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Dairy cows on Horsebarn Hill and a campus of 30,000 students define Mansfield, the rural eastern Connecticut town that holds the University of Connecticut's main campus at Storrs. Stone walls, woods and small villages fill the rest of the town.
Mansfield was settled in the early 1700s and later had silk mills along its rivers, while the Storrs Agricultural School, founded in 1881, grew into UConn. The university still farms the land around Horsebarn Hill, and its Dairy Bar has served ice cream from the campus herd since the 1950s.
Visitors catch Huskies games, see exhibits at the William Benton Museum of Art and the Ballard Institute and Museum of Puppetry, and catch shows at the Jorgensen Center. Outdoors, there are trails at Mansfield Hollow State Park, Schoolhouse Brook Park and Wolf Rock, the old Gurleyville Grist Mill on the Fenton River, and summer movies at the Mansfield Drive-In.
UConn's flagship campus spreads across the hills of Storrs with Georgian brick buildings, the columned Wilbur Cross Building, Mirror Lake and the Student Union. Visitors can tour the grounds on foot and catch a Huskies basketball or football game. Weekday visitor parking is in garages; summer is quietest.
Ice cream made from milk produced by the university's own dairy herd has been sold at this campus shop since the 1950s. Dozens of flavors include favorites like Jonathan Supreme. Lines get long on summer evenings and game days. Afterward, walk across to the barns to see the cows and calves.
An open hill of pastures and red barns at the north end of the UConn campus, beloved for sunsets, picnics, kite flying and winter sledding. Paths lead around the fields and past the animal barns. Stay on the paths and respect fences, as the animals are part of the university's research herds.
Housed in a Collegiate Gothic building on campus, the Benton has a permanent collection of European and American paintings, prints and drawings, plus changing exhibits of contemporary and student work. Admission is free. It makes a calm hour between campus sights; check hours, as it closes on some university breaks.
A rare museum devoted to puppetry, with a collection of thousands of puppets from around the world, from shadow figures to marionettes, shown in rotating exhibits in Storrs Center. It grew out of UConn's renowned puppet arts program and hosts performances. Admission is by donation; good for families with curious kids.
UConn's main performance hall presents touring orchestras, dance companies, comedians and Broadway-style shows in a large auditorium on campus. The Connecticut Repertory Theatre stages plays nearby. Check the season calendar early; tickets for popular acts sell quickly to the campus crowd.
A newer mixed-use downtown across from campus with a town square, apartments over shops, restaurants, coffee houses and a bookstore. It hosts a farmers market and seasonal events and is the easiest place in town to eat before a show or game. Use the parking garage off Storrs Road.
A large park around Mansfield Hollow Lake, created by a flood control dam, with trails along the shore including part of the blue-blazed Nipmuck Trail, picnic areas and a boat launch. It is popular with anglers and dog walkers. Swimming is not allowed, as the lake is a water supply area.
A town park of woods, streams and rock ledges with marked trails and Bicentennial Pond, where a small sandy beach offers swimming in summer. Trails range from short loops to longer rambles. Residents get priority on beach passes in season, so check the town's pond rules before you go.
A short woodland walk leads to Wolf Rock, a huge glacial erratic perched on a ledge with views over the surrounding forest. The preserve is cared for by the local land trust, Joshua's Trust. It takes under an hour round trip; parking is limited to a small roadside lot, so carpool if you can.
A 19th-century stone grist mill on the Fenton River, said to be the only one of its kind left in Connecticut, with its mill machinery and a miller's house nearby. Joshua's Trust opens it on summer Sunday afternoons. The river gorge around it is lovely for a short walk at any time of year.
One of the last drive-in movie theaters in Connecticut, showing double features on several screens from spring to fall. On Sundays the grounds host the Mansfield Marketplace flea market with antiques, produce and odds and ends. Bring blankets and snacks, and tune the car radio to hear the film.
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