wpostServer: http://css.washingtonpost.com/wpost
How to have a fabulous fall The crisp season of cooler days and colorful leaves only lasts so long. To truly experience it, put these activities on your to-do list this autumn. Click the bold text in each item for more details.
Go hiking
Take in the fall colors from top of Sugarloaf Mountain in northern Montgomery County. The trail to the top is popular with families and relatively short. Get tips for easy ways to try other hikes, plus camping and kayaking in Outdoors 101 .
Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post
/
Related Content
Cheer for your favorite team with fellow fans
Not everyone in Washington roots for the Redskins. Since there are so many transplants in D.C., certain bars have aligned themselves with particular college alumni groups or NFL teams. Here's where the fans in the know go .
John McDonnell/The Washington Post
Go off the beaten path
The secluded oasis of Pocomoke River State Park offers kayaking, canoeing and year-round camping. It’s a great alternative to Assateague Island National Seashore, where campgrounds often fill up months in advance. If you’re looking for something new, or want to avoid the inevitable crowds , try these less well-known options.
Astrid Riecken for The Washington Post
Get cozy at a coffee shop
Move over, Starbucks. Washington is brimming with coffee shops known for meticulously made espressos, house-roasted, single-origin coffees, and latte art, such as this example from Filter in Dupont Circle. Each cafe has its own charms, whether it's bohemian decor perfect for a lazy Sunday or a sleek bar for a quick sip on the way to work. Filter ranked high in The Post's reader poll for best coffee shops .
Lavanya Ramanathan/The Washington Post
See what’s new in Virginia wine country
At Oak Hill Estate in Delaplane, home of the late Supreme Court justice John Marshall, Barrel Oak Winery has created a new formal tasting experience. Fall is a prime time to visit, as a wash of oranges, yellows and reds sweeps over the landscape and grape-harvest season gets underway. Eight more wineries to try .
Lavanya Ramanathan/The Washington Post
Get your grilled cheese fix
Though hardly gourmet, the “super” grilled cheese from Stoney’s could go bite-for-bite with the area’s best, thanks to the unusually thick toast that’s nearly charred and perfectly paired with American cheese, onion, tomato and bacon. It’s a longtime staff favorite. See the rest of our picks for the best grilled cheese.
Kathryn Norwood for The Washington Post
Visit an apple orchard
Fall is prime time for pumpkins, but it's September when trees are lush and thick with heavy, juicy fruit, like these at Rock Hill Orchard in Mount Airy, Md. The early days of October are fine if you want to pair your apple-picking with fall festivals, but by Halloween, expect the fruit to be gone.
Katherine Frey/The Washington Post
Preview the fall arts season
Claire Boucher — the 24-year-old Montreal singer who performs as Grimes — comes to U Street Music Hall on Sept. 29 for her first headlining Washington gig. She’s one of The Post’s critics’ picks for the best shows to see this season .
John Londono/Courtesy of Requiem Media
Watch the debates at a real political party
Only in Washington do we treat watching presidential debates like watching the Super Bowl. Busboys and Poets on 14th Street NW drew crowds to watch the 2008 presidential debates, and this year, local bars and restaurants will again hold debate-viewing events featuring projection screens and drinking games. One destination for partisan partying is sure to be Capitol Hill bar Tortilla Coast, where Paul Ryan worked as a server when he first arrived in Washington as a Senate staffer in the early 1990s.
Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post
Vote with your appetite
Some popular eateries and bars hold their own version of the Obama-Romney race. The restaurant Lincoln lets customers show their support by ordering red or blue cocktails. Every time someone orders one of the drinks, a bartender adds a tally mark to the chalkboard behind the bar so you can follow the results in real time. The results are being updated weekly on Lincoln's Twitter and Facebook accounts.
Courtesy of Lincoln Restaurant
See a Halloween tradition
The presidential race heats up in October, but so do preparations for the annual High Heel Race in Dupont Circle. Usually held on the Tuesday night before Halloween, the event draws thousands of spectators to Dupont Circle to watch costumed drag queens show off their elaborate outfits on 17th Street NW.
Jahi Chikwendiu/The Washington Post
Cheer on the marathoners
Participants in the 37th Marine Corps Marathon need a different kind of footwear. Known as “the people’s marathon” because it attracts many first-time marathoners, the race has a field of 30,000 runners. The course loops around the National Mall and passes key Washington attractions.
Jonathan Newton/The Washington Post
Celebrate Oktoberfest
While Germany's Oktoberfest lasts just 17 days, America's tends to stretch from mid-September through the end of October, and it's either treated as an excuse to drink beer outdoors or as a more traditional harvest festival that combines food and drink with things to do with the kids. The Washington area’s German bars and restaurants offer a steady diet of hearty food, live polka music and, of course, the malty Oktoberfest-style lagers known as maerzen.Biergarten Haus kicked off its celebration at the H Street Festival in September.
Marvin Joseph/The Washington Post
Get lost in a corn maze
At Summers Farm in Frederick, Md., you can navigate an election-themed corn maze. The 14-acre maze shows President Obama and Republican presidential nominee Mitt Romney holding an American flag.
Ricky Carioti/The Washington Post
Take a road trip to distilleries and brewpubs in the countryside
In the countryside overlooking the Blue Ridge Mountains, Blue Mountain Brewery has been brewing Full Nelson Pale Ale and other concoctions with hops grown on-site since 2007. It has become a popular stop, thanks to the large beer-garden-esque patio, locally sourced food and, of course, the stellar view. Plan your getaway .
Astrid Riecken for The Washington Post
Tuck into D.C.’s taco trend
Tacos are invading D.C. Four taquerias have opened in the city since April, and at least two more are coming. Many of the newcomers are led by chefs of Mexican heritage. Mike Isabella’s Bandolero serves suckling pig tacos topped with the unusual salad of mustard seed and delicate matchsticks of fresh apple.
Deb Lindsey for The Washington Post
Browse Union Market
/
In September, in a space off Florida Avenue NE near where the city’s food wholesalers once ran their businesses, a new kind of market opened. As Bonnie Benwick writes, imagine Union Market as “a climate-controlled farmers market with minimalist, un-tented stalls, punctuated by the occasional built-in counter for eating oysters or drinking artisanal sodas.” Rappahannock Oyster Co. is a popular spot for many visitors, and weekend events in the adjacent lot often bring more crowds to check out the scene. The popular DIY extravaganza Crafty Bastards will be held here on Nov. 10 and have an admission fee for the first time.
FEATURED PHOTO GALLERIES
MLB power rankings
Barry Svrluga assesses the best teams in Major League Baseball through Thursday.
Photos of the day
Cyclone Mahasen, Texas tornadoes, puffin census, melting Swiss glacier and more.
Eye on entertainment
Claire Julien, David Hasselhoff, Freida Pinto, Candice Glover, Martin Short and more.
???initialComments:true! pubdate:09/28/2012 07:15 EDT! commentPeriod:14! commentEndDate:10/12/12 7:15 EDT! currentDate:5/19/13 8:0 EDT! allowComments:false! displayComments:true!
Section:/goingoutguide
Loading...
Comments