So many great options this weekend! The Leesburg Airshow is free and twenty minutes away, Oktoberfest is back in the Lovettsville streets for its thirtieth year, Temple Hall opens the pumpkin patch, and our own fire department runs a 5K that finishes before any of it starts. And there's plenty more, so check out this week's events!
The 5-second plan
Saturday, free, twenty minutes away: the Leesburg Airshow, where the parking is the part people get wrong.
Also Saturday, and it is the thirtieth: Lovettsville Oktoberfest, now in the downtown streets instead of the Town Green.
From Friday, in Ashburn: a circus at Loudoun Station. Tickets are $28.95 an adult from the circus, against about $83 on resale sites.
If you have a small child on Saturday: Cascades has cancelled its storytimes this week, but Rust, Brambleton and Ashburn are running theirs.
On the ballot: three county bond questions, and early voting is already open.
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Editor's Pick
The Leesburg Airshow is free to get into, and you don't park at the airport. Free shuttles run from Segra Field and Heritage High School from 10:45. The Park and Ride on Gourley Transit Drive is the one lot with no shuttle, so it is worth avoiding. Flying starts at 1, and the lots fill up early.
Sat 9/26, 11 a.m.–4 p.m.; flying from 1 p.m. · Free, and the shuttles are free · ~20 min, Leesburg Executive Airport; park at 42095 Loudoun United Dr or 520 Evergreen Mills Rd · All ages, no pets
This Weekend
Saturday carries the most, and the 5K and the airshow stack neatly. Friday evening and Sunday afternoon are wide open.
Friday
Tally Ho's cheapest seat is $21.70, all in. The Rush Experience play the full catalogue, doors at 7. The VIP tables have already sold out, so general admission is what is left.
Fri 9/25, doors 7 p.m. · $21.70 general admission, fees included · ~20 min, 19 W Market St, Leesburg · All ages
Oktoberfest warms up in Lovettsville from 6. Biergartens at three spots around town, keg tapping at 6:45 at 1836 Kitchen and Taproom, and a sing-along at 9:30.
Fri 9/25, from 5:30 p.m. · No admission figure published · ~35 min, downtown Lovettsville · All ages
Saturday
Lovettsville Oktoberfest turns 30 and moves into the streets. The streets around the Squirkle close to traffic at 6 a.m. Parking is free at Lovettsville Community Park with a shuttle running continuously from 9:30 to 6, and the town describes parking as limited, so it is worth arriving early. No admission price appears anywhere on the town's pages. If you see $25 on the event map, that is one of the parking lots rather than the gate.
Sat 9/26, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. · No admission figure published · ~35 min, park at 39550 Lovettsville Park Dr · All ages
The Ashburn fire department's 5K finishes before the airshow opens. The children's Spark Sprint goes at 9 and the 5K follows, so you can do this one and still make it to Leesburg. You can sign up on the morning, 7 to 8:30 at the brewery, or on Friday evening between 4 and 8.
Sat 9/26, kids' race 9 a.m. · $45 the 5K, $20 the kids' race · In Ashburn, Route 7 Brewing, 20051 Riverside Commons Plaza #148 · All ages
Temple Hall's $15 ticket includes a pumpkin and a bunch of flowers. Wagon rides, jumping pillows and the hill slides come with it. There are no online sales, so bring a card for the gate. It runs through November 3 and costs $3 less on a weekday, so there is no need to squeeze it into a busy Saturday.
Sat 9/26–Tue 11/3, daily 9 a.m.–5 p.m., last tickets 4 · $15, $12 weekdays, free under 2 · ~25 min, 15855 Limestone School Rd, Leesburg · All ages, no dogs
The flashlight corn maze is the last one this year. There is a bonfire, and it runs 6 to 8:30 on a separate ticket from the
daytime festival, which is open daily through Halloween with pig races and cider demonstrations at weekends. Pumpkins are priced separately, at 69 cents a pound.
Maze Sat 9/26, 6–8:30 p.m. · Maze $11 child / $13 adult online, $14 at the gate; day $12–$16 online, $16–$18 at the gate, plus a $1 online fee · ~40 min, 18780 Foggy Bottom Rd, Bluemont · All ages
Double Duran play Tally Ho, $28.09 all in. Doors at 7, all ages, and it is downtown Leesburg, so you can make dinner part of the evening.
Sat 9/26, doors 7 p.m. · $28.09 general admission, fees included · ~20 min, 19 W Market St, Leesburg · All ages
Two bands back to back in the Vanish field. Big Laird play 1 to 4 and Bad Panda take over 5 to 8, so you can come for one and stay for the other.
Sat 9/26, 1–4 and 5–8 p.m. · No charge posted · ~20 min, 42245 Black Hops Ln, Leesburg · Adults
A free concert on the One Loudoun plaza, 7 to 9. Keeton play '90s covers. The plaza does not allow alcohol, which is worth knowing before you carry a drink out of one of the restaurants.
Sat 9/26, 7–9 p.m. · Free · In Ashburn, 20387 Exchange St · All ages
Sunday
The JK Black Oak sanctuary opens its trails for its one public day of the year. For the rest of the year you can only get in on a guided walk or a volunteer work day. Four mowed trails are open to walk on your own, with volunteers moving along the route. Last trail entry is 2:30, and the 11 a.m. guided walk is already full.
Sun 9/27, 10 a.m.–3 p.m. · No charge posted; free registration requested · ~30 min, Stumptown Rd at Newvalley Church Rd, Lucketts · Family friendly, no pets
Running into next week
A circus tent goes up at Loudoun Station on Friday, and the circus sells tickets cheaper than resale. It is animal-free and Broadway-style, under a real big top. An adult general-admission seat is $28.95 from the circus, while a resale site lists the same Saturday 11 a.m. show from $83. There are no shows on Thursday, Monday or Tuesday.
Fri 9/25 7 p.m.; Sat 11 a.m., 2 and 5 p.m.; Sun 2 and 5 p.m.; Wed 9/30 7 p.m., running through 10/4 · General admission $28.95 adult, $19.95 child 3–12; Premier Gallery $39.95 and $28.95; VIP stageside $59.95; free under 3 on a lap; doors an hour before · In Ashburn, 43751 Central Station Dr · All ages
Family
Rust and Ashburn carry this week while Cascades is shut for storytime. Thursday's movie is free and runs to 10.
Rust, Brambleton and Ashburn all run family storytime Saturday at 10. Those are the three to aim for, because
Cascades has cancelled its storytimes all week, Saturday included, and starts again on Monday.
Sat 9/26, 10–10:30 a.m. · No charge posted; just turn up · In Ashburn, 43316 Hay Rd; ~10 min, 22850 Brambleton Plaza; ~20 min, 380 Old Waterford Rd NW, Leesburg · Little ones with a caregiver
Dog Man gets a whole party at Rust, photo included. Crafts and activities from the books, sponsored by Birch Tree Books and Plants. It runs for one hour and does not come round again.
Sun 9/27, 3–4 p.m. · No charge posted; just turn up · ~20 min, 380 Old Waterford Rd NW, Leesburg · All ages
An escape room for the middle-schooler and up crowd. You are reporters chasing a tip into a dinosaur-revival lab. The library posts it for middle school, high school and adults, so younger children are not the audience. There is no booking and no set slot.
Fri 9/25, 7–9 p.m. · No charge posted · ~15 min, Sterling Library, 22330 S Sterling Blvd · Middle school and up
Spike ball at the Cascades teen center, and the ID check is annual. Signing up runs through a separate teen-center portal, and a parent verifies ID in person once a year, so a teen who has already been verified just turns up. If yours still needs it, the branch closes at 5 and arrival is between 6 and 6:30.
Fri 9/25, 6–9 p.m. · No charge posted; registration required · ~15 min, 21030 Whitfield Pl, Potomac Falls · Grades 6–12
Pre-K Skill Builders is a two-hour window rather than a fixed slot. Kindergarten-readiness practice you can arrive at and leave whenever it suits, which makes it the rare thing that bends to a toddler's schedule instead of the other way round.
Fri 9/25, 10 a.m.–noon · No charge posted; drop in any time · In Ashburn, 43316 Hay Rd · Ages 3–5 with a caregiver
Bike Loudoun teaches a flat fix and a chain lube. A working mechanic and a certified safety instructor run it, and it is posted for middle school and up, so a child and a parent can both take part.
Sat 9/26, 1–2:30 p.m. · No charge posted · ~20 min, 380 Old Waterford Rd NW, Leesburg · Middle school and up
What Actually Matters
Read the three bond figures before you vote. Monday at Broad Run is the one that costs you an evening.
Three bond questions are on your November ballot. Here is what each one borrows. The county's sample ballot asks for a maximum of
$40,255,000 for schools,
$35,431,000 for public safety and
$280,848,000 for transportation, which comes to $356,534,000 added together. Early in-person voting is running now in Leesburg, and Ashburn's own site opens on October 18. Three constitutional amendment questions share the same ballot, so there will be six in front of you.
Weekdays now, 8:30 a.m.–5 p.m.; office closed Oct 12 · Free · ~20 min, 750 Miller Dr SE Suite 150, Leesburg · Registered Loudoun voters
The county takes comment on data centers at Broad Run High, and you can drop in. Staff are rewriting where data centers can go and what they must do about noise, height and power generated on site. There is no presentation to sit through, and county zoning enforcement will run noise-metering demonstrations. The hold is already in force: since September 15 the Board has been withholding final votes on data center and substation rezonings for up to a year. October 6 settles which filed projects keep the old rules, and October 20 formally enacts it.
Mon 9/28, 6–8:30 p.m.; repeats Wed 9/30 at the Douglass Community Center, Leesburg · Free · In Ashburn, 21670 Ashburn Road · Anyone, no sign-up
Registration Radar
The Thanksgiving race is the one with money on the clock: $35 becomes $40 on Tuesday night.
Ashburn's Thanksgiving races cost $35 until Tuesday night, then $40. The 33rd running, out of Crossroads United Methodist, with the 10K at 8:15, the 5K at 8:25 and a 2K fun run at 8:35. There is a virtual option if you will be travelling.
Price rises after 11:59 p.m. Tue 9/29 · $35 plus a $3.10 fee now, $40 after · In Ashburn, 43454 Crossroads Dr · All ages
Dulles Youth Basketball evaluates every registered player Monday and Tuesday. Kindergarten goes at 6:15 Monday and 2nd grade at 7:00; 1st grade takes 6:15 Tuesday and "3rd Grade & Up" at 7:00. A child needs one of these sessions to be placed on a team, and after Tuesday night the next chance is the make-up on October 13. A refund requested now comes back less $75, and that window closes October 15.
Mon 9/28 and Tue 9/29 · $250 per child · In Ashburn, Cedar Lane Elementary, 43700 Tolamac Dr · Grades K–5, county residents
Waiting past October 2 costs $20 more a child at i9 Sports. Saturday basketball for ages 5 to 12 runs November 7 to December 5 at Virginia Academy, and the girls volleyball league for 7 to 14 shares the same Saturdays and the same cutoff. It is $169 if you pay by October 2 and $189 after that.
Pay by Fri 10/2 · $172 all in now, $189 registration after · In Ashburn, 19790 Ashburn Road · Basketball 5–12; volleyball girls 7–14
Out & About
Ahso is down to bar seats, so book that one today. The rest you can walk into.
A wine flight matched to your star sign, under the full moon at Bluemont. Three hours, with the flight, a written monthly horoscope and the view west over the Blue Ridge. The vineyard lists $45 a head, but what you actually pay at booking is $54, because the 20 percent gratuity is already in it.
Sat 9/26, 6–9 p.m. · $54 per ticket at booking, plus tax · ~35 min, 18755 Foggy Bottom Rd, Bluemont · 21 and over
Eddie Merlot's does four courses for two at $99 on Wednesdays. The restaurant calls it a limited run and posts no end date, so it is worth asking when you book. The Ashburn dining room opens at 3 on Saturday and Sunday, so lunch there is a weekday option only.
Wed 9/30 · $99 for two, four courses · In Ashburn, 20350 Minot Dr · Adults
Save the Date
Waterford and the Farm Tour are the two October weekends people plan around.
Waterford Fair closes the village to cars for three days. Demonstrating artisans, living history through the lanes, and a homes tour with different houses open each day. Every ticket is an all-weekend pass this year. There are no ATMs on site, so bring cash, and make a note of your lot color.
Fri–Sun 10/2–10/4, 10 a.m.–5 p.m. · $20 advance plus fees, $25 at the gate; $20 seniors 65+, military and 13–21; free under 13 with an adult · ~30 min, village of Waterford · All ages, service dogs only
Thirty-four Loudoun farms open their gates free, with no tickets. Self-guided, 10 to 4 both days, rain or shine. Printed farm lists are out at the Ashburn, Brambleton, Cascades, Gum Springs, Purcellville, Rust and Sterling libraries. Hogback Mountain Pony Rides is closed for 2026.
Sat–Sun 10/17–10/18, 10 a.m.–4 p.m. · Free; individual farms may charge · Countywide, with several stops near Ashburn · All ages
Two board votes decide how far the new data center rules reach. October 6 settles which already-filed projects keep the old rules. October 20 enacts the hold on final votes for data center and substation applications, backdated to September 15.
Tue 10/6 and Tue 10/20, 4 p.m. · Free, open meetings · ~20 min, 1 Harrison St SE, Leesburg · Open to the public
Early voting reaches Ashburn on October 18, with two deadlines behind it. The Ashburn Recreation and Community Center opens 11 to 4 that Sunday, and drop boxes open the same day at every Loudoun library apart from the Law Library. Register or request a mail ballot by October 23, and early voting ends October 31.
Sun 10/18, 11 a.m.–4 p.m. · Free · In Ashburn, 21105 Coopers Hawk Dr · Registered voters
Extra Credit
Two farmers markets, one on each day of the weekend. Ashbrook runs Saturday in the Christian Fellowship Church lot on Atwater Drive, and
Brambleton runs Sunday in the Town Center.
Sat 9/26 and Sun 9/27, 9 a.m.–1 p.m. · No charge posted · In Ashburn, 44505 Atwater Dr; and ~10 min, Brambleton Town Center · All ages
Adult-only corn maze nights start Friday, October 2. Henway hard cider, a bonfire and live music, on Fridays and Saturdays through the 24th. Bring your own light, and book ahead, because these sell out.
Eight nights, 10/2–10/24, 6–9 p.m. · $45 per guest · ~40 min, 18780 Foggy Bottom Rd, Bluemont · Adults only
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