Blanco is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California. It is located on the Salinas River, around the Blanco Road crossing, 4.5 miles west of Salinas, at an elevation of 23 feet. A crucial decision faced the leaders of the first European land exploration of Alta California, the Spanish Portolá expedition, which camped on the Salinas River in thi…Blanco is an unincorporated community in Monterey County, California. It is located on the Salinas River, around the Blanco Road crossing, 4.5 miles west of Salinas, at an elevation of 23 feet. A crucial decision faced the leaders of the first European land exploration of Alta California, the Spanish Portolá expedition, which camped on the Salinas River in this vicinity for several days, October 1–6, 1769. From this camp, the expedition leaders ascended the hills to the west (inside today's Fort Ord, from which vantage they saw Monterey Bay for the first time. Portolá himself, with 8 soldiers, went out to Monterey to verify the scouts' report that they had not seen the great port described by Sebastian Vizcaino - the ultimate goal of the expedition. Monterey harbor didn't meet their expectations, even though they recognized Vizcaino's "Point of Pines" and "Rio de Carmelo" beyond. Supplies were running low, and a meeting of the party leadership was held on October 4 to decide whether to turn around and return to San Diego. The decision to continue searching to the north was unanimous, with all voters recording written statements...
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