Fort Dupont Park Picnic Areas

Fort Dupont Park has three picnic areas that groups may reserve from spring to fall each year. There are also picnic areas available on a first-come, first-served basis. The varied seasonal activities at this spacious area east of the Anacostia River include picnicking, hiking trails, Civil War programs, gardening, environmental education, concerts and special events, mountain biking and youth programs. Picnic areas A and B at Randle Circle both offer picnic tables, a grill and a nearby restroom building and playground. Electricity is not available on site. These areas have street parking, with a larger parking lot less than a quarter mile away, and sit close to several park nature trails and the Fort Dupont Activity Center, which has exhibits and other information about the park. No other amenities are available. The Historic Earthwork (Lanham Estates) picnic area on Alabama Avenue offers a picnic shelter, tables, grill and a fireplace, again with no electricity on site. It has an adjacent parking lot with open space nearby for playing games, though there are no formal ball fields. This is the historic area of the park, containing the earthwork remnants of Fort Dupont and interpretive signage giving the history of the fort, and it offers access to the seven-mile Fort Circle Parks Hiker-Biker Trail, which connects multiple Civil War fort sites in southeast Washington, D.C. Fort Dupont Park has 376 rolling wooded acres (152 ha), and is one of the largest parks in Washington D.C. Oak, beech and maple trees cover the hillsides, and there is a large area of mountain laurel that blooms in the spring each year. Visitors may also enjoy the Frederick Douglass National Historic Site, the Smithsonian Anacostia Community Museum, Anacostia Park and the Anacostia Riverwalk Trail, and Kenilworth Park and Aquatic Gardens.