(PASSAIC COUNTY, NJ) -- The County of Passaic and the Friends of Passaic County Parks, Inc., in conjunction with the National Association of Olmsted Parks, will host a picnic at the Rocky Hollow Picnic Area at Garret Mountain Reservation on Sunday, July 31st. This year marks the 200th birthday of Frederick Law Olmsted — author, journalist, public official, urban planner, and founder of American landscape architecture. Olmsted and his successor firms designed thousands of landscape and park projects across the country. In 1927, the Passaic County Park Commission hired the Olmsted Brothers firm to design the Passaic County Park System 

Events and activities begin at 9:30am. The New Jersey Chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects will host a Sketch Crawl on Garret Mountain Reservation at 9:30am. Guided walking tours of the park will be available at 11:00am and 1:00pm. A Qi Gong session will take place at 11:00am with renowned instructor, Tara Farley. Farley will be teaching a class centered on lung health to honor Olmsted’s view that public parks are the lungs of a community. 

The picnic will begin at noon, and patrons are encouraged to bring their own picnic lunch, however food and refreshments will be available for free while supplies last. Michael Cumella, the Phonograph DJ, will be on hand to demonstrate and play records from the bygone era of the 1920s and 30s, and will also provide music for a Charleston dance lesson led by the Arthur Murray Dance School of Ridgewood. 

Other guests include, Lokai Rose, a non-profit environmental education group, which offers outdoor explorations, environment interactions, and educates the public about all-things nature. Lokai Rose will be on hand with a photobooth, environmental activities, and their animal ambassadors’ program. 

Lastly, the County of Passaic invited photographers to compete in a photography contest highlighting Passaic County parks. Over 50 submissions were received. Winners of the contest will be selected and showcased at an art exhibition at the Passaic County Arts Center in Hawthorne. The photographs will be featured in spring 2023. Winners of the contest will be announced at 2:30pm. 

For a full schedule of the day’s events, and more information on Passaic County’s Olmsted connection, please visit www.SeePassaicCounty.org.