What are the opening hours?

Monday 10am - 2pm Tuesday 10am - 2pm Wednesday 10am - 2pm Thursday 10am - 2pm Friday 10am - 2pm

Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges

Home
United States
Hardeeville, SC
Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges

Call Directions Website

All-volunteer group supporting, advocating & promoting the 7 National Wildlife Refuges near Savannah. Connecting people to wildlife.

Southeast Georgia | Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex

Protecting coastal habitats. Supporting conservation for generations to come. Friends of Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges is a nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting the mission of the Savannah Coastal Refuges Complex, which includes seven national wildlife refuges across coastal Georgia. Through fundraising, education, volunteer engagement, and community partnerships, we help conserve vital habitats for migratory birds, endangered species, and native wildlife—while expanding opportunities for people to experience and connect with these protected lands. Visit our nature store, The Gator Hole, at the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge Visitor's Center! 694 Beech Hill Lane, Hardeeville, SC 29927
Hours: M-F 10am - 2pm

OUR IMPACT
- Support 7 National Wildlife Refuges across coastal Georgia
- Protect critical habitat for migratory birds, shorebirds, and threatened species
- Fund conservation, education, and visitor experience projects
- Engage the community through events, outreach, and volunteer programs

10/16/2026

LUCKNOW TRACT: GOOD NEWS, BUT THE FIGHT IS NOT OVER

For those unfamiliar, the Lucknow Tract is approximately 31 acres near the intersection of Speedway Boulevard and Alligator Alley in Hardeeville, close to the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. A portion of this land is proposed for warehouse development, raising concerns about the loss of mature trees, wildlife habitat, and additional truck traffic.

Thursday night's Hardeeville City Council meeting brought encouraging developments.

Key updates:

Protected Trees: Numerous heritage live oaks and mature hardwoods are located in the proposed warehouse and parking areas. Council strongly opposed their removal and required a detailed tree survey.

Unused Warehouse Space: Hardeeville already has more than 1 million square feet of unused warehouse space, according to council.

Conservation Opportunity: The mayor suggested exploring Jasper County Greenbelt funding to purchase and permanently protect the warehouse portion of the property. The landowner appeared receptive. The application deadline is October 31.

The warehouse proposal remains under consideration. This is progress, not victory.

NEXT CITY COUNCIL MEETING
Thursday, November 19 | 5 PM
Hardeeville City Hall
205 Main Street, Hardeeville, SC

We encourage residents and conservation supporters to attend. Continued public involvement is essential to protecting our region's remaining natural habitats and green spaces.

Learn more about the Jasper County Greenbelt Program:
https://jaspercountysalestaxprogram.com/greenbelt

10/14/2026

**Proposed warehouse development boarding Savannah National Wildlife Refuge
The places we love need us to show up for them.**

The Savannah National Wildlife Refuge is one of our region's most treasured natural places—a refuge for wildlife and a place of peace, beauty, and connection with the natural world.

Right now, a proposed development on the **59-acre Lucknow Tract**, directly bordering the refuge, deserves our attention.

The proposal includes a **385,000-square-foot warehouse**, an RV park, and additional commercial and light-industrial development. It raises important questions about increased truck traffic, industrial lighting and noise, stormwater runoff, wetlands, and potential impacts on wildlife and habitat.

These are questions that deserve careful consideration before decisions are made.

**Two important Hardeeville City Council meetings are approaching:**

**Thursday, October 15 | 5:00 p.m.**
First Reading and Public Hearing

**Thursday, November 5 | 5:00 p.m.**
Second Reading and Anticipated Vote

**Location:** Hardeeville City Hall, 205 Main Street, Hardeeville, SC

You do not have to live in Hardeeville to care about what happens along the boundary of the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge. And you do not have to speak at a meeting to make your presence meaningful.

We encourage everyone who values our coastal wildlife refuges to learn about this proposal, attend a meeting if possible, and ask thoughtful questions about how the refuge and its wildlife will be protected.

**Protecting the places we love begins with paying attention—and showing up when their future is being discussed.**

Please share this information with others who care about the Savannah National Wildlife Refuge.

08/14/2026

DID YOU KNOW that our organization offers a free mobility shuttle every Tuesday on Pinckney Island?

Join our tour, learn about the island and its wildlife from a master naturalist and enjoy the ride into one of the lowcountry's greatest habitats.

All for free!

Sign up on our website as space is limited.
*Tours begin promptly at 9:30am during the summer months and will shift starting in October to 10:30am.

We look forward to hosting you on the refuge!

05/29/2026

YOU ARE INVITED to our Annual Meeting!

Saturday, June 6, 2026
10:00am - noon
Savannah National Wildlife Refuge
Visitor Center
694 Beech Hill Lane, Hardeeville, SC

Free and open to the public. Come out and learn more about Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges, who we are and what we support.

Also, come learn about our amazing guest speakers.
Re:Purpose Savannah, Rollen’s RAW Grains, & Lite Foot Foundation.

Light refreshments will be served, including a special treat, with plenty of time to meet and greet with members of our environmental community. Learn about advocacy, volunteer opportunities and what is happening on our wildlife refuges.

Registration is encouraged so we can prepare with an accurate head count. Visit our website’s event calendar to register.

https://coastalrefuges.org/calendar/ #!event/2026/6/6/2026-annual-meeting

We look forward to seeing you on the refuge!

04/23/2026

Many of our migratory birds are flying into our refuges now. But don’t sleep on our Red-winged Blackbirds!

While they are more common, and year-round residents, they still make great subjects for photos.

📸: Mary Alice Tartler

04/18/2026

It was an amazing event! Over 600 in attendance and you helped Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges raise over $1200 for our Refuge Complex!

A huge thank you to all of the volunteers that made this happen and the Refuge staff for the huge undertaking of planning such a great event!

04/14/2026

It’s National Gardening Day 🌱

Here in the Lowcountry, what we plant matters.

Choosing native plants is one of the simplest and most powerful ways to support the wildlife that call our coastal refuges home. Native species provide the food, shelter, and habitat that birds, pollinators, and other local wildlife depend on to thrive.

Even a small garden, a few containers, or a patch of yard can become part of a larger network of care—helping sustain the delicate balance of our coastal ecosystems.

This National Gardening Day, we invite you to plant with purpose. Support local wildlife. Strengthen our shared landscape.

What native plants are you adding to your garden this season?

04/07/2026

Looking for a fun family friendly event this Saturday? Come out to Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge as we celebrate 50 years of service!

Best of all? It’s FREE!

Gates open at 9:00 for a rare opportunity to drive onto the refuge. There will be activities scattered throughout the day including yoga, birding tours, nature walk, wagon rides, exhibits, live music, food trucks and MORE!

We hope to see you all on the refuge this Saturday!

More information can be found at FWS.gov/refuge/pinckney-island

04/04/2026

Native Plant Spotlight: (Because April is also native Plant Month!) Coral Honeysuckle (Lonicera sempervirens)

Supports: hummingbirds, butterflies, and native bees

Why it matters: This native vine provides nectar along forest edges without crowding out everything else (unlike certain overachievers aka invasive species we won’t name…Lonicera maackii, L. japonica.) 😁

You’ll often see it weaving along sunny trail edges in refuges like Pinckney Island National Wildlife Refuge, offering quick fuel stops for migrating hummingbirds.

Consider adding this to your yard to support local ecosystems—and give hummingbirds something worth arguing about.

Learn more here

04/01/2026

April continues to show off—in the best way. Earth Month and Children & Nature Awareness Month? We love an overachiever.

At Friends of Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges, we’re celebrating the board, refuge staff, and volunteers who turned early life experiences into a lifelong commitment to showing up and caring—for people, wildlife, and wild places.

Next up… Monica, Savannah Wildlife Visitor Services Manager.

Before welcoming visitors to the refuge, Monica was already deep in her service era—starting at age 13 as a hospital volunteer (aka candy striper). By 14, she had already logged so many hours she earned the hat—a big deal and the ultimate badge of honor.

Not only that… she went on to earn more volunteer hours than any youth had ever recorded there at the time.

Overachiever? Absolutely.
Surprising? Not even a little.

Some people collect rocks as kids… Monica collected volunteer hours—and never really stopped 🙂

Address

694 Beech Hill Ln
Hardeeville, SC
29927

Opening Hours

Monday	10am - 2pm
Tuesday	10am - 2pm
Wednesday	10am - 2pm
Thursday	10am - 2pm
Friday	10am - 2pm

Telephone

+19126041872

Website

http://coastalrefuges.org/

Alerts

Be the first to know and let us send you an email when Friends of the Savannah Coastal Wildlife Refuges posts news and promotions. Your email address will not be used for any other purpose, and you can unsubscribe at any time.