Part of my great and diverse job here at the office is to organize the details of our travel adventures.  Lately, I’ve been working on one of our Overnight Summer Camps.  Michelle J., who has been directing Surf Camp programs since 2005, will be our Bahamas Surf Camp Director this year.  She has now worked several teen camps including our Wrightsville Beach, Cape Hatteras, Oahu Hawaii, and Australia Surf Camps. Michelle completed a Master of Science degree in Environmental Health Sciences Department within the University of South Carolina’s Arnold School of Public Health in 2007. She was also awarded the Arnold School of Public Health’s Outstanding Student of the Year Award in 2007.  She was a crew leader at the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Hospital, and her extremely positive attitude and hard work ethic will ensure this “turtle girl” a lifelong career in the marine sciences.

Surf Campers will be staying on the 110-mile-long, one-mile-wide island of Eleuthera. We’ll spend our days surfing the crystal clear, turquoise waters, snorkeling Current Cut, cliff jumping, and kayaking inlands lakes and lagoons.  It will be some of the best snorkeling you will ever experience.

Did I mention yoga with a certified instructor every morning and bonfires on a private pristine beach every night???  Sign me up!!

This 10 day adventure is sure to be an unforgettable, life-changing experience!  For more information click here: Bahama Surf Camps.  Sign up soon because spots are filling fast! 

-Chelsea

As the water temps heat up, so does our Carolina Surf School.  Over the past month Doug, Jimmy, Matt, and I have been teaching quite a few lessons.  As I write this post, my hair is still wet from a group lesson I taught this morning at Wrightsville Beach. 

Our Carolina Surf School offers private surf lesssons (1:1), semi-private (2:1) and group surfing lessons (3:1).  Our instructors are available to meet clients at Wrightsville Beach, Carolina, Kure, Fort Fisher, Topsail, Surf City, Masonboro, and Figure Eight Island.   Doug is heading to Masonboro this weekend with some clients to surf this magical island.  Masonboro is a barrier island free from development with 4300 of its 5000 acres made up of tidal salt marshes and mud flats.  Talk about getting a private surfing lesson…….it doesn’t get much more private!  Our founder, Rick Civelli worked hard while sitting on the board of directors for it’s Society and helped acquire the many parcels that were in private ownership and are now deeded to the state for public use. 

Our surfing lessons cater to the absolute beginner, or for those looking to learn more and improve their skills.  There is just so much to learn about the ocean and progressing your comfort level on a surf board in the various conditions that can exist. 

One aspect of surfing that is super important is surfing etiquette.  We educate all of our clients on this topic to help ensure that their surfing experience is as safe and enjoyable as possible.  Respecting fellow surfers, the environment, and yourself will help you to make the most out of this newfound sport that will change your life forever!

Our clients have all left their lessons stoked on surfing and more knowledgeable about our coastal environment…….mission accomplished!  If you would like to register for lessons, click here, or call our office toll free at 866.844.7873 and speak with one of our Reservation Specialists.  We offer lessons seven days a week, so come on down to beautiful Southeastern North Carolina for an experience you will never forget!

 -Jenn R.

A week of Wrightsville Beach Teen Overnight Camp is a combination of all of my favorite things to do in Wilmington and the surrounding beaches.  We surf and spend tons of time at the beach, we visit the Sea Turtle Hospital, the NC Aquarium at Fort Fisher, we cookout, go to a movie, bowl, play volleyball and soccer, eat at great restaurants…we have an absolute blast!

Our visit to the Karen Beasley Sea Turtle Rescue and Rehabilitation Center is one of my most absolute favorite activities.  The Turtle Hospital has always been close to my heart and I actually volunteered there during my freshman year at UNCW.  The center was opened in 1997 by Jean Beasley in memory of her daughter Karen’s efforts to assure the survival of sea turtles.  Jean and the staff of volunteers work countless hours to rescue and care for injured sea turtles.  Animal Planet awarded Jean the 2007 “Hero of the Year” award for her dedication to saving the sea turtles. 

Each turtle is visiting for a different reason.  Many are there because they have been struck by a boat or entangled in fishing gear or litter…all problems caused by man that we can help prevent.  Others are there for more natural reasons such being cold stun (kind of like frost bite) or diseases.  All turtles are given their own pool upon arrival and the veterinarian checks them out and creates a rehabilitation plan.  After what is usually a long stay at the sea turtle hospital, they are released back into the ocean.  Twelve to twenty sea turtles are released each year. 

You may be wondering by now what you can do to help.  The hospital is a nonprofit organization and receives no state or federal funding.  Surf Camp donates a portion of each camper’s tuition to the hospital.  All donations go directly to food, medical supplies, and operating costs of the hospital.  To make a donation, simply visit the website.  If you live in NC, you can get a sea turtle license plate for your car.  Or if you shop at Food Lion grocery stores, you can ask them to link your “MVP card” to the Turtle Hospital and donations will be made that way.  Remember, every little bit helps and there is no better cause than helping to preserve this amazing marine creature! I am counting down the days (56 to be exact) until the first week of summer camp and our visit to the Turtle Hospital.  It will be great to hear the new turtles’ stories and hear which turtles have been released back into the ocean.

-Jenn R