Washington welcomes spring with cherry blossoms in full bloom

Each year, crowds flock to the blossoms to admire their pink and white bloom near the Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument and the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial.

The iconic cherry blossoms that circle the Tidal Basin in Washington, D.C., reached peak bloom Monday, according to the National Mall.

Peak bloom occurs when 70% of the Yoshino cherry blossoms are open and typically lasts several days, according to the National Park Service.

The cherry trees "signal Washington's beginning of spring with an explosion of life and color that surrounds the Tidal Basin in a sea of pale pink and white blossoms," the service said on its website.

Each year, crowds flock to the blossoms, which share a landscape with the Thomas Jefferson Memorial, Washington Monument and the Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial.