April Fools

That's what we should call ourselves. Wendy and I were on the road by 5:30 a.m., braving wind chill temperatures of 20 degrees (-6 C).  The early pictures were pretty soft because there was so much tree movement in the long exposures due to the strong winds. I think there were fewer photographers this year, probably kept away by the cold and wind. Smart folks!  The blossoms are at peak and are absolutely perfect, but after two hours we couldn't tolerate the cold anymore and bailed out. I don't think the color of the sky for this sunrise was as nice as the last time we did this, about 3 years ago, but today was our only chance. 

This is better viewed in LARGE.

There is one spot along the tidal basin where you can see the U.S. Capitol between the buildings. It is about 1.5 miles from where we were standing.  The trees are a little soft because of the wind but you can get the idea from the extra.  I have also included some blossoms and a shot of the photographers.