Bottled Water will be provided on board for all guests
Join an expert biologist for a daily at sea exploring Gray's Reef National Marine Sanctuary aboard a NOAA Vessel. Delegates will get a rare up close look at one of the US's underwater treasures thorough the use of a ROV (Remote Observational Vehicle) without ever getting wet. This is an excellent opportunity for non-divers to get an intimate view of the unique magnificence of the underwater world of Gray's Reef.
The 17.5 square nautical miles (about 11,000 acres) of Marine Protected Area is one of the largest near shore live-bottom reefs of the southeastern United States and is the only natural area protected along the Georgia coast. Gray's Reef is recognized both nationally and internationally for its value as an important natural marine habitat.
Within the sanctuary there are rocky ledges and flat and rippled sand plains. Gray's Reef is not a coral reef such as those found in the tropics. It is not built by living hard corals. Instead, it is a rock outcropping which stands above the shifting sands of the continental shelf. It supports a wide variety of invertebrates, soft corals and sponges. Those in turn support a wide variety of reef and pelagic fishes.
Both bottle-nose and spotted dolphin are seen in the Sanctuary and it is possible that you could encounter a highly endangered North Atlantic Right Whale when visiting Gray's Reef. The Sanctuary is near the only known calving ground for the whales and near an area designated as critical habitat. Also Loggerhead sea turtles are frequently seen resting and foraging at Gray's Reef; other sea turtle species sometimes pass through the sanctuary.
Pelagic bird watching at Gray's Reef is a popular activity. Some of the species seen in the Sanctuary include true pelagic birds - birds like shearwaters, petrels and bridled terns that spend their entire lives at sea except when they nest or are blown inshore during heavy storms - as well as seabirds like gulls and royal terns that forage at sea but return regularly to land.
The sanctuary is located 32 kilometers (17.5 nautical miles) off Sapelo Island, Georgia, between Savannah and Brunswick GA and 60 - 70 feet below the ocean surface.
