Lacy, Spanish ambassador in St. Petersburg, Russia, had passed on information to Bucareli, the viceroy of New Spain, that Russian expeditions of exploration and trade were moving along the coast and might even threaten the Spanish territory of California. This drew attention to the Pacific Northwest, what was long a vast region of little interest to the Spanish. Juan Pérez was sent out from San Blas in search of Russian settlements in 1774. Bodega y Quadra’s expedition in 1775 was a continuation of that mission.
When the Sonora and Santiago reached the coast of what is now Washington State, Hezeta held a conference to discuss their return to San Blas. The Sonora was not sailing well and the entire crew of the Santiago, along with many from the Sonora, were ill. The discussion between the two captains and their lieutenants took place on July 29, and during the night, Bodega y Quadra sailed away. He wrote in his journal: “I judge it to be of great merit that I have not paid anymore attention to such pessimistic predictions than to the inconveniences and labours I have had and await me in such a lengthy voyage.” Hezeta sailed north until August 11, reaching 49' North latitude, then returned to Monterey to wait for the Sonora. Bodega y Quadra, having “escaped” his flagship captain, intended to follow the viceroy’s orders to sail north. He reached what is now Alaska, just short of the 60s latitudes.
On both the 1775 and 1779 expeditions, they made careful notes about the local peoples, their dress, appearance, canoes, and kayaks, as well as the natural resources of copper, fur, and timber. It was hoped that this information would serve trading operations in the future. In 1775, landings were made at only four key points along the coast for formal acts of possession. In contrast, the 1779 expedition went ashore whenever safety permitted to make formal claims to the land, recorded through a list of the names they gave to each landing point. This need to make formal claims was part of the growing competition from other Europeans in the Pacific Northwest, which resulted in ongoing Spanish expeditions, aided by Bodega y Quadra in his post as administrator of San Blas. This competition came to a head with the Nootka Crisis, and Bodega y Quadra was sent on his final voyage north in 1792 to carry out the terms of an agreement between Spain and Britain that would cede the Spanish outpost in Yuquat, Nootka Sound, to the British. Bodega y Quadra refused to give over the whole of Nootka Sound to Captain Vancouver, and Vancouver intended to follow his orders to formally raise the British flag over the entire region, so Bodega y Quadra sailed back on September 21, 1792, leaving the sound in the hands of the Spanish garrison.
