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Blacksburg wears Hokie maroon and orange with pride. Virginia's largest town grew from a 1798 grid of sixteen blocks into the home of Virginia Tech, whose gray Hokie Stone buildings ring the vast lawn of the Drillfield and whose 66,000-seat Lane Stadium shakes on fall Saturdays.
Beyond football, the university gives this New River Valley town a surprisingly rich cultural life. The Moss Arts Center brings touring performers to Main Street, the Hahn Horticulture Garden and the Duck Pond offer quiet corners on campus, and the Museum of Geosciences shows off minerals and fossils. History runs deeper at Historic Smithfield, a frontier plantation home from the 1770s, and at the Alexander Black House downtown.
The Blue Ridge and Appalachian ridges are close by. The paved Huckleberry Trail rolls toward Christiansburg, Pandapas Pond sits in the Jefferson National Forest just north of town, and the Cascades waterfall and the New River are easy half-day trips.
The great oval lawn of Virginia Tech is framed by Hokie Stone buildings, with the towers of Burruss Hall at its head. Students cross it all day, and it hosts events and memorials, including the April 16 Memorial of 32 stones. Walk the full loop and stop at the War Memorial Chapel.
Home of Virginia Tech Hokies football since 1965, Lane Stadium holds about 66,000 fans and is famous for the team's entrance to Metallica's Enter Sandman. Game-day tailgates fill the surrounding lots. Buy tickets early for conference games, and on off days walk by to see the exterior and statues.
This Virginia Tech arts center on the edge of downtown presents touring theater, dance, classical and contemporary music in a modern performance hall, plus free visual art galleries. The galleries are open most days without tickets. Check the season calendar and book shows ahead, especially on weekends.
A free public garden on the Virginia Tech campus with themed planting beds, a water garden, shaded woodland paths and a pavilion. It is a peaceful break from the busy campus. Spring bulbs and summer perennials put on the best show, and the garden is open from dawn to dusk.
A small pond set among weeping willows and lawns on the west side of campus, home to ducks, geese and turtles. A walking path circles it, and the nearby Grove and Stadium Woods add shade. Bring a camera in autumn when the trees turn gold. Please do not feed the birds bread.
An eight-acre pond in the Jefferson National Forest about 15 minutes north of Blacksburg, ringed by an easy loop trail and connecting to longer hiking and mountain bike routes. Anglers fish for trout and bass. Arrive early on weekends, since the small parking lot fills quickly.
Built around 1774 by Colonel William Preston, Smithfield is one of the best-preserved frontier plantation houses in western Virginia and is linked to several Virginia governors. Guided tours explain colonial life and the people enslaved there. It sits on the Virginia Tech campus; check seasonal hours.
A restored 1897 Queen Anne house a block off Main Street that now serves as a museum of Blacksburg history, with rotating exhibits, period rooms and community events. Admission is free. Ask about the walking tours of the original sixteen squares, the 1798 grid that formed the town.
Located in Derring Hall on campus, this free museum displays a colorful mineral collection, Virginia fossils and dinosaur casts, along with exhibits on regional geology and the Appalachian mountains. It is small but rewarding for families. Hours follow the academic calendar, so confirm before visiting.
Main Street and College Avenue host independent bookstores, outfitters, coffee shops, breweries and restaurants right next to campus. Evenings are lively during the school year. Grab a sandwich, browse the shops and watch for the Saturday farmers market at Market Square Park in season.
Following an old railroad line, the paved Huckleberry Trail runs from the Blacksburg library through farmland and woods to Christiansburg, with a newer branch heading toward the Jefferson National Forest. It suits walkers, runners and cyclists of all ages. Start downtown and turn back whenever you like.
Held downtown on the first weekend of August, Steppin' Out fills the streets with hundreds of artist and craft booths, live music stages and food vendors. It is one of the largest arts festivals in southwest Virginia. Come in the morning before the heat and crowds peak, and park on campus.
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