The breaking dawn gives a rosy tinge to the east face of Mary Harkness House residence hall, built in 1934. Granite for the campus's original buildings was quarried from outcrops on land that is now part of the Arboretum.

On the east side of Mohegan Avenue, beyond this hobbit's-door-like gate, lies the five-acre Caroline Black Garden, home to a mature collection of ornamental trees and shrubs from around the world. Established in the 1920s, the garden is named in memory of the first chair of the botany department. In 2001, the garden was dedicated as a member garden in the international organization Gardens for Peace.

Rocky, wooded Mamacoke Island on the Thames River is actually only an island when this salt marsh floods at high tide. Part of the College's Arboretum since 1955, Mamacoke, a 40-acre nature preserve, has been designated a critically important habitat for birds by the National Audubon Society. It's a popular spot for botany and biology research.

The greenhouse of New London Hall glows at night, while cactus, orchids and other plant collections inside soak up artificial light. Each year, introductory botany students plant and tend a small garden plot of their own design within the structure. The greenhouse is also home to plant collections used for faculty and student research.

The sailing team practices on its "home field," the Thames River, which runs next to campus.

Rustic Buck Lodge, overlooking the pond in the Arboretum's western acreage, is a popular spot for small, casual campus events. The cabin and nearby Outdoor Theater were constructed in the 1930s. In the coming decades, the College would become known as a pioneer in the conservation movement.

At quieter times of day, this bench at the foot of the marble stairwell in the Blaustein Humanities Center serves as an ideal place to compare notes.

Musical recitals, lectures, religious services and other special events are held in the 74-year-old, non-denominational Harkness Chapel. The inscription over the entrance explains that benefactor Mary Stillman Harkness made the gift of the chapel "to express her belief in the importance of religion to college students."

A decorative canopy at the foot of the Arboretum's Laurel Walk awaits a wedding planned for the next day. The path is named for the mountain laurel that line it.

Connecticut College boasts of being one of the only New England liberal arts colleges with an ocean view, and it's evident looking south over Harkness Chapel and Harkness and Tempel greens toward Long Island Sound.