Westminster Astronomy Club at\u00a0Cunningham Falls State Park<\/a>\u00a0Saturday night to see the stars<\/a>!<\/p>\n

\u00a0Sign up to receive weekly reports<\/a> showcasing the Old Line State\u2019s vibrant fall foliage and the best autumn festivals at dnr.maryland.gov<\/a>.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

\n

The most obvious indicator of autumn\u2019s arrival, the changing of the foliage, is still a few weeks away for most of the state; however, in Western Maryland, pockets are starting to show splotches of brilliant color. Reports from Garrett, Allegany, Washington and Frederick counties indicate color change is just beginning at the higher levels, with patches of bold reds and oranges on maples…just a preview of the natural show to come.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Traditionally it is the region where leaf color changes first, with Garrett County\u2019s foliage beginning to turn around the end of September and peaking toward the middle of October.<\/p>\n

The shorter, cooler days that accompany these spectacular seasonal changes offer the perfect opportunity for everyone to go outside and experience some of our state\u2019s exciting fall activities and festivals.<\/p>\n

\n
\"Learning

National Hunting and Fishing Day<\/p><\/div>\n

While seasons do not always begin and end on time and the change to fall foliage is still a few weeks away, this is a perfect weekend to experience exciting fall festivals and events.<\/p>\n

Anglers, conservationists, hunters and others interested in the great outdoors are invited to Maryland\u2019s celebration of\u00a0National Hunting and Fishing Day<\/a>\u00a010 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Held at the Izaak Walton League of America in Washington County, this is a free, family-friendly event.<\/p>\n

While in Western Maryland, check out The Great Frederick Fair<\/a>, now through Sunday. Visit the carnival midway, take in nightly grandstand entertainment and see award-winning agricultural exhibits.<\/p>\n

The Eastern Shore will be hopping this weekend.<\/p>\n

Now through Sunday at the Inlet Parking Lot, the very popular Ocean City Sunfest 2018<\/a> brings family fun-filled days with music, food, arts and crafts. Entertainment is free (except headline acts). In nearby Berlin enjoy fiddle, banjo, guitar, mandolin and bluegrass band competitions at the Berlin Fiddler’s Convention<\/a>, with free live bluegrass music on Main Street from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\"Skipjacks

Skipjacks on the Water, photo by Linda Walls<\/p><\/div>\n

In Dorchester County, Cambridge will host the Choptank Heritage Skipjack Race<\/a>\u00a0Saturday (parade at 9 a.m., race at 10 a.m.). Everyone is invited to see these historic boats. On Saturday evening in Somerset County enjoy live music, fun, food, good people and Plein Air Painting on the shores of Chesapeake Bay at the Crisfield 4th Saturday Bay Stroll<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Not to be outdone in Southern Maryland, the St. Mary’s County Fair<\/a> celebrates rural and agricultural heritage at the ever-popular fairgrounds now through Sunday. Exhibits, livestock, home arts, flowers, 4-H exhibits, horse pulls, carnival and local foods will on be on display in Leonardtown.<\/p>\n

On Saturday, “Wade-In for Clean Water” with former State Senator Bernie Fowler at the Historic St. Mary\u2019s City Riverfest<\/a>. Learn ways to protect our waterways and enjoy free live music, environmental and children’s activities, kayaking and more.<\/p>\n

In Anne Arundel County, the Classic Wooden Sailboat Rendezvous & Race<\/a> comes to the National Sailing Hall of Fame in Annapolis. Among the attractions are a remote-controlled model sailboat race, talks and a chance to board some of the boats. The race begins at 11 a.m. Sunday.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\n
\"Monarch

Monarch butterfly tagging can be fun.<\/p><\/div>\n

Join a Patuxent River State Park<\/a>\u00a0ranger Saturday morning for\u00a0Bird Walk<\/a> to search for and learn about birds. Bring along a pair of binoculars and identification guide if you have them. Hang around the park to Meet the Reptiles<\/a> at 1 p.m.<\/p>\n

Enjoy watching the initial flight of freshly emerged monarch butterflies at the Monarch Butterfly Release<\/a>\u00a01 to 3 p.m. Saturday in the Hammerman Area of Gunpowder Falls State Park<\/a>. Visitors will be able to hold butterflies and take photos with them before they fly away. A naturalist will discuss the monarch life cycle as well as their migration and more.<\/p>\n

Butterfly tagging<\/a> will be demonstrated at Point Lookout State Park<\/a> at the southernmost tip of St. Mary\u2019s County Saturday afternoon (meet near the Lighthouse).<\/p>\n

On Sunday morning enjoy a Wildflower Walk<\/a> at Soldiers Delight Natural Environment Area<\/a> in Owings Mills (Baltimore County). Have you ever noticed that the landscape and plants look different at Soldiers Delight? Join a naturalist on a 2-mile hike along the Serpentine Trail to learn about the ecosystem and its native wildflowers. And don’t miss a Sunday afternoon discussion with our fascinating avian educators during\u00a0Feathered Friends.<\/a>\u00a0Come with lots of questions!<\/p>\n

For more information or to see a full listing of\u00a0Maryland Department of Natural Resources<\/a>\u00a0events and programs, please check out our\u00a0online calendar<\/a>. Enjoy your first fall weekend, Maryland!<\/p>\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

“Autumn has caught us in our summer wear<\/em>.”<\/span><\/h3>\n

– Philip Larkin, British poet (1922\u2013<\/em>86)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n

\n\n\n\n
\n

\"Tagged<\/a><\/p>\n<\/td>\n

Monarch Migrations<\/p>\n

<\/strong>Well, it\u2019s that time of year again here. Time to migrate! When you hear the word migrate, you probably think of birds, or maybe even fish, and you are correct. But did you know that Monarch Butterflies also migrate? The Monarch Butterflies that you are seeing here in Maryland during the late summer and early fall will spend their winter in Mexico! But how or why?\u00a0Learn more here.<\/a><\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Welcome to the Fall Foliage and Festival Report for the first weekend of fall, Sept. 22 and 23, brought to you by the Maryland Department of Natural Resources. Soon the landscape will explode with vibrant colors of orange, red and yellow. Kids will be jumping into leaf piles you just raked and we\u2019ll all \u201cfall\u201d  Read the Rest…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":23,"featured_media":24005,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[957,3171,1965,3172,23,12,33,13],"tags":[2948,3260,2971,2911,4510,3121,2982,3081,3033,2922,3126,3639,2918,2949,3420,3603,3220,3601,2958,3410,4015,2933,2942,3760,3762,2909],"class_list":["post-24002","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-appnews","category-boating","category-maryland-forest-service","category-hunting","category-land","category-parks","category-the-bay","category-wildlife","tag-allegany-county","tag-annapolis","tag-anne-arundel-county","tag-baltimore-county","tag-berlin","tag-cambridge","tag-chesapeake-bay","tag-crisfield","tag-cunningham-falls-state-park","tag-dorchester-county","tag-eastern-shore","tag-fall-foliage-and-festival-report","tag-frederick-county","tag-garrett-county","tag-gunpowder-falls-state-park","tag-izaak-walton-league-of-america","tag-leonardtown","tag-national-hunting-and-fishing-day","tag-ocean-city","tag-point-lookout-state-park","tag-soldiers-delight-natural-environment-area","tag-somerset-county","tag-st-marys-county","tag-st-marys-county-fair","tag-sunfest","tag-washington-county"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24002","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/23"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=24002"}],"version-history":[{"count":37,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24002\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":24547,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/24002\/revisions\/24547"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/24005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=24002"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=24002"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/news.maryland.gov\/dnr\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=24002"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}