The Reflecting Pool

Bottom Line: A historic landscape architecture feature that enhances the viewing of the National Mall, Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial.
There are two reflecting pools on the National Mall. The Capital Reflecting Pool and the long and skinny reflecting pool between the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. This review and Unilocal page is for the latter.
Frankly, despite walking past the Reflecting Pool many times, I’ve never thought to Unilocal it until now. To me, the Reflecting Pool has always been part of the National Mall but I hadn’t previously given much thought to the value it adds to the federal city and the efforts by NPS to keep it in good shape. The pool is about ¹⁄₃ of a mile long and is 167 feet wide.
The Reflecting Pool most notably reflects the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial. Whether day or night, you can expect crowds to gather at the west end of the pool near the steps to the Lincoln Memorial. Daytime offers a great photo op of the Washington Monument. At night the pool is a deep black and is a lovely juxtaposition to the white, glowing, serene marble memorials.
In a few years the Reflecting Pool will turn 100 years old. It was built in the 1920s after the completion of the Lincoln Memorial and provides a nice transition between the monuments of the 1^st and 16^th presidents. There is also a path along the pool which was put in as part of the total renovation of this pool in 2012.

An iconic must see for the quintessential DC experience. The reflecting pool is an amazing feature on the National Mall. No visit to DC is complete without seeing it both day and night. The white monuments’ nighttime glowing reflection on the water is pure magic and romance during a leisurely evening stroll.

Pretty great day today. Rolling thunder! Will come back next year :). Also saw Donald Trump.

You’ve seen all the beautiful pictures of The Reflecting Pool. Walking beside it and looking at the water? I’m saying it in my best Little Rascal Voice, nasty… The water has a funky, stagnate kinda look. Can you imagine Robin Wright crossing to the other side in Forest Gump? She probably needed a tetanus shot.
Walking halfway and looking at the Washington Monument, seeing the National WWII Memorial up ahead is truly a sight to behold.
If I worked and lived in this area, I’d truly find beauty in these monuments during all four of our American seasons.

Yes, the pool is gorgeous and huge and sometimes does reflect very well. However, if you are coming at night and in the early fall — be warned that you will be attacked by mosquitos/​gnats. They will fly into your face. It will happen.

Ebbing in an enclosed pool of water as you stare down to the Washington Monument at the far end with the Lincoln Memorial behind you; this pool ends at the base of the National WWII Memorial and absolutely beautiful all hours of the day: from sunrise to daytime to nighttime shots. The Washington Monument is so tall that it casts a reflection in its water when the sit hits it in the right spot. Peaceful to look at and definitely relaxing especially when a slight breeze blows by.
Definitely a must visit to capture the beautiful reflection shot of the Washington Monument at any time of the day or night.
Open ²⁴⁄₇.

Warning — they empty all the water out during winter. It was sad that all the water effects are off and drained for winter. The pool is very shallow once drained. Will return when it is warmer and the water has been turned on again.

It’s in line with the view from the lincoln memorial to the world war II memorial & the state capitol. Peaceful when I came. The autumn colours of th3 trees flanking it were amazing!

It is just so beautiful to just sit on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial and just watch the sky reflect off the water. It was a hike from the Monument to Lincoln Memorial, but was worth the experience to just sit and enjoy the sun set.

This was a breathtaking thing to see from every angle. I just wish that it was more taken care of. There is literally poop EVERYWHERE around the pool. The pool is beautiful from afar but up close its filthy. It kind of takes away from the experience. But an amazing destination where so much has taken place.

The design is gorgeous. Incredibly serene. I knew it was long but it was even longer than expected in person. The water seemed pretty murky and dirty. Nevertheless, it’s a great landmark and worth a visit.

A DC icon and so of course a must visit.
Lots of photographic opportunists here but the only problem is that depending on the time of year, the pool can either be clear and offer a good reflection or it can be murky and too dull to reflect anything.

The Lincoln Reflecting Pool is the largest reflecting pool in D.C., holding 6,750,000 US gallons of water. It is definitely a D.C. icon and has an amazing view of the surrounding area.
In 2012, the National Park Rangers (using personal funds and time) lit over 2000 candles on December 31^st around the reflecting pool in commemoration of the 150^th anniversary of the Emancipation Proclamation where the Park Service rang in the New Year with a Night Watch and Freedom Vigil and the singing of «My Country ’tis of Thee».
In 2013, the 50^th anniversary of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom was commemorated by an all-​day event.

the reflecting pool, or pool of reflection, as i like to call it… the backdrop for many movies filmed in washington d.c. i still remember the scene in forrest gump where forrest runs through the pool to meet jenny, his childhood sweetheart.
aside from the movies, i don’t think you can actually run thru the pool, or play or bathe in it, as i’ve never seen anyone actually in it. for me, it’s a good place to sit and meditate and think, or just take in the view of the wwii memorial (to the east) or the lincoln memorial (to the west).
like all of the other museums, monuments, and landmarks in d.c., this pool is open and free to the public. since there is no formal gate or entrance to this landmark, you could come at any hour of the day to enjoy it.
tip: go to the top of the lincoln memorial, where mr. lincoln sits, and look out toward the reflecting pool. you will have a magnificent view of the pool, wwii memorial, and washington monument.

As we wandered DC we wanted to see all the historic and iconic landmarks in the city, so we decided to walk from the Washington Monument to the Lincoln Memorial. As part of our walk we made it a point to pass by the Reflecting Pool.
The pool itself is massive and it is a gorgeous view. It is great so stand at either end and take pictured of both the memorials. The only issue we had with the pool is that when we traveled to DC in October the pool was dirty. It had a strange green color to it, it smelled bad, and the ducks in the pool were obviously making it their own.
Beyond the cleanliness of the pool, it was a great stop on our trip and we were happy that we got to see it in person.

The reflecting pool… i don’t know much but it is suppose to reflect the washington monument… thousands visit it a day…167 ft wide…2029 ft long…18 inches deep on sides…30 inches deep in center…6,750,000 gallons of water… that is actually a lot! people think it’s smaller than it really is…

So I’ll admit, I was really excited to see the reflecting pool… and a bit disappointed at the same time. The surrounding area is beautiful. The trees, the ducks wading and dunking themselves in the water provide short lived entertainment while walking to the Lincoln Memorial. But the water is green and murky and kind of stinky. Yes, yes, I thought of Jenny running to Forrest in that water and was grossed out. But then my husband said they filmed her in another section of water because it was illegal to go into the reflection pool. I don’t know if that’s true but it would make sense. I wouldn’t run in that water either…
On the flip side, unless you’re standing within five feet of the pool, you can’t see how yucky it is. The photo ops are fantastic and just ahead is the Lincoln Memorial which makes for even better photo ops! I wish I could have gone at night. I’ll bet it’s beautiful!

Wenn man das Lincoln Memorial besichtigt, kommt man unweigerlich am großen und beeindruckenden Reflecting Pool vorbei.
So richtig wahrgenommen habe ich dieses Gewässer beim Film Forrest Gump, als Tom Hanks im Kreise einer Hippy-​Gruppe eine Rede gehalten hat und seine Freundin Jenny durch den Reflecting Pool ihm entgegen watet.
Seitdem ist mir auch klar, dass das Wasser nicht so tief sein kann. Er hat nämlich an den Seiten eine Tiefe von etwa 46 cm und in der Mitte 76 cm. An den Seiten verlaufen Wanderwege mit viel Schatten spendenden Bäumen.
Einen schönen Blick hat man vom National War II Memorial aus. Beeindruckend mit dem Lincoln Memorial zusammen. Aber auch vom Lincoln Memorial aus ist der Blick fantastisch, da sich auch im Wasser noch das Washington Monument spiegelt.
Eine weitere schöné Sehenswürdigkeit in der National Mall, die man sich nicht entgehen lassen sollte.

After watching the Forrest Gump scene of Jenny and Forrest reuniting in the middle of Reflecting Pool at an anti-​war rally, the Reflecting Pool was one of my top DC destinations. When I visited there though, I think Jenny and Forrest must really love each other so much to even step into the pool.
It was a rude awakening to walk from the WWII Memorial to the Reflecting Pool. While the Memorial was clean and beautiful, the Reflecting Pool was stinky and smelly. Not only was the water dull-​colored, the side trails were literally covered in goose poop. The poop density was even worse as you walk closer to the Lincoln Memorial. The walk toward the Lincoln Memorial was actually disgusting as I had to take caution to not step on poop and had to endure the smell. Not a great day to wear sandals.
As an American, I am embarrassed at how this national attraction at the nation’s capital was this filthy. The Reflecting Pool was almost like a sketchy neighborhood in between Lincoln Memorial and the WWII Memorial. If you had to walk between the two Memorials, take the tree-​covered side trails instead especially at nighttime if you don’t want to risk stepping in poop.

So apparently the Lincoln Memorial Reflecting Pool is the largest of the many reflecting pools in Washington, D.C.
It’s definitely a nice size and I think best viewed from the center steps, on the tippy top of the Lincoln Memorial itself where you can view this pool in all its glory with the Washington Monument perfectly in the line of vision.
It’s a beautiful place and ties together an amazing collection of memorials that are all within walking proximity. Some local ducks even call this reflecting pool, home.
I was so lucky that on the day I visited it (for my first time, no less!) it was a beautiful day with perfect blue skies, bright sunny sun and fluffy white clouds which reflected beautifully off the water’s surface.
But, the actual water here is pretty filthy (especially in the corners) and definitely needs to be taken care of better. C’mon Murrica’ — respect and take pride in your memorials.

My wife & I did plenty of sightseeing while in Washington D.C. this past weekend.
But to actually stand on the spot where Martin Luther King made his «I have a dream speech“was absolutely one of the highlights of our weekend.
His speech was made on August 28,1963,with an estimated crowd of 250,000 people in attendance. It started the change of the civil rights movement in our great
country as we know it.
With the Lincoln Memorial behind us & Washington Monument ahead, it was an awesome sight. Not to be missed if your in the area.