Location and Hotel: The 2005 Ranger Rendezvous will be held at the Francis Marion Hotel (387 King St., Charleston, S.C. 29403) from Sunday, Dec. 4, through Thursday, Dec. 8. The Board of Directors meeting is scheduled for Saturday, Dec. 3.

The conference room rate is $82 plus tax, for single/double occupancy from five days before until five days after the conference closing date. Our room block is being held until Nov. 1, 2005. After that date rooms will be on a space-available basis at the conference rate. If your plans change and you have to cancel your reservation, it can be done 72 hours prior to the first night's occupancy without penalty. Make reservations by calling 1-843-722-0600 or 1-877-756-2121 and give the reservation desk the conference name: ANPR Ranger Rendezvous.

ANPR is inviting all life members to show their continued financial support to our association by registering and attending the Rendezvous, and participating in the onsite fundraising activities such as the raffles and field trips. To all ANPR members, please plan to attend the Rendezvous and show your continued support for ANPR.

Transportation and Travel: Major air carriers (Delta, United, Northwest, US Airways, Continental and Independence Air) service Charleston's regional airport. Parking at the hotel is limited. A parking garage is located next door to the hotel and is operated by the city. Parking is $10 per day payable directly at the garage, or valet parking from the hotel is available for the same price and can be added to your room bill.

In addition, Rendezvous attendees from the East Coast can travel to the Rendezvous via Amtrak's Atlantic Coast service. Amtrak's trains are environmentally friendly, non-smoking and fully accessible to wheelchairs. The Palmetto is a convenient train to Charleston. This is a good day train running from New York City, Philadelphia, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Richmond and other cities to Charleston, terminating in Savannah.

The Palmetto offers reserved coaches, checked baggage (along with carry on), lounge (with sandwiches, snacks and beverages) and business class service. Similar to the airlines, Amtrak's fares vary according to the time of year, day of the week, how far ahead you make your reservation and other factors. Visit Amtrak at www.amtrak.com or calling 1-800-USA-RAIL (1-800-872-7245).

Agenda and Program: Check the detailed agenda section for detailed information on the agenda and program. Changes to the agenda will be made as plans are confirmed, so check back frequently for updates.

Newcomers Welcome: A special continental breakfast with the Board of Directors will be held for "newcomers" - those folks who are attending their first Rendezvous - on Monday morning, Dec. 5.

Raffle Prizes and Auction Items: Put your creative talents to work and make a special item for the Rendezvous raffle or auction. If you see yourself as short on those creative talents, then obtain something to donate. Bring the items with you if you plan to attend, or send it with someone who is coming if you can't be there. Raffle items may be mailed (by U.S. Postal Service ONLY) to Dan and Diane Moses prior to Nov. 26 (contact the Moses at mosesdd@aol.com for a mailing address) or to the hotel address (listed above) by UPS ONLY after Nov. 26.

Exhibits and Receptions: Up to 12 exhibitors are expected to display products, equipment and services of interest to rangers and other park activities. The exhibit hall will open Sunday afternoon, Dec. 4, and close after the morning break Tuesday, Dec. 6. A reception hosted by VF Solutions is planned on Monday evening. If you know of a potential exhibitor, please contact Wendy Lauritzen at ohranger@dobsonteleco.com. Prospective exhibitors can download the information and application here in PDF format.

Attention, Photographers: Display your best park-related photos (those with park employees or scenes) at ANPR's photography contest at the Rendezvous. Entries will be on display and Rendezvous attendees will vote on their favorite shots to determine the winners. Prizes will be awarded to the top three photographers.

To enter, send your prints (no slides) - any size, color or black and white - to Ranger editor Teresa Ford. Also allowed are paper prints of digital images. Selected photos become the property of Ranger magazine and may be used in the publication. You don't need to be present to win. Questions? Contact the editor at fordedit@aol.com for more details.

Hospitality: The hotel will provide an area (open each evening of the Rendezvous) to serve as our hospitality room. Various refreshments and munchies will be provided by ANPR for attendees.

Additional Activities: Group activities are planned for most evening as well as options for the Field Day on Wednesday. There will be an additional cost to cover transportation for these events. Space is limited so sign up early via pre-registration.

• Saturday evening - Join friends and conference attendees for an ice breaker greeting social with refreshments sponsored by the Francis Marion Hotel.

• Sunday evening - Plan to attend the 7th annual ANPR Film Fest presented by Harpers Ferry Center.

• Tuesday evening - Join friends for a dinner cruise and evening program at Fort Sumter. The evening will consist of dinner served on the cruise boat to the fort. The fort's staff will present a program before returning to the mainland via a moonlight cruise. Cost: $20.

• Wednesday Field Stewardship Day - Several options will be provided for tours of local sites.

Option #1 - Historical Tour - Tour of Revolutionary War and Civil War sites including the SS Hundley around the Charleston area. This is a six-hour tour of various Civil War and Revolutionary War sites in the area conducted by our local NPS tour guide. Cost: $14. The trip also will include an opportunity to visit the CSS Hundley ($10 additional cost, pay at location) of Civil War fame that has been recovered from Charleston Harbor.

Option #2 - Cultural Site Tour - Gullah cultural sites near Charleston. For those seeking a shorter field trip this tour is only one-half day. Cost: $14.

• Wednesday evening - Join friends for an evening of fun with music provided by various NPS musical artists. This will be a wonderful evening of entertainment by various artists who will be featured on a CD being produced by ANPR in a coffee house setting.

Miscellaneous: Rendezvous XXVIII T-shirts are being designed. Shirts will cost $12. Please pre-order your shirts by indicating sizes on the pre-registration form. Additional ANPR promotional and sales items will be available at the Rendezvous.

More Hotel Information: The Francis Marion Hotel is in historic downtown Charleston near the waterfront. It was originally built in 1924 and is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It is the tallest building in Charleston at 12 stories, and its 226 guest rooms have views of Charleston and the harbor.

The hotel was reopened last year after a $12 million National Trust restoration grant. It is currently undergoing some major upgrades to its conference facilities that will be completed this June. The hotel lies in the middle of Charleston's Marion Square with magnificent gardens, house museums, antique shops, excellent restaurants and exhibits. The hotel features an exercise room, the award-winning Swamp Fox restaurant, gourmet coffee bar and jazz piano in the lounge.

The complex has 14,000 square feet of meeting space with two ballrooms. The adjacent parking garage is $10 per day and has a covered walkway into the hotel.

Charleston is near NPS sites at Fort Sumter NM (the docking facility for the ferry is only a couple blocks away and next door to the state aquarium). Other NPS sites nearby are Charles Pinckney NHS, Congaree Swamp NM and Fort Pulaski NM.

Charleston is fast becoming one of the premier tour and conference destinations in the Southeast. You can check out hotel information at this website: www.francismarioncharleston.com and Charleston information at www.charlestoncvb.com/.

RENDEZVOUS XXVIII TASK LEADERS

Dan Moses - overall Rendezvous coordinator, mosesdd@aol.com

Erin Broadbent - program chairs, shobuy@aol.com

Dan Greenblatt - Super Raffle, dan_greenblatt@msn.com

Wendy Lauritzen - exhibits, ohranger@dobsonteleco.com

Bill Supernaugh - merchandise sales, bsuper@gwtc.net

Diane and Dan Moses - regular raffle, mosesdd@aol.com

Teresa Ford - photo contest, fordedit@aol.com