Cherry blossoms peak

If you're planning to head down to the Tidal Basin to check out Washington's heralded cherry blossom trees, better make Wednesday the day to do so.

The National Park Service has moved up the peak bloom date -- and it's today.

This is the third time in as many weeks that the peak bloom date has been moved up. A spurt of warm weather the weekend of March 20 and 21 led to first change in the date. On Monday the date was moved up again.

The National Cherry Blossom Festival runs from March 27 through April 11. But the bloom is moving very rapidly and probably won't last the length of the festival, National Park Service blossom expert Rob DeFeo said earlier this week.

"This will not be a 14-day bloom," DeFeo said.

To see full coverage of the cherry blossom festival, visit the Going Out Guide.