We will look, drive and walk various forest roads in the Oconee County section of the Andrew Pickens District of the Sumter National Forest for uncommon species like Diana Fritillary, Golden Banded-Skipper and Mottled Duskywing.
Meet at the Mountain Top Trading Post located at the junction of Highway 28 S and Whetstone Road (State Road S-37-193).
We will ride and walk along forest roads and the pace should be easy. There are no restrooms at these locations.
Bring water, binoculars, field guides, sun screen, insect repellent and lunch.
If you plan on staying in the vicinity for the weekend, hotels are available in Anderson, Clemson, Easly, Seneca and Walhalla.
SAVE THE DATE!
Specific information to follow as it becomes available.
Target species will be fall skippers.
REGISTRATION FOR THIS EVENT HAS BEEN CLOSED!
Due to the large response we’ve had to our upcoming walk at Latta Plantation Nature Preserve, we would like to move our meet up location to the gravel parking lot behind the Nature Center and not the Nature Center Parking Lot. After you enter the park drive past the Nature Center parking lot to the next road and follow it to the lot behind the Nature Center. A map is attached for reference.
During these walks we generally see our highest species diversity of the season.
This is a joint trip with SCAN (South Carolina Association of Naturalists). The address is 725 Cannon Bridge Road, Orangeburg, SC 29115. Come in the second entrance after crossing the railroad tracks coming from Hwy. 301. Look to your right and go towards the tree line. We will line our cars up near the tree line. When everyone is there, Arthur Sweatman from the SI Group will lead the caravan of cars to the Hundred Acre Woods. Dave Kastner is our trip organizer. The target species is the Goatweed Leafwing and other fall butterflies. There is a porta potty on site. Restaurants and gas stations are nearby. The walk will be on flat ground but some field areas may be overgrown. Register online or contact Dave if you are able to attend.
We will look for wetland skippers and southern strays mainly at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge on Saturday and the Tillman Sandridge Heritage Preserve and Becks Ferry Landing on Sunday.
SATURDAY WALK CANCELLED – Due to a lack of nectar and butterflies, the Saturday walk has been cancelled!  Saturday, August 24, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM  –  Meet at the Savannah NWR Visitor Center located at 694 Beech Hill Ln, off Highway 17 (Speedway Boulevard) to the South of Hardeeville, South Carolina. GPS coordinates for the visitor center are 32.172766, -81.076097.
Sunday, August 25, 10:00 AM to 3:00 PMÂ Â –Â Â Meet at the Exxon Station just north of the junction of US Highway 321 (Cotton Hill Road) and SC Highway 336 (Tillman Road). GPS coordinates for the Exxon station are 32.463760, -81.107259.
There are restroom at the refuge and the Exxon Station. Walks will be along level sand and paved roads. Bring lunch, field guide, binoculars, water, sun screen, insect repellent, etc. Dennis Forsythe will lead.
We will look, drive and walk various forest roads in the Oconee County section of the Andrew Pickens District of the Sumter National Forest for uncommon species like Diana Fritillary, Golden Banded-Skipper and Mottled Duskywing.
Meet at the junction of Long Creek Highway (Highway 76) and Spy Rock Road (State Road S-37-748). This is about 10 miles northwest of Westminster, South Carolina, just past the Brasstown Baptist Church on the left if heading north on Long Creek Highway.
We will ride and walk along forest roads and the pace should be easy. There are no restrooms at these locations.
Bring water, binoculars, field guides, sun screen, insect repellent and lunch.
If you plan on staying in the vicinity for the weekend, hotels are available in Anderson, Clemson, Easly, Seneca and Walhalla.
Meet at the visitor center which has restroom facilities. We will divide into smaller groups. Some will have longer areas to walk. Some trails will have roots and may be overgrown. There are no restaurants nearby. Contact David Shelley if you are able to help with this important count. You do not have to be an expert to help and may come for a whole or half day.
We will meet at 9:00 AM at the Visitor Center, 4542 Silver Bluff Road, Jackson, South Carolina, and will cover areas not generally open to the public. The Visitor Center is on the dirt road portion of Silver Bluff Road so keep going after the pavement ends. We will butterfly both in the morning and the afternoon. The restrooms at the center will be open at the beginning of the count and at lunch.
Jackson, SC, Aiken County. Please visit their website for directions. This area is only open during designated dates and times. Meet at the gate where you will have to sign in and out. We may carpool on the property leaving the other cars in the parking area. We will drive to various areas to look for butterflies. The main roads are gravel, the smaller roads are grass but unless you get way off the track they are in pretty good shape and are well maintained. There is a port-o-let at the gate. The nearest town is Jackson, a mile or two from the front gate. There is a Subway there and possibly other local restaurants, but you should probably bring lunch because the property is huge and if you get back to the areas where we’re going to be, it can take as long as ½ hour just to get back to the gate. Intricate Satyr, Texan Crescent and Appalachian Brown have been found at this site.
Meet at the visitor center which has restroom facilities. We will divide into smaller groups. Some will have longer areas to walk. Some trails will have roots and may be overgrown. There are no restaurants nearby. Contact David Shelley if you are able to help with this important count. You do not have to be an expert to help and you may come for a whole or half day.
