In the mid-70's we moved to the opposite coast. Two of my most vivid and cherished memories were from things that were absolutely free to observe. In California, we used to go to San Juan Capistrano every year to see the swallows return. I was amazed at the sheer numbers of them. Here we wait for the purple Martins to return but they don't return in a big flock, they are just here all of a sudden one day.
When we lived in NC and later when we lived in Northern Virginia, we used to drive to Washington DC each spring to see the cherry blossoms blooming. Again I was thrilled with the explosion of color that would happen virtually overnight.
Spring is a wonderful thing.
Peace,
Wander