I walked through this again............at night...........several nights ago...........and again........the water is going into the Tidal basin from the 14th st...........side........not the Potomac river...............it is not b/c of high tide of the river.................but rather the water is being pumped..........u can even hear it and see it..........even with my poor eye sight i can see it.............it is being pumped into the tidal basin from the bridge between the 14th st bridge and the one really close to the Jeff memorial...........which connects East Potomac park.........to a part of DC really close to the Holocaust museum............and the wash monument.....

Tidal Basin

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The Tidal Basin is a man-made inlet in Washington D.C., that is the setting of some of the most impressive memorials in the nation's capital. The basin is particularly popular in early April, when the cherry trees along the banks of the basin are in full bloom.

The basin was created in 1882-1897 to control the water levels of the Potomac and thus prevent the river from flooding. The Tidal Basin is part of Washington D.C.'s West Potomac Park and is a favorite area for tourists who enjoy a stroll around this attractive inlet.

Cherry Trees

Tidal Basin

View towards Jefferson Memorial

One of the most magnificent sights of the Tidal Basin area occurs during the early weeks of April, when spring hits the eastern coast of the United States. That's when D.C.'s famous cherry trees - which line the Tidal Basin - are in bloom. This awesome sight, which prompts a huge festival each year, is the result of some three thousand cherry trees that were a gift to the U.S. from Tokyo Mayor Yukio Ozaki in 1912. About one hundred of these original trees still stand.

During the National Cherry Blossom Festival, visitors can enjoy wonderful concerts and other cultural performances, hear lectures about the trees, enjoy art exhibitions, take a bike tour of the Tidal Basin area, and much more... all with a bit of a Japanese twist.

Memorials

But a walk around the Tidal Basin is a must even outside the cherry trees' bloom season: there are no less than five memorials sitting on the banks of the inlet, including some of the city's most famous.

Thomas Jefferson Memorial

Jefferson Memorial

The most impressive of these memorials is undoubtedly thePantheonesque Jefferson Memorial. Located on the south bank of the Tidal Basin, this memorial is dedicated to America's 3rd president and author of the Declaration of Independence.

This gleaming white, circular-shaped, domed memorial pays homage to the principals of liberty and freedom in which Jefferson so fervently believed. Hence the classical architecture, a reference to ancient Greece, the birthplace of democracy.