A naturalist once said that to stand in the midst of migrating hummingbirds sounds like a "fleet of approaching airplanes."
You can see and hear that fleet in action at the Rockport-Fulton, Texas area in mid-September, according to Texas Monthly.
Swarms of 200 or even 300 hummingbirds visit multiple feeders in private homes to refresh and replenish before proceeding on their migration.
And what a migration it is. The colorful ruby-throated hummingbirds, so tiny and fragile, stop in Texas before they start their 20-hour trip across the Gulf of Mexico into Central America.
The charming bay-side communities of Rockport-Fulton literally open their homes to visitors from Sept. 15 to 18. You can go on a walking tour of private homes, step quietly into their backyards and enjoy hundreds of hummingbirds at the feeders. The little guys swarm in together and tend to leave the same way.
The HummerBird Festival also features speakers, tours, and boat trips for birders in the area that is renowned for its variety of migrating birds.
If you are still in the area after the festival, head 30 miles north to Corpus Christi where the largest gathering of hawks in North America occurs.
Beware, mother nature can interfere. In some years, severe weather means fewer birds to watch.
From docks along the coast, birders can see hawks in groups, called kettles, of up to 20,000 at a time in a migration of about 300,000.
The Celebration of Flight festival timed to coincide with peak migration, takes place September 23'25.
