The 11th annual event will take place from June 6-14, 2026
ANNAPOLIS — The 11th annual Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week will take place from June 6-14, 2026. Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week is an annual event that celebrates the natural beauty, history and culture of the nation’s largest estuary. Eleven years since the Chesapeake Bay Commission worked with legislators in Maryland, Pennsylvania and Virginia to establish the annual event, organizations all throughout the watershed are still pitching in to keep the tradition alive.
For those interested in sharing their events on social media, the Chesapeake Bay Program (CBP) has partnered with organizations, including the Chesapeake Conservancy, Maryland Sea Grant, Virginia Sea Grant, Pennsylvania Sea Grant, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, Chesapeake Wildlife Heritage, Maryland Department of the Environment, Delaware Department of Natural Resources and Environmental Control, Virginia Conservation Network and the University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science to develop a social media toolkit that includes sample posts, content to share and a photo gallery that can be used for daily inspiration.
The CBP also offers a calendar to find events near you. Below are a few of the many opportunities to engage with the Chesapeake Bay and the watershed during this year’s Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week:
- Saturday, June 6: Explore the Chesapeake Bay’s unique maritime racing traditions with a Racing Boats Guided Tour at the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in Annapolis, Maryland.
- Sunday, June 7: Enjoy a family-friendly guided kayaking trip along the beautiful Conestoga River near Lancaster County, Pennsylvania.
- Monday, June 8: Take a guided hike and play “birding bingo” at Shenandoah River State Park in Bentonville, Virginia.
- Tuesday, June 9: Explore the Agricultural History Farm Park’s unique trails while uncovering its rich past with Hiking Histories in Derwood, Maryland.
- Wednesday, June 10: Help protect a West Virginia tributary that drains to the Chesapeake Bay during an invasive species removal workshop on the Warm Springs Run in Berkeley Springs, West Virginia.
- Thursday, June 11: Explore the nocturnal world of owls with a guided hike at Douthat State Park in Millboro, Virginia.
- Friday, June 12: Learn how to care for your rain garden from a Chesapeake Bay Landscaping Professional at Bright Side Baptist Church in Lancaster, Pennsylvania.
- Saturday, June 13: Join the Anacostia Watershed Society for an adventurous, educational boat tour on the Anacostia River in Washington, D.C.
- Sunday, June 14: Help community organizers assess the health of the Bay with the annual Patuxent River Wade-In at Jefferson Patterson Park & Museum in Calvert County, Maryland.
Visit the Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week website to explore our events calendar, and download the social media toolkit. Connect with CBP through social media using the hashtag #BayAwarenessWeek or tag us @chesbayprogram on Instagram and Chesapeake Bay Program on Facebook and LinkedIn.
Quotes
“Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week celebrates the decades of restoration success that result from a robust partnership covering all levels of government, advocacy groups, researchers, farmers, watermen, and those that enjoy the Bay for recreation. It also reminds us of the importance of maintaining momentum with our contributions to restoration so future generations can continue to cherish the Chesapeake Bay.”
- Dan Coogan, Director, Chesapeake Bay Program Office, EPA Region III
“As we advance into a new era of Chesapeake Bay restoration and conservation, Chesapeake Conservancy is honored to take a moment to reflect on the importance of the Chesapeake Bay this Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week. We are proud to utilize science, data and community partnerships to help defend the varied resources of our watershed for this and future generations.”
- Susan Shingledecker, Chief Executive Officer, Chesapeake Conservancy
“The Chesapeake Bay is the vital heartbeat of our region, nourished by hundreds of rivers and streams that originate in our very own backyards. By connecting local science with meaningful community action, Virginia Sea Grant ensures that every act of stewardship — no matter how far inland — becomes a building block for a more resilient and thriving watershed. The Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week is a powerful reminder that protecting our local waters today safeguards the ecological vitality, economic prosperity, and cultural legacy of the Bay for generations to come.”
- Mona Behl, Director, Virginia Sea Grant
“Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week is a chance to pause and recognize how closely our communities are tied to the water and land around us. Forests, wetlands, streams, and shorelines shape the waterways we rely on, and what happens on the land flows directly into the Bay. This week, we celebrate the residents, local leaders, and partners who are caring for these places every day, and we encourage everyone to learn more about the waters that begin right where they live. When we care for the natural systems that support us and take responsibility together, we strengthen both the Bay and our communities for the future.”
- Jenni Pompi, Chair, Chesapeake Bay and Water Resources Policy Committee, Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments, and Councilmember, City of Greenbelt, Maryland
“The Bay is our legacy, and together, we are restoring it. By partnering with local leaders and utilities to maximize the benefits of the Bay Restoration Fund, we’ve upgraded wastewater plants and septic systems while supporting farm cover crops. These efforts, alongside MDE’s stormwater initiatives, have played a critical role in meeting our 2025 targets for sediment and phosphorus and put us within inches of our nitrogen goal. This is progress: 1.5 million native trees and real results. We are building resilience, strengthening partnerships and moving with purpose.”
- Serena McIlwain, Secretary, Maryland Department of the Environment
“Waterways, marshes, underwater grasses, oyster beds, and many other natural features contribute fundamentally to the Chesapeake Bay’s health and sustainability. Human communities must do our part to protect the Bay. Innovation in our region, including nature-based solutions, environmental workforce development and training programs, and groundbreaking scientific research, offers solutions and hope for the future.”
- Fredrika Moser, Director, Maryland Sea Grant
“As Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week begins, let’s remember that everything we do on the land affects the things we love about our Chesapeake Bay. By being careful with our trash, fertilizer and water use, and by keeping sediment, oil and grease out of streams, we support clean water, fish, crabs, and oysters.”
- Heath Kelsey, Director of Integration and Application Network, University of Maryland Center for Environmental Science
“As we celebrate Chesapeake Bay Awareness Week, we’re reminded that a wide variety of wildlife lives in the 64,000 square mile watershed; Native ecosystem engineers like Oysters or Bay grass play a positive role in their environment, but not all species are beneficial. Non-native, introduced, or invasive species, like the Flathead Catfish, threaten native species throughout the watershed. It’s our responsibility, as nature’s protectors, to never release non-native species, whether a turtle, fish, or even left-over fishing bait, into any waterbody, as it can have significant consequences to the ecosystem.”
- Sarah Whitney, Director, Pennsylvania Sea Grant
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