• Walk to the Hood Museum of Art, freshly renovated and expanded, regarded as a national model for college and university museums. The 65,000 objects in the museum's collections represent art created on six continents, and include Assyrian stone reliefs from the palace of Ashurnasirpal II (about 900 BCE). And be sure to head over to the Baker-Berry Library to see José Clemente Orozco's fresco entitled The Epic of American Civilization (1932–34), which is now a U.S. National Historic Landmark.

• Visit the Montshire Museum of Science. Located just across the river in neighboring Lewiston, this spectacular cultural institution features a series of interactive exhibits that chroncile the area's extensive natural history. The Montshire Museum of Science also contains an aquarium, as well as an exciting outdoor science park.

• Explore the Connecticut River on a canoe, kayak, or stand-up paddle board rented from Dartmouth's Ledyard Canoe Club in spring, summer, and fall, located on the river just north of the Route 10A bridge. Or head up to the Balch Hill Natural Area for its great views, picnicking, bird watching, and walking. Its ten trails provide easy to moderate routes to the 937-foot summit. Scenery is diverse; there's a former pasture and apple orchard at the summit, and forests of pine, hardwoods, and hemlock along the way.