Lake Matoaka

A 40-acre lake dammed off College Creek around 1700 to power a mill, now the western boundary of the William & Mary campus and the centre of a 600-acre woodland preserve.

Trails loop through the forest around it, canoes and kayaks go out from the college boathouse, and the water is thick with turtles — sunning themselves on every available log in warm weather. The Martha Wren Briggs Amphitheatre sits on the shore and hosts outdoor concerts and student productions in the warmer months.

Completely free and rarely crowded outside term time. The contrast with the manicured colonial streets fifteen minutes east is the point.