The Inaugural Bulls Bay Nature Festival! - Saturday March 23, 2013 7am - 8pm

Saturday March 23rd, 2013 an amalgamation of organizations in the Seewee to Santee Corridor are banding together to celebrate the natural heritage and outdoor recreation opportunities of the Bulls Bay region on the coast of South Carolina. The focal point of the day-long festival will be the Seewee Center at 5821 Hwy 17 North in Awendaw, South Carolina. The Seewee Visitors Center is 22 miles north of downtown Charleston.  Events in varied locations around the Bulls Bay region are scheduled from 7am - 8pm.

Bulls Bay stretches from Awendaw to McClellanville. Most of the land surrounding the bay is within the boundaries of the Francis Marion National Forest while the salt marshes and sea islands are part of the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge.

First Annual Community Nature Festival!

The mission of the Bulls Bay Nature Festival - From the Forest to the Sea is to increase awareness, promote engagement and foster lasting connections with our unique natural places and wildlife in the Bulls Bay community.

Get outside and celebrate nature! Bulls Bay community agencies, organizations, businesses, and churches come together to bring you the Bulls Bay Nature Festival - From the Forest to the Sea.The Festival offers a full day of activities for everyone!

Enjoy salt and fresh water fishing events, barrier island and forest nature walks and auto tours, kayak and canoe tours, raptor and reptile demonstrations, sweetgrass basketry, a family biathlon and, especially for the kids: fishing, archery, paddling, wetland discovery and nature art workshops. Endangered Red wolf programs will be offered throughout the day. The community "hub" for the festival is the Sewee Visitor and Environmental Education Center, 5821 Hwy 17 North, Awendaw, South Carolina.

Awendaw Green, the best music venue in the Lowcountry, brings the musical entertainment to the Seewee Center throughout the afternoon.

Dr. Patrick McMillan, Director of Clemson University Museum of Natural Sciences and host, creator and writer of the award-winning ETV nature program Expeditions with Patrick McMillan, gives the keynote presentation "Nature on the Move" at 6:00 pm at the Sewee Center. Expeditions has received numerous awards including a Silver Telly Award by the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, ACE Bronze award for Nature/Wildlife and, in 2012, the Southeast Emmy award. In addition to Expeditions, Dr. McMillan is featured in numerous publications and is a frequent quest on Your Day and ETV Roadshow.

Student Wildlife Art Contest and Exposition
Community schools join us in our celebration of our beautiful natural places and abundant wildlife. Cape Romain Environmental Education Charter School (CREECS), St. James Santee Elementary and Lincoln Middle-High School students in grades 3 - 8 participate in the festival Wildlife Art Contest. During the month of March, winning artwork is displayed at the Sewee Center and artists recognized at the Festival. The student's artwork will be selected for the 2014 Wildlife calendar that will be sold by community partners, with proceeds supporting school programs.

Also on exhibit will be Lincoln's 2013 Federal Junior Duck Stamp entries, conservation messages, and a collection of research posters created by Lincoln National Art Honors Society and National Junior Art Honors Society members to educate the community about the wildlife depicted in their works of art. The Lincoln wildlife exhibit is a result of a yearlong Environmental Conservation Research & Art Making Project envisioned, directed and taught by Ms. Annie Purvis, the Tri-County 2011-2012 Mary Whyte Art Educator of the Year. Annie's mission is to promote the maintenance of wetlands and forests for our community and demonstrate how artists play a critical part in preserving and promoting the community and it's environment. Don't miss the chance to purchase Award winning works of art! Students will give 10% of their proceeds to support a wildlife cause.

St. James Santee and CREECS students in grades 1 - 2 will create Red wolf masks at their schools. The students will select names for the "Sewee Sisters", the two endangered Red wolves at the Sewee Center currently known as 1703 and 1705. Two names will be randomly selected and announced at the Festival.
 
Bulls Bay Artisans
The Bulls Bay community, an area encompassing the Sewee to Santee corridor, is home to craftspeople, artists and photographers whose exquisite works of art showcase the unique culture and natural beauty of our coastal area. Visit the artisan tent to see a variety of art forms, from silk painting, watercolor, ceramics, wood and stained glass to wildlife and landscape photography. You will have the opportunity to purchase art pieces which creatively record and preserve our coastal heritage.

Festival Events
Events and activities will occur throughout the day at the Sewee Center, on the Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, in the Francis Marion National Forest and at Camp Sewee. Check out the Event Itinerary 

Registration
Be sure to register for programs early as walks, workshops and tours will accommodate a limited number of participants. Download the registration form and email to rustin_gooden@fws.gov or mail to Sewee Center, 5821 Hwy 17 North, Awendaw, SC 29429.

Registration forms can also be picked up at: 

• Sewee Center, 5821 Hwy 17 North, Awendaw, SC
• Sewee Outpost, 4853 Hwy 17 North, Awendaw, SC
• The Center for Birds of Prey, 4872 Seewee Rd, Awendaw, SC
• Awendaw Town Hall, 6971 Seewee Rd, Awendaw, SC
• McClellanville Town Hall, 405 Pinckney St, McClellanville, SC
• Coastal Expeditions, 514-B Mill St, Mount Pleasant, SC
• and at Nature Adventures Outfitters, 483 West Coleman Blvd, Mount Pleasant, SC

Festival Partners
Festival partners include Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge, Francis Marion National Forest, South Carolina Department of Natural Resources, Camp Sewee, The Center for Birds of Prey, Town of Awendaw, Town of McClellanville, Sewee to Santee Community Development Corporation, Awendaw Green, Sewee Outpost, Coastal Expeditions and Nature Adventures Outfitters.

Community churches, the Sewee to Santee Community Development Corporation, and Awendaw Fire Department will prepare a large assortment of food for purchase. Enjoy fish and chips, wings and fries, chicken and red rice dinners, burgers and hot dogs, baked desserts and more!