Bulls Bay Nature Festival

Bulls Bay Community brings the 9th annual Bulls Bay Nature Festival to the Lowcountry May 18, 2024. Federal, state and county natural resource agencies, local schools and conservation organizations come together for a one-day celebration of nature, culture and community.

Engaging outdoor activities and programs highlighting the unique natural areas of Bulls Bay and its cultural history take place in the Francis Marion National Forest and Cape Romain National Wildlife Refuge; at Hampton Plantation State Historic Site; and at the Sewee Visitor and Environmental Education Center, the central location for the Festival in Awendaw.

The Bulls Bay Festival offers activities and tours for all ages. It’s a day filled with storytelling, photography and sweetgrass basket workshops, fly fishing and bird banding, bird and butterfly walks, edible plant and wildflower walks, historic tours, tar kiln and indigo dyeing demonstrations, kayaking, and freshwater pond fishing. Enjoy live birds of prey, native reptiles and red wolf programs. Especially for the kids are archery, insect and pond explorations, nature crafts and face painting.

The Wildlife Art Exposition, showcasing artwork created by local students, will be on display at the Sewee Center and, local art, crafts and native plants will be available for purchase. The day is filled with musical entertainment and includes Lowcountry Hall of Fame Musicians Danielle Howle and Greg Smith, the Black River Band, Awendaw Community Singers and Hank and Friends.

Sally Murphy, acclaimed sea turtle authority, gives the keynote “Sea Turtles and Salt Marshes” at 4 p.m. at the Sewee Center. Murphy’s passion for the natural world, intertwined with a fierce dedication to her life’s work, led to groundbreaking preservation and protections for the Loggerhead and other sea turtles in the state, nationally, and globally.

Murphy’s biological work with the SC Department of Natural Resources spanned over 30 years during which she created a comprehensive statewide sea turtle program and, coordinated both the sea turtle (1980-2006) and marine mammal (1991-2003) stranding networks in the state. Murphy authored Turning The Tide, a memoir filled with stories of her personal and professional triumphs against tough odds. There will be a book signing following her presentation.

The Bulls Bay Nature Festival is a free event, made possible by the generous support of sponsors and volunteers.