Leech Woods Haunted Trail opens Friday in Damascus

Halloween season is officially underway, and that means it's time to track down local haunted attractions. One of the highest-rated is right here in Montgomery County in one of our greatest towns, Damascus: Leech Woods Haunted Trail at 11201 Bethesda Church Road, and it opens this Friday, October 3, 2025. The trail and hayride have gotten high marks for creativity, originality, scare factor, and the pace of entry to ensure that you get your own experience on the trail, rather than crashing into the adventurers ahead of you. Past survivors also praise the high quality of the food and drinks that are for sale in the village from which you will depart - you've got to fortify yourself for the terrors ahead.

Make sure to read the FAQ on the website for important information regarding accessibility, clothing and shoe requirements, and parking and weather advisories. You can also buy tickets on there, of course. Also, if you are a traditional hayride fanatic, be forewarned that the separate Haunted Hayride attraction is not simply a standard hayride. You will explore the haunted Leech cemetery on foot, in between your rides out and back from that burial plot. There are fire pits in the village over which you can keep warm, and/or heat up s'mores from kits you can buy. In past years, there have been fortune tellers, merch to immortalize your survival, carnival games, axe throwing, and more in that spooky yet quaint village area. And there are plenty of "characters" to keep you diverted while you wait to enter the trail.

The founders of this attraction have wisely grounded the haunts in a chilling story inspired by the original inhabitants of the property, the Leech family, who met a grisly demise at the hands of truly demented people...or something else...during the brutal Maryland winter of 1804. Suffice it to say, there's enough negative energy on-site to overload your ghost radar and EMF meter. No wonder so many who have survived their trek on the Leech Woods Haunted Trail have reported getting quite a scare in their 5-star Yelp, and 4.7-star Google reviews.

Spirit Halloween opens in Gaithersburg

Spirit Halloween is now open in Gaithersburg. Their temporary store location is at 30 Grand Corner Avenue at Rio Lakefront. That was once home to Pier One.  New items for 2025 include an apparent "Giant Rat" trend for 2025 that could get Donald Trump's attention. Also on sale is a Montgomery County Council-inspired Stuffed Dummy Prop. Gardez Bien! Operating hours for the store are 10:00 AM to 9:00 PM Monday through Saturday, and 11:00 AM to 7:00 PM on Sundays.

Spirit Halloween returns to Gaithersburg for 2025

Spirit Halloween returns to Gaithersburg for a spooky 2025 season. It is once again in the former Pier One space at 30 Grand Corner Avenue. Boxes with Spirit logos and a telltale skeleton or two are being unpacked inside the store. The Spirit Halloween website says the store will open before the end of the month.

Spirit Halloween returning to Gaithersburg for 2024

Spirit Halloween will be returning to Montgomery County for the 2024 Halloween season. This year, the Gaithersburg store will be in the former Pier One space at 30 Grand Corner Avenue at Rio Lakefront. Spirit Halloween says it will open later this month. A visit to Spirit Halloween is a Halloween season event all in itself.

The Phantom of the Shady Grove Metro station

Montgomery County Halloween Countdown

Tomorrow is Halloween, and what is Halloween without a ghost? There's one who haunts the area around the Shady Grove Metro station in Derwood, and has since his untimely death there in 1864. Walter "Wat" Bowie was among many Marylanders who were Confederate sympathizers during the Civil War. Like some, such as Bethesda plantation owner Nathan Loughborough, Bowie couldn't resist getting in on the fighting action himself despite living in a state that hadn't seceded from the Union. And yes, Wat Bowie was a member of that Bowie family, whose home turf is now a fast-growing city in Prince George's County.

Bowie's final adventure began on an ambitious note: a botched plan to kidnap the governor of Maryland. Retreating back to Virginia from Annapolis via Montgomery County, Bowie made the mistake of trying to loot a store in Sandy Spring. Tired after previous pillaging by earlier Confederate raiders, the store owner rounded up a posse, and pursued Bowie and his men as they traveled toward Poolesville. 

The vigilantes caught up with Bowie in Derwood, near the site of today's Metro station. His party escaped, but Wat himself wasn't as lucky. Bowie was shot off his horse with a shotgun blast. Historian Earl Eisenhart pinpoints the exact location as being next to the Metro tracks off Somerville Road, by the McDonald's. Bowie's ghost is said to haunt that area to this day.

Sources:

AmericanCivilWar.com

MontgomeryGhosts

FindAGrave

Route 666, the real-life Highway to Hell, is in Montgomery County

Montgomery County Halloween Countdown

Did you know there is a real Route 666, and it is located in Kensington, Maryland? The Satanic-numbered Maryland highway designation was given to Armory Avenue, a portion of Howard Avenue, and St. Paul Street, when they served as the original route to cross the Baltimore & Ohio (now CSX) Railroad tracks in Kensington. Today, the newer Connecticut Avenue serves that purpose to the west, with a grade-separated bridge crossing. The controversial 666 route number was removed in 1958, but you can still drive the real-life "Highway to Hell" today. However, the only way to travel the entire length continously is on foot, by using the pedestrian crossing at the Kensington railroad station. 

The creepiest license plate in Montgomery County

Montgomery County Halloween Countdown

Today on the Montgomery County Halloween Countdown, we have the creepiest license plate you're likely to find in MoCo. "Casket" is the vanity tag for a Chrysler 300 sedan staff vehicle at the Robert A. Pumphrey Funeral Home in downtown Bethesda. The black car also features the flashing emergency lights for funeral processions that have become standard on most funeral home hearses in recent years. Don't expect an actual casket to fit into a Chrysler 300, despite the spine-chilling tags.

The Rockville Mall had a newspaper, and it could be as creepy as the mall was (Photos)

Montgomery County Halloween Countdown

Today, as we count down the final days to Halloween, let's take a look at the Halloween 1976 edition of The Rockville Mall Times. Yes, Rockville's ill-fated dead mall of the 1970s and 80s had its own newspaper, and it could be as creepy as many considered the mall to be. Especially the Halloween edition. Who was Mr. Barfly, and was he a denizen of the shadows of the mall? Are you encouraged, or discouraged, to visit Ransom's, with Mr. Barfly as the face of the business? His disturbing visage suggests a ransom may indeed be involved to secure your release from his clutches, and from the mall's infamous dark parking garage.

Mr. Barfly, a denizen of the darkest
corners of the Rockville Mall

"Hey, kids! Let's all pile into the station wagon and pick up a copy of Adolf Hitler by John Toland at Waldenbooks at the Rockville Mall." With Roots as the other choice highlighted, talk about a stark contrast in offerings. Some lighthearted reading for the whole family at Waldenbooks.

Name-brand leisure suits were 50% off - if Herb Tarlek didn't get to Crane's Men's Shop first and clean 'em out. It's hard to get more 70s than leisure suits. But Beyda's gave it the old college try with corduroy, gabardine and velveteen pantsuits.

The front-page story in the Halloween 1976 edition of the The Rockville Mall Times looked back at the tragic demolition of the Rockville's historic town center with an almost-giddy glee. Vinson's drugstore and the Milo theater are visible in a bustling scene from 1945. Thirty years later, the Rockville Mall fills the field of view from the same photographic vantage point (and only 20 years later, the mall itself would be demolished). 

"Progress comes to Rockville," the headline reads. "Shopping sure has changed in Rockville," the article begins. The uncredited reporter made sure to thank the city politicians who approved the demolition of most of the original, historic buildings in downtown Rockville. "During this week, Rockville Mall also salutes the City of Rockville for the many years of progressive city planning that has made Rockville a model city for responsive government, and a convenient place for residents to shop."

A 1976 mall directory shown lists more than 30 tenants. But in a sign of the mall's struggles, previous department store anchors Lansburgh and Lit Brothers were already conspicuously missing from the roster. The interesting names among the remaining tenants were Roy Rogers, Franklin Simon department store and W&J Sloane furniture (both from the same ownership group as Lansburgh and Lit Brothers, coincidentally), King's Court (an original tenant when the mall opened, the restaurant closed in 1984 when its space was replaced with an elevator shaft in the "Rockville Metro Center" makeover of the mall), Friendly's Ice Cream and Real Rich Ice Cream (2 ice cream shops! Which one was better?), Masi's Fun House (was Mr. Barfly ever lurking in there, as well?), Kurly's (what's that?), Empress Restaurant and Waxie Maxie's record store. 

In case shoppers didn't already have it penciled in on their calendars, The Rockville Mall Times noted that National Alcoholism Week was rapidly approaching on November 12. But just when the gloom became too much, the Times promised that "Santa arrives at Rockville Mall Friday, November 26 at 10 AM." After a reminder to "Support your local Rockville Mall merchant who supports you with low prices," the front page ends with the mall's 70s logo, and the tagline "GOOD NEWS/GOOD TIMES."

Spirit Halloween returning to Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg for 2023

Spirit Halloween will return to haunt Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg once again for 2023. The seasonal costume, props and decor store will again inhabit the former Charming Charlie space at 101 Boardwalk Place. In fact, that's the only Montgomery County location announced by Spirit so far, but you can be sure there'll be more. Among the new animatronics creating buzz this year for the wealthy shopper are the life-size Leatherface, a truly-scary representative of family farms seized by greedy Wall Street big banks named Emmeline, and the tragic-romantic 6'6" Black Heart.

Spirit Halloween now open at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg

Spirit Halloween has returned to Rio Lakefront for 2022. The store is now open at 101 Boardwalk Place, the former home of Charming Charlie. A tour of Spirit Halloween has become an annual Halloween-season tradition for many. New animatronics this year include Lord Raven, Bog Zombie, Monty the crazed cymbal-wielding monkey, Lucky Bottoms, Bag o'Bones, and Nozzles the Clown.

Spirit Halloween returning to Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg for 2022

Spirit Halloween is coming back to Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg for 2022. Their seasonal store will be at 101 Boardwalk Place, in the former Charming Charlie space. A tour of Spirit Halloween has become a Halloween activity and tradition in itself. New animatronics this year include Lord Raven, Bog Zombie, Monty the crazed cymbal-wielding monkey, Lucky Bottoms, Bag o'Bones, and Nozzles the Clown.

Spirit Halloween opens at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg

Spirit Halloween is back at Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg. A tour of a Spirit Halloween store is a Halloween season event in itself. The store is in a different location this year. Look for it at 101 Boardwalk Place, across from Copper Canyon Grill.

Spirit Halloween coming to Rio Lakefront in Gaithersburg for 2020

Spirit Halloween has leased the former Pier 1 Imports space at Rio Lakefront at 30 Grand Corner Avenue in Gaithersburg. The store is currently being stocked inside, and is expected to open on September 4.

Spirit Halloween prepares to haunt Gaithersburg, Germantown

Spirit Halloween is searching moribund Montgomery County's vacant retail spaces for the ideal haunts to sell their 2019 Halloween merchandise. In Gaithersburg, they will be haunting the former Performance Bike shop at 357 Muddy Branch Road. Tentative opening date there is September 14, 2019. In Germantown, they'll start scaring customers on September 19, in the shuttered Giant grocery store at 13060 Middlebrook Road. Touring a Spirit Halloween store is a Halloween event in itself!

HALLOWEEN WEEKEND AT DOWNTOWN CROWN WINE AND BEER

Celebrate Halloween all weekend at Downtown Crown Wine & Beer. Tonight, they'll have 4 pumpkin beers on tap. Stop by during their Happy Hour between 4 and 7 PM, and fill up your growler with pumpkin beer at a discount from the regular price.

Saturday night, they'll have live music from special guest Pat Looney.

Finish the weekend on Sunday with NFL games on 2 giant screens, plus extended Happy Hour pricing between 1 and 7 PM.

Downtown Crown

Wine & Beer

303 Copley Place