Based on the preliminary interest expressed, we plan to organize both a Smoky Mountains excursion and an Outer Banks Seashore excursion. For flexibility in serving participants' differing interests, air-conditioned vans will be used rather than large motor coaches. Since July is the height of the vacation season in both locations, the conference has already reserved a certain number of places in the activities and overnight lodging. Your trip reservations will be taken in the order received (with deposit) until the places are filled. Excursion guests pay to the conference only the cost for van transportation, figured at $18 per day per person, with reduced rates for small children. Other charges not covered by the trip deposit are paid by the guests directly to the hotel and activity operators. The excursion descriptions together with estimated cost information and the required fee to be sent with reservations are given below. Actual costs will depend on how guests may share hotel rooms and what activities are chosen. Both trips depart from the Wake Forest campus on Friday evening after dinner. The mountain trip returns Monday, July 22 in time for afternoon flights. The beach trip returns Tuesday, July 23 in time for afternoon flights. Please tell us your flight schedule as soon as you know it.
First night at the edge of the Pisgah National Forest. Saturday morning, travel the Blue Ridge Parkway through Pisgah to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and the Cherokee Reservation. Within reason, the group may set its own agenda(s) of hiking and sightseeing, but the organizers have a schedule to suggest consistent with advance reservations that have been made. Oconaluftee Indian village and an outdoor drama portraying parts of the Cherokee history are scheduled for the evening. Sunday, the group will split between those choosing white-water rafting (about 6 hours) and those touring the Biltmore estate (250-room mansion, gardens, and vineyard of George W. Vanderbilt) and hiking. Return via the central Blue Ridge mountains to Winston-Salem for Monday afternoon flights.
Your reservation for the excursion should be made as soon as possible to assure a place, before April 12. The fee (per person) required with your reservation is $110, i.e. $54 for transportation and $56 to be applied to advance activity and lodging reservations. Specify your choice of rafting or the Biltmore estate. Your fee will be returned if the trip is full. Lodging will average approximately $70 per night per room. Depending on the final group-size discounts, rafting (with guide and lunch on the river) is about $45, Biltmore estate about $25, and the Cherokee drama about $11. Meals are on the order of $20 per day and up depending on your tastes.
The outer banks of North Carolina comprise a 180-mile line of narrow dune-covered barrier islands standing as much as 40 miles off the mainland coastline. Protected by their isolation and status as a national park, the outer banks stand in naturalistic contrast with the highly developed beaches to the south and north. Roanoke island is the site of Sir Walter Raleigh's ill-fated attempt to establish a colony in 1585. The Wright brothers' first flight was on the dunes of Kitty Hawk, and for related reasons it is now a popular center for hang-gliding instruction. Leaving the Wake Forest campus Friday evening, the excursion group will stop overnight east of Raleigh and arrive about noon on Saturday at Roanoke Island and Nag's Head for swimming, sightseeing, and the outdoor drama Lost Colony that evening. Sunday will offer options for charter boat fishing, touring Kitty Hawk and/or hang gliding, kayak ecotours, more swimming, or beach walking. The standard boat fishing option is a 5-hour trip, but very serious fishermen can inquire (well in advance) about an all-day charter to the Gulf Stream for big game fishing at extra expense. Travel down the 100-mile length of the Hatteras National Seashore, taking a ferry back to the mainland on Monday afternoon. Returning to Raleigh for overnight, a visit to the Research Triangle will be offered Tuesday morning before returning to the Greensboro / Winston-Salem airport Tuesday afternoon.
The reservation fee for this trip is $140 per person, comprised of $72 for transportation and $68 for advance reservations. Your reservation with fee should be received as soon as possible, before April 12. Lodging will average about $90 per night per room. Deep-sea fishing (5 hours) is about $25 per person, a 3-hour hang gliding course is $69, and a kayaking tour is $35. Please specify your choice(s). [an error occurred while processing this directive]