The Portolá Expedition was led by Gaspar de Portolá from July 14, 1769 to January 24, 1770. It was the first recorded Spanish (and European) land entry and exploration of present day California, United States. In Portolá's era it was known as the first venture by land into the mainland upper area of the Province of Las Californias in New Spain.
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California had been seen from the Pacific Ocean and claimed for the Spanish Empire by Juan Rodríguez Cabrillo in 1542. Sebastián Vizcaíno had sailed to Monterey and the mouth of the Russian River. Both explorers had passed by but not seen the existence of the San Francisco Bay.
In 1769 King Charles III of Spain sent the expedition of Junípero Serra and Gaspar de Portolá to Alta California in Las Californias of New Spain. He wanted to establish a strong Spanish presence in Las Californias to forestall Russian Empire expansion (via the Russian-American Company) from Alaska. It was another step in the Spanish colonization of the Americas
Serra founded the Mission San Diego de Alcalá and Portolá the Royal Presidio of San Diego in 1769 at San Diego.
Portolá founded the Royal Presidio of Saint Charles of Monterey in 1770 at Monterey.
Near the end of 1771 the Portolá Expedition arrived at the San Francisco Bay. The expedition is usually considered as the first European sighting of the San Francisco Bay. Theories of others that may have proceeded them are Zheng He, a Chinese explorer in the 15th century, and Francis Drake in the 16th century.
The expedition is the first foreign group to see the Coast Redwoods (Sequoia sempervirens) on October 14 and recorded October 15, 1769.
The expedition consisted of 64 men in all, and approximately 200 horses and mules. They departed from newly founded San Diego on July 14 and returned there on January 24, 1770. Expedition diaries were kept by Father Juan Crespí and engineer Miguel Costansó.
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