1. Take a hike at Brookside Gardens. Enjoy the beautiful flowers and go fishing at pine lake behind the garden. Park at Brookside’s nature center and either walk through the garden or around the garden to get to pine lake. No dogs allowed in the gardens.

2. Bike the Rock Creek Park trail. Get in your car and take Bonifant to Alderton Road then to the dead end of Alderton Road. From there you get on the Matthew Henson trail and that will take you to the Rock Creek Park trail.

3. Take a tour of Washington DC’s monuments, biking at night is best starting at the Jefferson and heading around the basin to all parts of DC. Head over at 5-6 a.m. or around 9-10 p.m. and there will be little to no traffic. Park somewhere in DC, Hop on your bike and go around the Basin.

4. See the DC Fireworks on July 4th for a spectacular patriotic display stunning to audiences around the world. Hop on the metro and get to the Smithsonian. WARNING: There will be a lot of people. I personally recommend leaving after an hour or two just waiting for the crowd to die down around the metro.

5. Visit the National zoo and celebrate the World Oceans Day on June 11th! Take the metro to Woodley Park and walk a few blocks to the zoo.

6. Head over to Martin Luther King Jr Swim Center and splash away the heat! Have a membership? Get in free, if you don’t, it’s only $5 to get in.

7. Go to Harper’s Ferry and tour some local history then head on the Maryland Heights trail. Park along sandy hook road and walk the C&O canal path to Harper’s Ferry. The Maryland Heights trail path starts just upstream from Harper’s Ferry. You’ll see it when you get there.

8. Go tubing on the Potomac River between Harper’s Ferry and Sandy Spring. Take two cars, and park one off of Keep Tryst Road and memorize your take out spot. Then drive up to Harper’s Ferry and Park near the Maryland Heights Parking. Inflate your tubes and head down the river. Or just use Butts tubing to float down the river, they have a put in and take out spot ready for you.

9. Go hike the Sugarloaf mountain trail and camp a night at Little Bennett Campground. Use GPS to get there. Take a look at the map in advance.

10. Go eat some of the world’s best barbecue at the Giant National Capital Barbecue Battle on June 25th/26th. The festival is held on Pennsylvania avenue between 9th and 14th street.