Five Things To Do in MoCo This Weekend

Below are five things to do in Montgomery County, MD this weekend: 
1. Kentlands Under the Lights
Saturday, June 17: 6-11pm
Kentlands Market Square (Gaithersburg)
The Kentlands Community Foundation is proud to announce the return of Kentlands Under the Lights, an annual community gathering and dinner, to kick off the Kentlands summer season on Saturday, June 17 from 6pm-11pm. The event will take place rain or shine, promising an unforgettable night of music, food, and camaraderie under the stars. Drink tickets can be purchased in advance here.

Never letting the grass grow under their feet, the Kentlands Under the Lights committee has been hard at work since the beginning of the year on what will be a wholly new and reimagined Kentlands Under the Lights for 2023. Kentlands Under the Lights will have a new and expanded footprint on Market Street running from the traffic circle to CenterPoint – and now fully including the Paseo space and merchants – more music options including three band stages, more food and drink options, and more places to sit and linger and enjoy the company and fellowship of our friends and neighbors on a warm summer night. Kentlands Under the Lights 2023 will be the best yet.

Admission is free, with food and drinks available for purchase from vendors like Thai Tanium, The Grilled Oyster, Brews & Barrels, Bangin BBQ, Mackie’s Food trucks (Burgers & Mexican) Nothing Bundt Cake, Kona Ice, Bruster’s, Dog Haus, Vine Alley, Twin Valley Distillery, True Respite, Clear Skies Meadery, Brew House Coffee, Cinepolis and more. This event would not be possible without our sponsors, Kimco, The List Realty, Village Settlements, Kentlands Psychotherapy, Great Kids Events, Foundry Fitness, Embrace Home Loans, Everest, Bella Ballet. Greystone Realty, Kevin Grolig Home Team of Compass, Authentic Yoga and more.

2. Montgomery County Juneteenth Celebration
Saturday, June 17: 12-10pm
12901 Town Commons Drive, Germantown
Montgomery County will celebrate Juneteenth at a special event featuring live music, food, art, films and awards from 12-10 p.m. Saturday, June 17, 2023 at the BlackRock Center for the Arts. The Montgomery County Office of Human Rights coordinates the program, which also features the Living Legends Awards honoring county residents who have helped shape the cultural heritage of the African American community. The Juneteenth holiday commemorates June 19, 1865, when the Union army arrived in Texas bearing federal orders proclaiming the end of slavery. The orders arrived nearly two-and-a-half years after President Abraham Lincoln’s Emancipation Proclamation declared that enslaved people living in the secessionist Confederate states were now free.

3. Suds & Soles 5K
Saturday, June 17: 7:30pm
Rockville Town Center
Per Montgomery County: The “Suds & Soles 5K” run and event, which is a Rockville tradition, will be held starting at 7:30 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, in Rockville Town Center. The race, which is one of the few evening road races in the Washington metropolitan area, is presented through a partnership of the Montgomery County Road Runners Club and the City of Rockville. The 5K Run is open to all ages and will be followed by a fantastic post-race party.

The event will organize at North Washington Street and Middle Lane in Rockville Town Center.
Adults will be able to sample beverages from local breweries as well as enjoy other post-race refreshments.
Proceeds from Suds & Soles will benefit the Rockville Recreation and Parks Foundation, Youth and Beginning Running Programs of MCRRC and other charitable needs of the community. Suds & Soles is a USATF certified 5K course beginning and ending in Rockville Town Center. The course will run through Downtown Rockville and through neighborhood roads before returning to Town Center. Participants who maintain a pace that is greater than 20 minutes per mile may be directed to the sidewalk and from that point on will be required to follow normal pedestrian rules.

4. Mudfest
Saturday, June 17: 11:00am-3:00am
20207 Darnestown Road, Beallsville 
Montgomery Parks is hosing down part of the Woodstock Equestrian Park in Beallsville to get ready for MudFest 2023. The one-day event offers families the unique opportunity to dive into giant mud pits for some good “clean” fun. The event will take place on Saturday, June 17, 2023 |11:00 a.m.-3:00 p.m., rain or shine. There is, however, a severe weather make-up day: Sunday, June 18, 2023. The event will take place at the Woodstock Equestrian Special Park (map) at 20207 Darnestown Road in Beallsville, MD 20839 (near Poolesville). Video of last year’s event available below.

This will be the third time Black Hill Nature Programs has hosted MudFest. Park staff prepare for the event by purchasing good mud-making dirt, that has been screened for rocks and is a great texture for activities like mudpie making and mud art. Then the maintenance team, also known as mud artists, uses excavators and other earth moving equipment to arrange the dirt into piles, slides, puddles and more. After that, visitors are invited to jump in, slide around and enjoy.

5. Silver Spring Blues Festival 
Saturday, June 17: 3PM
Downtown Silver Spring 
Per Montgomery County: The 14th Annual Silver Spring Blues Festival will conclude with a full day of free from 10 a.m.-10 p.m. on Saturday, June 17, on the main stage on Ellsworth Drive in Downtown Silver Spring. The first half of the June 17 festival will feature acoustic performances. Starting at 3 p.m., the lineup becomes more varied, capped with a performance by Clarence “The Blues Man” Turner. The evening will conclude with an all-star jam session starting at 9 p.m. The June 17 lineup will include:

• Archie Edwards Blues Ensemble, 10 a.m.
• Blues Panamuse, 11 a.m.
• Women in Blues, noon.
• Ale Ponti from Italy, 1 p.m.
• Harmonica workshop with Pearl Bailes, 2 p.m.
• School of Rock Doin’ the Blues, 3 p.m.
• Pepper featuring Jesi Terrell, 4 p.m.
• Fast Eddie and the Slowpokes, 5 p.m.
• Mark “The Muleman” Massey from Memphis, 6 p.m.
• The Boneshakers with Ron Holloway, 7 p.m.
• Clarence “The Blues Man” Turner, 8:30 p.m.
• All-star jam, 9 p.m.