Nature Events
Festivals, guided walks, and wildlife spectacles tied to the same seasonal rhythms this calendar tracks — across British Columbia, Washington, and Oregon.
Upcoming Events
Pacific Herring Spawn
Millions of herring turn the sea milky turquoise. Eagles mass on the beaches. Sea lions haul out on every rock.
Washington Native Plant Society Spring Hikes
Chapter-organized botanical field walks, native plant sales, and restoration work parties across 12 regions. Spring focus on trillium, toothwort, camas, and serviceberry.
Knox Cellars Mason Bee Classes
Free expert talks on orchard mason bee biology, housing, and seasonal care — held at wild bird stores and garden centers throughout the region.
HerringFest
Interdisciplinary community festival celebrating herring conservation — art show, film, dance, and teachings around one of the Salish Sea's most important spawning events.
Rent Mason Bees at West Seattle Nursery
Washington's only mason bee rental program. Pick up your rented nesting kit, get expert deployment guidance, and return the block in fall for professional winter care.
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival
Three weeks of hanami across 40,000 flowering cherry trees. Parks, picnics, and the Japan Fair at VanDusen.
Brant Wildlife Festival
Arctic-bound Black Brant geese refuel on eelgrass. Guided walks, wildlife carving show, and family programming.
Skagit Valley Tulip Festival
The largest tulip festival in North America. Millions of blooms across four working bulb farms in the Skagit delta — RoozenGaarde, Tulip Town, Garden Rosalyn, and Tulip Valley Farms.
Mt. Baker Spring Events
Golden Egg Hunt, Baker Break spring break week with evening skiing and on-mountain camping, and closing weekend events on North America's snowiest mountain.
Washington Butterfly Association Spring Surveys
Expert-led field trips targeting 149+ butterfly species across Washington. Spring outings focus on early emergers — Mourning Cloaks, Sara Orangetips, Juniper Hairstreaks.
Trillium Festival at Tryon Creek
Portland's beloved trillium celebration in one of the city's only remaining old-growth forest corridors — native plant sale, forest walks, and wildflower viewing.
Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural Festival
51st annual three-day festival of Japanese and Japanese American culture — taiko, martial arts, tea ceremony, food vendors, sake tasting, and ikebana at Seattle Center.
Crystal Mountain Bikini Downhill
Skiers and snowboarders race Quicksilver Run in swimwear. Scored on style, speed, and stein volume. First place in each category wins an IKON season pass.
Olympic BirdFest
Premier Pacific Northwest birding festival on the Olympic Peninsula. Expert field trips, Saturday banquet with keynote speaker, and rare overlap of wintering and migrating species.
Earth Day at Washington Park Arboretum
Earth Week celebration combining Earth Day with the annual Spring Plant Sale — pollinator hotels, Master Gardener demos, live music, and 230 acres of spring bloom.
Camassia Natural Area
One of Oregon's best wildflower viewing sites — a rocky basalt plateau with 300+ plant species including camas lily, blue-eyed Mary, and rosy plectritis.
Camas Festival at Linfield University
An Indigenous-centered celebration of the camas flower in partnership with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde — guided tours, marketplace, art exhibits, and cultural talks.
Salute to the Sockeye
The dominant sockeye run at Adams River — thousands of bright-red fish spawning in one of the world's great wildlife spectacles.
British Columbia
All British Columbia events →Pacific Herring Spawn
Millions of herring turn the sea milky turquoise. Eagles mass on the beaches. Sea lions haul out on every rock.
HerringFest
Interdisciplinary community festival celebrating herring conservation — art show, film, dance, and teachings around one of the Salish Sea's most important spawning events.
Pacific Rim Whale Festival
Celebrating the northward grey whale migration through Clayoquot Sound — science, Indigenous culture, and shore spotting.
Vancouver Cherry Blossom Festival
Three weeks of hanami across 40,000 flowering cherry trees. Parks, picnics, and the Japan Fair at VanDusen.
Brant Wildlife Festival
Arctic-bound Black Brant geese refuel on eelgrass. Guided walks, wildlife carving show, and family programming.
Salute to the Sockeye
The dominant sockeye run at Adams River — thousands of bright-red fish spawning in one of the world's great wildlife spectacles.
Washington
All Washington events →Wings Over Water Northwest Birding Festival
23rd annual festival celebrating migratory birds in an Important Birding Area on the Pacific Flyway. Free expo, expert-led field trips, raptor demos, and a Salish Express open-water cruise.
Washington Native Plant Society Spring Hikes
Chapter-organized botanical field walks, native plant sales, and restoration work parties across 12 regions. Spring focus on trillium, toothwort, camas, and serviceberry.
Knox Cellars Mason Bee Classes
Free expert talks on orchard mason bee biology, housing, and seasonal care — held at wild bird stores and garden centers throughout the region.
Spring Equinox Exploration at Lewis Creek Park
Guided 1-mile naturalist walk through Lewis Creek Park observing the season's turn — birdsong returning, plants emerging, and the light unmistakably longer.
Rent Mason Bees at West Seattle Nursery
Washington's only mason bee rental program. Pick up your rented nesting kit, get expert deployment guidance, and return the block in fall for professional winter care.
Skagit Valley Tulip Festival
The largest tulip festival in North America. Millions of blooms across four working bulb farms in the Skagit delta — RoozenGaarde, Tulip Town, Garden Rosalyn, and Tulip Valley Farms.
Mt. Baker Spring Events
Golden Egg Hunt, Baker Break spring break week with evening skiing and on-mountain camping, and closing weekend events on North America's snowiest mountain.
Seattle Cherry Blossom & Japanese Cultural Festival
51st annual three-day festival of Japanese and Japanese American culture — taiko, martial arts, tea ceremony, food vendors, sake tasting, and ikebana at Seattle Center.
Crystal Mountain Bikini Downhill
Skiers and snowboarders race Quicksilver Run in swimwear. Scored on style, speed, and stein volume. First place in each category wins an IKON season pass.
Olympic BirdFest
Premier Pacific Northwest birding festival on the Olympic Peninsula. Expert field trips, Saturday banquet with keynote speaker, and rare overlap of wintering and migrating species.
Earth Day at Washington Park Arboretum
Earth Week celebration combining Earth Day with the annual Spring Plant Sale — pollinator hotels, Master Gardener demos, live music, and 230 acres of spring bloom.
Washington Butterfly Association Spring Surveys
Expert-led field trips targeting 149+ butterfly species across Washington. Spring outings focus on early emergers — Mourning Cloaks, Sara Orangetips, Juniper Hairstreaks.
Oregon
All Oregon events →Hoyt Arboretum Spring Equinox Walk
Educational guided walk through Portland's 190-acre tree museum at the spring equinox — 12,000 trees beginning their spring flush, ephemerals at the woodland edge.
Trillium Festival at Tryon Creek
Portland's beloved trillium celebration in one of the city's only remaining old-growth forest corridors — native plant sale, forest walks, and wildflower viewing.
Camassia Natural Area
One of Oregon's best wildflower viewing sites — a rocky basalt plateau with 300+ plant species including camas lily, blue-eyed Mary, and rosy plectritis.
Camas Festival at Linfield University
An Indigenous-centered celebration of the camas flower in partnership with the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde — guided tours, marketplace, art exhibits, and cultural talks.