Whales out front right now ...

Our building is the most intact Cannery Row structure open to the public. We are a free living museum of sorts. When you walk in you will see this:

This is our fish ladder commonly used in the canneries as the stairways were on the outside of the building. It still works! The early 1900's flywheel machinery is still upstairs. We don't dare turn it on- it runs on diesel.

 We are the only zoned antique retail/ antique office space business in the world. Well...that we know of.



We are next to the bike trail near the bust of Doc Ricketts, which is also the spot where he died. He was hit by a train in his car. Doc was the marine biologist who predicted the over fishing and collapse of Cannery Row's sardine industry. We locals all agree that the lesson learned by over fishing and polluting the water by bad canning practices is a page in our history best left to the past. "Monterey by the stink" and all that. The sardines are actually back and also anchovies. Some Humpback whales have been hanging out in the bay all summer. They are following the anchovies. They must be on a protein rush because they are leaping, cavorting and splashing near the shore. We have all been completely entertained by the whales. The ocean is super warm so the anchovies have been sticking around. We are having a 'first nation' fall so they will probably be here for a few more weeks and start to move towards Big Sur. It takes a little anchovy a long time to swim around the bay!

The whales hugged the shore from the north following the anchovies and they must have trapped them in because the coves of Santa Cruz were inundated by the oily,cloying sent of dead anchovies everywhere. The whales stayed the early part of the summer between Brighton Beach and the open ocean of Westside Santa Cruz. The anchovies and their new friends made it to Moss Landing by midsummer and dazzled everyone there for a good two months and are currently hanging out near us. Sometimes from our second floor you can see them. We are 2 blocks up from the ocean. It is a nice place to work.

1. View from the mall