A Scavenger Hunt is a Clever Way to Search for the First Signs of Spring

Elizabeth Street

Spring is definitely my favorite time of year in New York City. Since this winter was particularly brutal, I am more excited than ever to seek out early signs of new life popping up all around each day. They hide in tree tops, behind bushes, along park walls and even in sidewalk cracks.

Take some time each day to soak in the amazing resurgence of spring around you, a transformation so colorful and dramatic, it can be visually observed from as far as outer space! A scavenger hunt is the perfect way to discover and celebrate these changes with your kids, too. Check out our eight tips below to get started.

1. Find three birds' nests. Hint: Once all the leaves are out, this gets harder, so look UP now and know where the bay birds will be nesting this spring.

2. Find purple and white crocus. Hint: Look down, near wooded areas and on hillsides un-trampled by pedestrians, as these are delicate.

3. Find the large, fuzzy buds of a magnolia tree. Hint: These will be some of the first trees to bloom and the buds are large and visible all winter long. Find them at the entrance of city parks and along walkways, as they are crowd favorites.

4. Find a twig shaped like a Y.

5. Find something bright yellow. Hint: Look for the long branches of Forsythia or Witch Hazel, or the bright fields of daffodils soon visible along roads, in parks and most notably in the world-class Botanical Gardens housed in three of New York's boroughs.

6. Find something pink. Major hint: Check the cherry tree tracker here.

7. Find something that creeps.

8. Find something that sings.

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