The Elkhorn Slough National Estuarine Research Reserve is a nature reserve that is located at 1700 Elkhorn Road in Watsonville, California.  The reserve encompasses the central shore of Monterey Bay and is approximately 100 miles south of San Francisco, California. The Elkhorn Slough is established as a part of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and is being managed as the Elkhorn Slough Ecological Reserve through the California Department of Fish and Game.