Montgomery Parks’ popular winter tradition, Garden of Lights, will return to Brookside Gardens on Friday, November 21, 2025. The annual event transforms the Wheaton gardens into a brightly lit winter landscape, featuring more than one million lights displayed along a half-mile walking path.
The Share Fair will take place at the Black Hill Discovery Center (20926 Lake Ridge Dr, Boyds), where participants can give away gently used items and browse others’ offerings for free. The event, designed as a “trunk-or-treat” style exchange, encourages creativity among “givers” and will be held just in time for the holidays. (more…)
Maryland’s newest disc-golf addition is already drawing a crowd. Montgomery Parks softly opened its first-ever 18-hole disc golf course at Northwest Branch Recreational Park in Silver Spring on November 8, and local players wasted no time hitting the fairways. More than 100 rounds were played and logged on UDisc, one of the sport’s most widely used apps, during the course’s opening weekend.
Montgomery Parks has officially opened the Royce Hanson Conservation Park, a 475-acre natural haven located at 21820 Club Hollow Road in Poolesville. Named in honor of former Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission chairman Dr. Royce Hanson, the park stands as a tribute to his leadership in preserving Montgomery County’s Agricultural Reserve and advancing smart growth policies that protected farmland and open space.
Montgomery Parks reminds everyone to fall back an hour this weekend, and that means the start of fall/winter hours for the Open Parkways.
Montgomery Parks is hosting an in-person open house on Wednesday, November 5th to gather community feedback on a new skate park coming to Long Branch Local Park in Silver Spring.
Cooler weather and the holidays are rolling in, but things are always hot and festive at Montgomery Parks. From meaningful moments of reflection to hands-on lumber shopping, a wedding showcase, and a Share Fair, there’s something for everyone to enjoy in November. Upcoming events below:
Maryland Emancipation Day is Nov. 1; the historic moment in 1864 when Maryland’s new constitution abolished slavery across the state. Montgomery Parks invites the community to honor this important day with a series of events designed to educate, engage and reflect. Maryland Emancipation Day events:
The Maryland-National Capital Park Police responded to an assault at Wheaton Regional Park on Sunday, October 19, 2025. (more…)
One of Montgomery County’s most beloved park icons just got a fresh new look. Porky the Litter Eater, the talking trash pig who has been delighting (and occasionally startling) generations of parkgoers at Cabin John Regional Park, recently received a full makeover from Montgomery Parks. A video of Porky’s updates is available below.
Montgomery Parks is preparing to welcome visitors back to one of the county’s most beloved holiday traditions. The annual Garden of Lights display at Brookside Gardens in Wheaton will open for the season on Friday, November 21, 2025, at 5 p.m. Tickets go on sale Monday, October 13, 2025, at 10 a.m., and will be available online only at GardenofLights.org.