4-5 miles, Level 2, suitable for all hike levels. Hemlock Regional Overlook Park features a scenic network of hiking trails through mature forests along Bull Run Stream offering peaceful walks and varied terrain for all skill levels.

This park has a rich history that dates back to its early days as a university outdoor education center. The park's significance in the region is highlighted by the presence of the Union Mills and the bridge crossing for the Orange and Alexandria Railroad over Bull Run, which are of high historical importance. Another historical feature is the site of a dam that supported the first hydroelectric power generation in Fairfax County, Virginia. The park's designation as part of the National Old-Growth Forest Network showcases some of the regions oldest trees, beloved to be at least 250 years old. 

The trail will be rocky at times, especially as we make our way down to the stream. We will also encounter stream crossings and rocky ups/downs along Bull Run Stream. We will utilize one or more active horse trails. 

 As with all WWO hikes, there will be a leader and a sweep, and no one will be left behind.

After you complete your registration, you will receive a confirmation email with additional event details and start location.

There is limited space, so please register early. Although this hike is FREE for Premium Members, you do need to register. 

19 miles mostly on closed roads and paved trails with a few short, steep climbs on residential streets. Suitable for advanced beginners and above on road or hybrid bikes. 

What a fun ride! Leaving from Bethesda, we will travel on residential roads, bicycle trails and the now permanently closed-to-traffic roads of Rock Creek Park to arrive at the National Zoo. Once there, we will receive a special tour by our ride leader who also volunteers at the zoo and will provide us with the inside scoop on zoo residents and conservation efforts. We’ll have lunch at the zoo and warm up before heading back to Bethesda along the Capital Crescent Trail (up a long but gradual hill). As with all our rides, we will have a leader and sweep, and no one will be left behind.

After completing registration, you will receive a confirmation email with additional event details and start location.

There is limited space, so please register early. Although this ride is FREE for Members, you do need to register. 

Have you always wondered what it is like to breathe underwater? Come join us for an introduction to scuba diving experience and a coral conservation session!

Dive Into Adventure & Conservation

Make your first bubbles count! This unique experience combines the excitement of learning to scuba dive with the purpose of protecting our oceans.  

Start with the PADI Coral Reef Conservation Specialty Course (held over Zoom), where you’ll discover the challenges coral reefs face and how regenerative diving practices—like coral planting—are helping reefs recover worldwide. You’ll gain real-world knowledge about restoration efforts and how divers like you are making a difference.

Then, bring your knowledge to life in the pool during the PADI Discover Scuba Diving Experience! Our instructors will guide you as you take your first breaths underwater and learn the basics of scuba diving in a heated pool. Most people are shocked at how easy it is! You’ll even get the chance to practice coral planting techniques underwater—a hands-on way to connect your new dive skills with marine conservation.

All you need to bring is your sense of adventure, a swimsuit, and a towel. We will provide everything else.

After you complete your registration, you will receive a confirmation email with additional event details and event location. Please note that if you have any medical conditions or take prescription medications, you would need to obtain a doctor's approval note. 

Join the WWO Virtual Book Club & Social!  Offered virtually so all can join, we gather quarterly to socialize and discuss a book around the theme of women in the outdoors. 

“More than a decade ago, Sara Wheeler traveled to Antarctica to understand a continent nearly lost to myth and lore. In the widely acclaimed, bestselling Terra Incognita, she chronicled her quest to find a hidden history buried in Antarctica's extreme surroundings. Now, Wheeler journeys to the opposite pole to create a definitive picture of life on the fringes. In The Magnetic North, she takes full measure of the Arctic: at once the most pristine place on earth and the locus of global warming.

Inspired by the spiraling shape of a reindeer-horn bangle, she travels counterclockwise around the North Pole through the territories belonging to Russia, the United States, Canada, Denmark, Norway, and Finland, marking the transformations of what once seemed an unchangeable landscape. As she witnesses the mounting pollution concentrated at the pole, Wheeler reckons with the illness of the whole organism of the earth.

Smashing through the Arctic Ocean with the crew of a Russian icebreaker, shadowing the endless Trans-Alaska Pipeline with a tough Idaho-born outdoorswoman, herding reindeer with the Lapps, and visiting the haunting, deceptively peaceful lands of the Gulag, Wheeler brings the Arctic's many contradictions to life. The Magnetic North is an urgent, beautiful book, rich in dramatic description and vivid reporting. It is a singular, deeply personal portrait of a region growing daily in global importance.”

Come join a community of women who share the outdoors in all ways possible!   The Zoom logon information will be provided to you in an email the day before the meeting.  

Although this event is FREE for Members, please register!