Background:
The Monterey Bay Aquarium is a world famous destination located on historic Cannery Row in Monterey, California. With about 2 million visitors annually, it is the top attraction in the area and was voted one of the 'Seven Wonders of Monterey County' by readers of the Monterey County Herald (the local newspaper).
The aquarium is actually built on the remains of the Hovden Cannery - once the largest fish packing plant on Cannery Row - which opened on July 7, 1916 and closed in 1973 after the sardine industry collapsed. Several elements of the cannery were incorporated into the aquarium structure and the boilers once used for canning sardines have been preserved in an indoor courtyard as a public exhibit.
When the aquarium opened on October 20, 1984 it covered 177,000 square feet, making it the largest in the United States, and attendance during the first year, numbering more than 2 million, exceeded expectations. The aquarium has continued to grow in the years since and now covers 322,000 square feet.
The Monterey Bay Aquarium was the first public aquarium to have its interior mapped on Google Street View so you can now explore the aquarium from home, though doing so does not qualify you for this virtual cache!
The aquarium has played a part in several movies, serving as the fictitious 'Cetacean Institute' (home of the humpback whales that the crew of the Starship Enterprise attempt to take into the future) in the 1986 film Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home and also serving as the inspiration for the 'Marine Life Institute' in Pixar's 2016 animated film Finding Dory. In the final version of that film, Dory's home was said to be 'The Jewel of Morro Bay, California', Morro Bay being a much smaller coastal California town (and bay) roughly 100 miles south of Monterey. While the fictional Marine Life Institute may well be the jewel of Morro Bay, the real-life Monterey Bay Aquarium is certainly the jewel of Monterey Bay, California!
Requirements to claim a find:
The posted coordinates mark the front entrance to the world famous Monterey Bay Aquarium. You do not need to enter the aquarium to claim this virtual cache (though if you have never been there, it is certainly recommended!) Instead, look below your feet for a large stone mosaic of the Monterey Bay Aquarium logo and two colorful plaques built into the sidewalk next to the aquarium walls (each about 10-15 feet from the mosaic, but on opposite sides of it) representing labels of products canned at the Hovden Cannery. You will also need to find a nearby sign giving current admission prices to answer all of the following questions.
1) If you look closely at the mosaic, you will see that it is actually formed from a number of smaller mosaics (each bounded by a thin strip of gold colored metal). How many separate mosaics are used to form the Monterey Bay Aquarium logo?
2) What ingredient(s) were the 'pilchards' (sardines) packed in?
3) What ingredient(s) were the California extra fancy tuna packed in?
4) What is the current price of (Adult) admission to the aquarium?
5) (Optional) Post a photo of you and your GPSr at (or inside) the aquarium - obviously the mosaic and plaques used to answer questions 1-3 above should not be visible in your photo.
Do not post the answers to questions 1-4 in your log, but message or e-mail them to the CO (along with a list of everyone in your group who is logging the cache).
You may log your find as soon as you submit the answers. I will contact you if there is any question about the correctness of your answers and reserve the right to delete any logs which do not appear to be made by someone physically present at ground zero (a photo with GPSr, of course, is typically sufficient to prove a visit).
An optional scenic viewpoint (N 36° 37.086 W 121° 54.061):
If you would like to get a good view of the Monterey Bay (and are at GZ during daylight hours), there is a nearby walkway that passes underneath the second floor of the aquarium, past the member's entrance, to a scenic lookout point with several rows of viewing benches that can be visited free of charge. The gate on 'Hovden Way' (a pedestrian-only 'road' leading to the scenic point) is usually open somewhat longer than the aquarium, though not necessarily until dusk. It's a great place to visit if you aren't entering the aquarium itself!
Virtual Reward - 2017/2018
This Virtual Cache is part of a limited release of Virtuals created between August 24, 2017 and August 24, 2018. Only 4,000 cache owners were given the opportunity to hide a Virtual Cache. Learn more about Virtual Rewards on the Geocaching Blog.