Spring green joins nature’s vibrant palette at Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve in Colorado. Late spring is one of the more visually stunning times of the year at the park, when aspen and cottonwoods show bright new leaves, Medano Creek is flowing and the mountains are still snowcapped. The unexpected combination of these diverse elements brings a response of awe, along with a desire to share the experience with others. Photo by Patrick Myers, National Park Service.

Happy first day of Spring! Let’s welcome the season with a blanket of wildflowers at Carrizo Plain National Monument in California. Only a few hours from Los Angeles, Carrizo Plain offers visitors a chance to be alone with nature. Prominent features of the monument include the white alkali flats of Soda Lake, vast open grasslands and a broad plain rimmed by mountains. When conditions are right, numerous wildflowers can carpet the valley floor, creating a beautiful, but temporary landscape of color. Photo by Curtis Kautzer (www.sharetheexperience.org).

Cahaba River National Wildlife Refuge in Alabama supports 64 rare and imperiled plant and animal species – 13 of which are found nowhere else in the world. It’s home to largest known stand of Cahaba lilies, a beautiful plant that begins to bloom around Mother’s Day. It’s always a magnificent display. Photo by Keith Bozeman (www.sharetheexperience.org).

Spring might have started just a month ago, but we’re already dreaming of summer hikes and endless views like this one from Highline Trail at Glacier National Park. If this doesn’t inspire you to plan a trip to this Montana landmark, we don’t know what will. Photo by National Park Service.

Shenandoah National Park in Virginia is home to wildlife like this cute fawn, who wandered away from its mother to munch on spring plants. To share more National Park experiences like this one, join us for a Shenandoah Instameet on Saturday, April 23, as part of our National Park Week celebrations. We’ll meet at the Stonyman Trail parking lot (Mile 41.7 on the Skyline Drive) at 4:30 pm ET and take pictures along the way. Everyone is welcome to join the fun and we hope to see you there – be sure to share your photos with us afterwards using ‪#‎ShenNPS‬ and ‪#‎FindYourPark‬!

It’s the best time of year! The first baby bison of spring was recently spotted at Theodore Roosevelt National Park in North Dakota. Calves are orange-red in color and can walk within 3 hours of birth. Before long, nursery groups of calves will romp around together, but never far from their mothers’ watchful eyes. Video by Deb Lee Carson, National Park Service.

Please take a moment to enjoy this gorgeous spring scene from Point Reyes National Seashore in California. Imagine the smell of the salt air and blooming flowers, the call of the birds and the warmth of the setting sun on your skin. Let everything else melt away. As photographer Nick Steinberg says, “Every time I’m there, I feel like the only one on earth.” Photo courtesy of Nick Steinberg.

Nothing says spring like the colorful wildflowers of Handies Peak Wilderness Study Area in Colorado. More than beautiful springtime displays, this secluded landscape offers alpine lakes, large canyons and 13 peaks over 13,000 feet. Make the most of this season by hiking, backpacking, camping or mountain climbing in this remarkable wilderness. Photo by Bob Wick, @mypubliclands.

You know it’s spring when baby bears 🐻 are out! This cute cub is lounging in a tree at Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee. Mother bears and their cubs usually emerge from their winter dens in late March to early April. Photo by Matt & Delia Hills (www.sharetheexperience.org).

Blooming over the Tidal Basin like a gorgeous cloud, the cherry blossoms welcome over 1.5 million people to the National Mall during the annual National Cherry Blossom Festival. Over 3,800 trees color America’s front yard with shades of white and pink. Walking among the blossoms and touring the memorials in Washington, D.C., is an experience you’ll want to repeat. Photo by Andrew Rhodes (www.sharetheexperience.org).