Afternoon: Hotel check-in begins at 4 p.m. at the Frederica Road Sea Palms Resort Registration and Check-in Center. After checking in and receiving your room key, come to the designated meeting room at the conference center (map will be given to you at check-in) to register with your Program Coordinator and pick up your arrival packet. Your coordinator will greet you at the conference center at 5 p.m. for registration, orientation, and get acquainted time. We will review the schedule and any updates and answer any questions you may have. All activities described in your program will take place but the daily itinerary may have to be altered. We appreciate your understanding. Dinner is at 6:30 p.m.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Lodging: Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort

Meals Included: Dinner

St. Simons Beach/Marsh Study Field Trip/ St. Simons Island History Field Trip/Turtles Of The Sea

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: This morning your naturalist will lead you on an exciting beach and marsh walk. You will come away with new information about the marshes and beaches that will amaze you and probably surprise you at the same time. Wear tennis shoes and don't worry about the marsh walk getting your shoes wet and muddy. When the tide recedes, the sand in the marshes is actually very hard and easy to walk on. You will be on the edge of the salt marsh because, of course, we don't want to disturb the environment. The beach walk is beautiful at any time of the year. You will discover many facts about the beach and the critters that make their home in the sand or in shells or other places that you may not have thought could be a home. It is a fun and exciting afternoon with one of our top instructors.

Lunch: Lunch will be at a popular island restaurant.

Afternoon: St. Simons Field Trip. Prepare for the St. Simons Island field trip by reviewing the history of one of Georgia's renowned Golden Isles (along with Sea Island, Jekyll Island and privately owned Little St. Simons Island). It is also the largest of the Golden Isles. After being cultivated by English colonists for rice and cotton plantations worked by large populations of African slaves, who created the unique Gullah culture, the island since the early 20th century has been developed as a resort community. It has many seasonal residents, as well as a steady base of year-round residents. Many of the residents have settled here after retiring in other parts of Georgia or the United States. A stopover at Fort Frederica will allow time to walk among the ancient live oaks while going back in time to review the history with an expert. Fort Frederica was established in 1736 by James Oglethorpe to protect the southern boundary of his new colony of Georgia from the Spanish in Florida. Colonists from England, Scotland, and the Germanic states came to Georgia to support this endeavor. Other stops on St. Simons will include The St. Simons Lighthouse, tiny seaside village, avenue of oaks and more.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Evening: Lecture on "Turtles of the Sea." Sea turtles are some of the largest turtles in the world and live in almost every ocean of the world. Their smooth shells and paddle-like flippers help them speed through the water as fast as 15 mph. These long-distance travelers have been known to swim up to 3,000 miles. Although sea turtles cannot withdraw their heads into their shells, the adults are protected from predators by their shells, large size and thick scaly skin on their heads and necks. Your instructor will share with you the efforts being made to save the turtles, the turtle-excluder devices used by the shrimping industry and more.

Lodging: Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Jekyll Island Field Trip/Lunch At Jekyll Island Club Hotel/Barrier Island Dynamics of Coastal Georgia

Breakfast: Breakfast in the conference area.

Morning: Bus leaves for Jekyll Island field trip. A visit to the Jekyll Island Museum will include exhibitions featuring objects and photographs from extensive collections and introduce you to the rich heritage of Jekyll Island, whose social and architectural legacy is reflected in the Jekyll Island Club National Historic Landmark District, a 240-acre riverfront compound and one of the largest ongoing restoration projects in the southeastern United States. Founded in 1886, the Jekyll Island Hotel was the winter retreat for some of America's most elite families. Club rolls included such names as Morgan, Astor, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt and Pulitzer. Here, on this small barrier island off Georgia's beautiful coast, they shaped a private world of grand cottage residences around a Queen Anne-style clubhouse. Much of that world has been carefully preserved and faithfully restored in the Jekyll Island National Historic Landmark District, where you will be a welcomed guest.

Lunch: Lunch will be at the historic Jekyll Island Hotel. The Jekyll Island Club Hotel is Jekyll Island's only four-star resort and National Historic Landmark. Enjoy elegant surroundings and simple pleasures. Its impressive members included such luminaries as J.P. Morgan, William Rockefeller, Vincent Astor, Joseph Pulitzer, William K. Vanderbilt, and other recognizable names on the roster were Macy, Goodyear and Gould.

Afternoon: You will enjoy your free time to pursue your own interests in the Jekyll Island Historic District. Easy and close walking will take you to the Georgia Sea Turtle Center or among the oak-lined historic district to the shops that include special local pottery, Island Treasures hand-blown glass art, apparel, books and more!

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Evening: Sit back and relax as you learn about the Barrier Island Dynamics of Coastal Georgia from a naturalist.

Lodging: Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the conference area.

Morning: Participants will board the "Lady Jane," a working shrimp boat, for a shrimp trawl. Sort the shrimp from the catch of bonnethead, blacktip, sand shark, horseshoe crab, puffer fish, amberjack, crocker, spot, whiting, bluecrab and skate. Then sit back and enjoy the delicious, fresh-caught shrimp cooked and served onboard. Nature and ecology will be presented as you cruise the protected waters of the St. Simons Sound. See dolphin and coastal birds along the way. Lovely Christ Church has captivated visitors for years with its distinctive architectural design and majestic live oak surroundings. This modern-day spectacle, like a vintage photograph, offers the Road Scholar viewer a peek into another time period. Ultimately, the widespread appeal of the site today may be linked to the 1880s generosity of Anson Dodge Jr., a man popularized by Eugenia Price in her book, "The Beloved Invader."

Lunch: Lunch will be on your own. There are many restaurants on the island that will allow you to take advantage of the island cuisine. Our motor coach will be happy to drop people off at the village and then you will only have to call the trolley or a taxi to return to the hotel.

Afternoon: Take time on your own to explore the beauty of the island or return to a favorite spot. Our coordinator will be happy to help you with plans for your free afternoon. Transportation can be arranged at your own expense with an island taxi or the trolley, which is $10-$15 round trip. They will take you anywhere on the island and pick you up when you are ready.

Dinner: Dinner at the hotel.

Evening: Sapelo Island history will be presented in preparation for your field trip to the island.

Lodging: Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort

Meals Included: Breakfast, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast at the hotel.

Morning: The ferry leaves for Sapelo Island promptly at 8:30 a.m. from Meridian, eight miles north of Darrien, Ga., about a 30-minute ride on the motor coach. We will leave the hotel by 7 a.m. in order to arrive promptly and have time for the visitor's center to pick up maps, etc. Prepare by taking your bottled water and any snack you may want. We will take care of your lunch. You will begin your day at the mainland visitor center, where you can learn about Sapelo's cultural history, coastal wildlife, and complex beach and dunes systems. After a 30-minute ferry ride,you'll arrive at this 11-mile-long island. Join your expert guide on a field trip on Sapelo Island on a bus or van.

Lunch: Lunch will be on Sapelo Island.

Afternoon: Sapelo field trip continues. Ferry leaves for the mainland at 2:30 p.m.

Dinner: Enjoy a special farewell dinner that includes a Lowcountry boil, a coastal southern tradition.

Lodging: Sea Palms Golf and Tennis Resort

Meals Included: Breakfast, Lunch, Dinner

Breakfast: Breakfast in the conference area.

Morning: Lecture and wrap-up. A morning presentation will begin at 9 a.m. and conclude by 10 a.m. Program departure time is between 10:30-11 a.m. Hotel check-out time is 11 a.m.

Meals Included: Breakfast