Events
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Remove Strangling Vines from the Trees
Join LFWA to Hunt for Macro-Invertebrates Living in the Creek
Join wildlife biologist Kerry Wickstead and MD DNR biologist and educator Sarah Witcher on a batastic, mothmagical exploration of species that haunt the nocturnal world. We will work together to identify all who are lurking.
Every fall, LFWA joins forces with the Westmoreland Hills Garden Club, the Town of Glen Echo and other area groups to clean the whole watershed. This first event is at Glen Echo. The other clean-ups are scheduled for next week.
Pre-approved for SSL hours for MCPS. Children under 14 must be accompanied by adult supervisor.
Glen Echo National Park
7300 MacArthur Blvd
Glen Echo, MD 20812
We will be cleaning the Minnehaha creek starting in Glen Echo. Park in the main Glen Echo Park Parking lot (at the corner of Oxford and MacArthur Blvd). The gathering point is on the eastern most end of the lot at the bridge which crosses the creek. Look for a sign-in table. This site is hosted by the Town of Glen Echo.
We have gloves and bags. Dress to get muddy or wet. We’ll be cleaning the creek and banks.
Pre-approved for SSL hours for MCPS. Children under 14 must be accompanied by adult supervisor.
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Bird Count and Tree Walk with birding expert Pete Givan, from The Backyard Naturalist and local arborist Annika Haksar.
Take the Eco Eight Tree Tour with its creators. Celebrate and learn about some of the most ecologically beneficial trees in Norwood Local Park and along the Little Falls Stream Valley Trail.
Discover what creek critters live in the Little Falls Branch
LFWA monitors the Little Falls Branch four times a year - doing a biological census of the macro-invertebrates that live on the bottom of the creek. This count of benthic organisms - numbers of individuals and diversity - gives us a picture of the health of our creek. By mapping the data over the years, we have good assessment of how well our stream is surviving in our dense urban area. Our monitoring is done in partnership with Nature Forward (nee Audubon Naturalist Society).
This event is primarily for trained monitors. Before going into the field, new monitors should have a basic knowledge of macroinvertebrate identification and stream ecology, either from previous training or by attending the Nature Forward water quality training sessions. Please contact Sarah Morse, stormwater@LFWA.org, for information about the Nature Forward courses and volunteering.
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Discover what creek critters live in the Little Falls Branch
LFWA monitors the Little Falls Branch four times a year - doing a biological census of the macro-invertebrates that live on the bottom of the creek. This count of benthic organisms - numbers of individuals and diversity - gives us a picture of the health of our creek. By mapping the data over the years, we have good assessment of how well our stream is surviving in our dense urban area. Our monitoring is done in partnership with Nature Forward (nee Audubon Naturalist Society).
This event is primarily for trained monitors. Before going into the field, new monitors should have a basic knowledge of macroinvertebrate identification and stream ecology, either from previous training or by attending the Nature Forward water quality training sessions. Please contact Sarah Morse, stormwater@LFWA.org, for information about the Nature Forward courses and volunteering.
Bird Count and Tree Walk with birding expert Pete Givan, from The Backyard Naturalist. Then, record observations for the Summer Bioblitz while taking a tour of native trees in Norwood Park and along the adjacent Little Falls Stream Valley Trail.
Anneke Risch and Aaron Shane will guide us in taking initial data for the swarm of Common Eastern Fireflies aka lightning bugs, moths and more that reside by lower Langdrum on the Little Falls Stream Valley Trail.
Rosborough Theater
409 Russell Avenue
Gaithersburg, MD
Free tickets HERE.
Montgomery Serves has named the Little Falls Watershed Alliance (LFWA) as the 2025 Volunteer Group of the Year. The Montgomery Serves Awards event honors extraordinary volunteers and community leaders in Montgomery County Maryland. The Volunteer of the Year Award recognizes individuals and groups who have demonstrated extraordinary volunteerism within the last year.
LFWA, founded in 2008 by a group of neighbors, has a mission to sustain and protect the natural environment of the Little Falls watershed located in lower Montgomery County and Upper Northwest DC focusing on action, education and stewardship. They have engaged over 10,000 volunteers to pick up trash, restore habitat, monitor the water quality in the local creeks, and more at more than 1,000 work days.
Along with working to remove the vines and shrubs that are strangling and killing the trees in the local parks, LFWA volunteers have restored five green areas replacing non-native invasive weeds with native trees, grasses, flowers and other plants.
Their trash abatement program has cleaned over 70,000 pounds of trash from area creeks, roadways and parkland.
LFWA’s active water quality monitoring program tests their creeks for fecal bacteria pollution every summer. That testing led to the discovery of an illegal sewer hook-up from a local hotel into the Willett Branch.
In-depth iNaturalist Training, online, with the LFTP Citizen Science Field Work Cohort. Join for a deep dive into how to use iNaturalist to contribute data as a citizen scientist. No previous experience necessary.
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Remove Strangling Vines from the Trees
Citizen Scientists are needed to take samples from our local creeks to test for fecal bacteria. After attending a training session, volunteers will be assigned to a team to monitor at sites along the Little Falls, Minnehaha or Willett Branches. Please email Sarah Morse, stormwater@LFWA.org for details.
When do we sample?
The sampling is done every Wednesday morning before 9:30 am from June to mid-September. There is no flexibility there as all samples are sent to the lab for processing by 10:00.
What if I can’t make it every week?
It’s not necessary to be available every week as people will work in teams, but volunteers must be available to sample on Wednesday mornings.
How long does it take?
The sampling itself is a just a simple dip. We also take the pH and water temperature, so about 15 minutes total creek side. Depending on which site you are sampling, it could take another 10 minutes or so to get to the sampling spot. We recommend allowing 45 minutes.
Is there an age requirement?
This is appropriate for all ages. Children under 16 must be accompanied by a supervising adult.
How does LFWA use the data?
Fecal bacteria in the creeks represents a significant public health issue and can be an indicator of sewage leaks. Our data is posted to our website, community listservs, Facebook, and other social media outlets. We also share it with elected county officials and the WSSC.
Learn more about our program HERE.
Please contact Sarah Morse, stormwater@LFWA.org, if you are interested in joining a team and she can give you details.
Remove Strangling Vines from the Trees
Remove Strangling Vines from the Trees
Identify Trees & Enjoy Local Urban Forest Ecology in Spanish & English
Whether you speak Spanish ONLY or only a little Spanish, come take a walk with us in Norwood Park where you can learn to identify some beautiful native mature canopy trees in the collection and see how they live in the riparian urban forest of the Little Falls Watershed ecosystem.
Meet at the gravel parking lot which is located on Little Falls Parkway near the Mass Ave intersection. If you are late, find us working our way towards River Road.
Remove Strangling Vines from the Trees
Join us to plant Virginia Blue Bells and Golden Ragwort in the Green Acres Habitat and learn about how to landscape with native plants from project lead.
Learn to use iNaturalist – get guidance in-person from our Citizen Science Team: Lucy O’Dowd and Evan Charles, makers of our iNat how-to video! We will walk you through the steps of making observations and collaborating with iNat experts to ID what you see.
Pete Given, local birder amateur enthusiast for over 50 yrs, will lead us on a walk to discover the birds of Norwood Park. Registration required. Minimum age 10 years.
(rescheduled from April 6)
Discover what creek critters live in the Little Falls Branch
LFWA monitors the Little Falls Branch four times a year - doing a biological census of the macro-invertebrates that live on the bottom of the creek. This count of benthic organisms - numbers of individuals and diversity - gives us a picture of the health of our creek. By mapping the data over the years, we have good assessment of how well our stream is surviving in our dense urban area. Our monitoring is done in partnership with Nature Forward (nee Audubon Naturalist Society).
This event is primarily for trained monitors. Before going into the field, new monitors should have a basic knowledge of macroinvertebrate identification and stream ecology, either from previous training or by attending the Nature Forward water quality training sessions. Please contact Sarah Morse, stormwater@LFWA.org, for information about the Nature Forward courses and volunteering.
Willard Avenue Neighborhood Park
4915 River Road, Chevy Chase, MD
Meet at the small playground by the foot bridge. The hike will follow the creek upstream to Wisconsin Avenue.
Did you know Friendship Heights is home to hidden streams and green spaces? Join the LFWA and the Friendship Heights Alliance for a guided stream tour along the Little Falls Branch to explore the area’s natural history and Friendship Heights’ waterways.
This gentle walk will highlight the past, present, and future of local streams, with insights from environmental advocates and historians. Along the way, we’ll stop for reflections and photos to capture these hidden spaces. The route is suitable for beginners with relatively flat trails, but be sure to wear sturdy, mud-friendly shoes or boots as we will be crossing a stream.
We will hike from the Willard Avenue Neighborhood Park upstream along the creek to Wisconsin Avenue. Participants can choose to return by back tracking or to travel up Wisconsin Avenue to Willard and return to the park via the street. The total one way trip is about a mile and a quarter on hard and soft trails. There are two creek crossings, but hikers can choose to leave the hike at Page Park if they are not comfortable with stepping stones.
Inclement Weather Plans: We post on the our website by 9:00 am the day of the hike if it looks we need to cancel because of rain or dangerous conditions for hiking. Please check the website Saturday morning if you have any questions about the weather.
