Walking L.A. #3—Southeast Santa Monica: Mixing Business with Pleasure, 2.4 miles 

Barbara and I chuckle at our ability to stretch a 1-mile walk to at least 2 for the exercise. One of the few remaining hikes we haven't tackled in the Walking L.A. book, it encompasses the southeast section of Santa Monica from Olympic to Broadway between 20th and 26th Street—huge office parks and small creative businesses, all closed on Sunday. We began at Bergamot Station on 26th at Olympic, the only extant reminder of the area's past. The buildings in this huge art gallery complex began as an 1875 train stop and car storage area between downtown LA and the beach. From 1953 to the 1980 it was a freight train stop/terminal. Abandoned in '87, the City of Santa Monica bought the land with a future train stop in mind—but what to do with it until then? In '93 SM contacted a developer & gallery owner who created Bergamot Station, an art campus of small studios that collectively became too popular for the city to change back to a rail station! The buildings, complex, and studios remain, but the name left in 2017 with the original developer. "26th Street Art Center" isn't as romantic as a moniker, but it's still filled with clever, creative galleries, and stands literally steps from the Bergamot/26th stop of the spiffy, new Metro Yellow Line. After peeking in as many gallery windows as we could, Barbara and I crossed Olympic and ambled through the grounds of Water Park, a colossal, creative office campus with gardens, fountains, streams, and outdoor fire pits. Up Cloverfield to Broadway to 20th and down to Colorado, the hike was more exercise than educational, and we entertained ourselves by guessing what kind of companies inhabited the creatively-hip buildings we passed. After a nod at the HQ of the Universal Music Group 🎶, we hopped in the car and headed to the Santa Monica Pier (too close not to go!) for a mocha and a stroll along the beach. The ocean cures all.