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A rocky trail along a wooded slope above the creek, under bright green summer trees

Photo: Sdkb · CC BY-SA 4.0, cropped to fit and resized

A trail above the creek in Rock Creek Park

Rock Creek Parkwildflowers

Town

At Rock Creek Park, Mountain laurel's white-and-pink flowers bloom in early June in the park's chestnut oak forests, per the National Park Service (a season, not a peak). Its usual window for this year has passed.

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Local timing
Early June

About Rock Creek Park

What it is
A town or region in District of Columbia
What you'll see
Mountain laurel · early June (a season)

Right now at Rock Creek Park

Right now in Rock Creek Park · October

  • Blackgum turns orange-red · early October
  • Black huckleberry turns scarlet · fall

Your guide to the area

Best spots and nearby places
  • Pin color, each place's season now or next:
  • Spring
  • Summer
Places on this map (4)
Map: approximate positions; state lines US Census.

Best spots around Rock Creek Park

  • Hilltop by Picnic Area 16 (Glover Road)

    Best spot

    One of the park's best stands of chestnut oak and mountain laurel forest

    National Park Service ↗

  • White Horse Trail

    Best spot

    Crosses the same forested knoll, with the stand in view

    National Park Service ↗

Around Rock Creek Park

In season first, then nearest; straight-line miles
  • Channels of blue water between golden marsh grass, with a few pines on the horizon

    Blackwater Refuge

    Southbound songbirds in Maryland

    62 mi away

    Usual peak: Late September and early October

  • A slope of red, orange and gold fall shrubs and trees below Hazel Mountain Overlook under a blue sky with streaky clouds, a pine trunk on the left

    Shenandoah

    Fall color in Virginia

    80 mi away

    First color: Reported Oct 1

  • Cherry trees bloom beside the Jefferson Memorial across the Tidal Basin

    Washington, DC

    Cherry blossoms in District of Columbia

    5 mi away

    Usual peak: The last week of March and the first week of April

  • Clusters of full pink double cherry blossoms on branches with bronze-red young leaves against a blue sky

    US National Arboretum

    Cherry blossoms in District of Columbia

    5 mi away

    Season: Early March to late April

  • Patuxent Research Refuge

    Fall color in Maryland

    15 mi away

    Usual peak: Late October

  • Occoquan Bay Refuge

    Fall color in Virginia

    25 mi away

    Season: Late October

Show all 20 →
  • Interior of Fort McHenry in Baltimore

    Baltimore (Fort McHenry)

    Cherry blossoms in Maryland

    33 mi away

    Usual peak: The last week of March and the first week of April

  • Stone steps lead to the South Frederick overlook amid autumn trees at Gambrill State Park

    Gambrill State Park

    Fall color in Maryland

    42 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

  • A bald eagle standing on ice

    Eastern Neck Refuge

    Tundra swans in Maryland

    44 mi away

    Season: Mid- to late November to the end of March

  • Rock outcrop near Wolf Rock on the ridge with a wall of golden-orange fall trees under a deep blue sky

    Catoctin Mountain

    Fall color in Maryland

    50 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

  • Antietam

    Fall color in Maryland

    51 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

  • A flock of birds taking off over the refuge

    Bombay Hook

    Waterfowl in Delaware

    88 mi away

    Season: Nov–Dec

  • American avocets at Prime Hook National Wildlife Refuge

    Prime Hook Refuge

    Ducks and snow geese in Delaware

    97 mi away

    Season: March

  • A dense flock of white snow geese lifting off from shallow water

    Chincoteague Refuge

    Snow geese and ducks in Virginia

    117 mi away

    Season: November and December

  • A meadow faces a hillside of red and orange trees in Canaan Valley Refuge

    Canaan Valley Refuge

    Fall color in West Virginia

    124 mi away

    Usual peak: Late September

  • Laurel Hill Lake under a blue sky, with a wooded hillside in mixed red, orange and green fall color reflected in the water and the beach on the left shore

    Laurel Hill State Park

    Fall color in Pennsylvania

    137 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

  • Sunset over the marsh seen from an observation tower

    Forsythe Refuge

    Warblers in New Jersey

    144 mi away

    Most numerous: Early May

  • Black Moshannon State Park

    Fall color in Pennsylvania

    144 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

  • Trout lily blooming along Stuart Memorial Drive in Monongahela National Forest

    Stuart Memorial Drive

    Wildflowers in West Virginia

    144 mi away

    In stages: Late March through early May

  • Ohiopyle Falls on the Youghiogheny River with the wooded slope behind in orange, rust and yellow fall color; a green-and-yellow bush covers the right side

    Ohiopyle State Park

    Fall color in Pennsylvania

    145 mi away

    Statewide timing: By late October

Next season here: Mountain laurel, early June.

The year at Rock Creek Park

  • Pink azalea bloomsmid-spring
  • Mountain laurel bloomsearly June
  • Black huckleberry turns scarletNowfall
  • Blackgum turns orange-redNowearly October

Questions people ask

When is peak wildflowers in Rock Creek Park in 2027?

Season: early June. Mountain laurel's white-and-pink flowers bloom in early June in the park's chestnut oak forests, per the National Park Service (a season, not a peak).

Is it blooming in Rock Creek Park right now?

Not now: its usual wildflowers window for this year has passed. Next time: early June, local timing.

When does mountain laurel bloom in Rock Creek Park?

In early June; pink azalea blooms before it, in mid-spring.Source: National Park Service, Chestnut Oak / Mountain Laurel Forest in Rock Creek Park ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Where can I see mountain laurel in Rock Creek Park?

On the hilltop beside Picnic Area 16 on Glover Road, one of the park's best examples of chestnut oak and mountain laurel forest, also visible from the White Horse Trail.Source: National Park Service, Chestnut Oak / Mountain Laurel Forest in Rock Creek Park ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Is the Nature Center in Rock Creek Park open?

No: the Nature Center and Planetarium building is closed until further notice for continued remediation.Source: National Park Service, Alerts & Conditions ↗ (opens in a new tab)

When do the leaves turn in Rock Creek Park's oak forest?

Blackgum is one of the first trees to turn, a brilliant orange-red, in early October; black huckleberry turns deep scarlet in fall.Source: National Park Service, Chestnut Oak / Mountain Laurel Forest in Rock Creek Park ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Where are the best spots in Rock Creek Park?

The best spots are Hilltop by Picnic Area 16 (Glover Road) and White Horse Trail. Hilltop by Picnic Area 16 (Glover Road): one of the park's best stands of chestnut oak and mountain laurel forest. White Horse Trail: crosses the same forested knoll, with the stand in view.

What is Rock Creek Park like through the year?

Rock Creek Park has something to see in 5 months of the year. Pink azalea blooms: Apr–May. Mountain laurel blooms: Jun. Blackgum turns orange-red: Oct. Black huckleberry turns scarlet: Oct–Nov.

How we know · Sources (2)

How we know

National Park Service, Chestnut Oak / Mountain Laurel Forest in Rock Creek Park (opens in a new tab) (Oct 3) · National Park Service, Alerts & Conditions (opens in a new tab) (Oct 3) National Park Service sources: no claim to original U.S. Government works.

All our sources and how we use them →