Hello! This entry is from room 219 in Brunswick! (Mrs. Butler, Alyse Redden, Savannah Sands, Julia Warren and Olivia DiMauro.)
St. Simons Lighthouse
Today, we went to the St. Simons Lighthouse. Here are some interesting facts we learned and some of our thoughts.
Facts:
The original lighthouse was made of tabby, which is oyster shells, sea shells, sand and water. It was set on fire by the Confederate Army so that the Union could not use it during the Civil War. But, later it was rebuilt to help manage the import traffic.
The lighthouse is believed to be haunted by multiple spirits. We got to hear stories of Mary, John, Frederick & the dog! Our tour guide claimed to have seen Mary the Wanderer just two months ago, and that was her first personal experience ever!
There are 129 steps to the top of the lighthouse and we walked them all!
This was the first lighthouse to be built in Georgia.
It is the third most haunted lighthouse in the U.S.
Our Thoughts
“I really liked the lighthouse because of the view.” – Julia Warren
“I admire the designer of the lighthouse because I probably wouldn’t have been able to pursue a project like that.” – Alyse Redden
The Beach and Downtown St. Simons
Thoughts:
“It was really fun to climb on the rocks at the beach and take our shoes off and jump over waves in the ocean.” – Savannah Sands
“I thought it was a really fun environment to be able to take a break, hang out, go shopping. It seems like it would be a really good vacation spot.” –Olivia DiMaura
“Watch out for birds if your friends decide to feed them!” – Julia Warren
Maritime Museum
Facts:
“Ollie” was our tour guide. He was a cartoon representation of a real Coast Gaurdsman.
The Coast Guard station was once closer to the ocean than it is. The ever-changing shape of the island has made this station unusable by the current coast guard. The ocean erodes one side of the island while building up the other.
Coast Guardsmen that were stationed there slept in what is today the museum.
Thoughts:
“Our guide at the Maritime Museum was very nice and had interesting facts about the Coast Guard.” – Savannah Sands & Julia Warren
Georgia Sea Turtle Center
Facts:
Turtles eat plastic bags because they think they are jelly fish. This can seriously hurt the turtles.
Hatchlings have a 1 in 14,000 chance of making it to adulthood. If they make it to adulthood, they can live to be 80-100 years old!
Sea turtles become adults at 35.
We saw injured turtles that had a stroke, been hit by a boat propeller, cold shock (similar to hypothermia) and shark attack. One had lost a limb and half of its face.
Females and males are determined by the temperature of their egg in the nest. Once they reach adulthood, you can tell by the length of their tales.
Females are formed in warm nest areas, while males are formed in cool areas.
Females have short tales, while males have long ones.
Thoughts:
“I loved that place. I thought it was so much fun. It made me more aware of what sea turtles go though.” – Julia Warren.
“We got the chance to learn about how turtles lay eggs, how they grow, what their journey is. I liked how there were real visuals and we could see actual Sea Turtles.” – Savannah Sands
“I liked being able to see what they were doing in the surgery room. It is really cool that they can use honey and honeycombs to heal damaged turtle shells.” – Olivia DiMauro
“This was the most entertaining place we have been to so far. It was most kid-friendly.” – Alyse Redden
“The tour guides were passionate about their job and they made everything interesting.” – Mrs. Butler
Knowing how our actions affect sea turtles will make us think a little more about what I do next time we go to the beach.
Today was very busy and education but we got a good balance of free time also. It was great to be able to rest, socialize, and talk about all the wonderful things we have learned so far.
