What a grand finale for an awesome week! The morning began with some of us presenting a puppet show for a group of small children. They were so receptive and fun and it was really nice to see how the information about sea turtles could be adapted to their level and attention span. After a quick lunch we left for the beach because Dr. Schriver wanted to show us a “Crazy Crawl” from the night before. Well, when we arrived at the beach, we did not see a crawl, but a “Sea of Teal” crossing the dunes with one of our favorite sea turtles, Camden! The entire week we asked if there would be a release and everyone said that there probably would not, none of the turtles were ready, but the Turtle Crew surprised us and released Camden, a green sea turtle, back into the ocean. 
That seemed like enough fun for one day, but there was much more in store for us. Next on the agenda was an Eco/Dolphin Tour. While on the tour, we got to observe about 20 dolphins feeding along the south end of the island. During the boat trip, the captain pointed out a beach that contained fossilized sharks teeth. This led us to our next adventure, “Shark Tooth Beach”. After a nice hike through the woods and marsh we finally made it to the beach and began our hunt. Searching for the fossilized teeth could be compared to an oversized Easter egg hunt and in the end we were able to find a few teeth along with the shoes we had lost in the sinking mud.
After cleaning off the marsh mud, it was time for our final dinner. Alicia and Sarah joined us and we were presented with a teal turtle pin and certificates of gratitude for our work at the GSTC. I personally thought we should have been presenting them with certificates of gratitude for all of their hard work and help to make this amazing experience possible. While at dinner, Alicia mentioned that we should stop by the GSTC because they were receiving a new arrival from Florida. A female loggerhead weighing over 200 pounds made the long journey from Cedar Key when she was spotted floating in the ocean by a teacher! Being able to observe Dr. Norton and his staff work so hard and meticulously on the turtle was truly an incredible experience and the perfect ending for our wonderful week here on Jekyll Island!
~ Ella McAfee
