The Russian presence in the Pacific Northwest began with Vitus Bering's 1741 expedition, which revealed Alaska's staggering abundance of fur-bearing marine mammals. The sea otter, whose pelt was worth a fortune in China, drew Russian traders steadily eastward and southward along the coast. By 1799, the Russian-American Company had consolidated control over Russian Alaska and sought expansion. California offered both sea otters - then abundant along the coast - and the agricultural potential Alaska lacked. In 1812, Company managers chose this coastal bluff north of Bodega Bay for their settlement, naming it 'Rossiya' - Ross in English. It became the southernmost point of Russian expansion in North America, a toe-hold on a coast that Spain claimed but couldn't effectively control. The Russians built a stockade, barracks, a commandant's house, and a chapel - the first Russian Orthodox church in North America outside Alaska.

The community at Fort Ross was remarkably multicultural for its era. Russian managers directed operations, but the actual hunting was done by Aleut workers brought from Alaska - skilled kayakers who pursued sea otters in their traditional baidarkas, often hunting far offshore or down the coast. Local Kashaya Pomo people interacted with the settlement through trade and labor; some Kashaya women married Russian men, creating families that bridged cultures. Unlike the mission system to the south, the Russians didn't attempt to convert or concentrate Native people, making their presence relatively less destructive - though the seal and sea otter populations they exploited collapsed under hunting pressure. Agriculture never succeeded as hoped; the foggy coast proved less suited to wheat than the Alaskan managers had imagined. The colony survived on sea mammal pelts until those ran out.

By the 1830s, Fort Ross had become a liability. The sea otter population, once numbering in the hundreds of thousands along the Pacific coast, had been hunted to commercial extinction. Agricultural yields remained disappointing. An 1825 treaty with Britain had established the southern boundary of Russian Alaska, reducing the strategic importance of the California outpost. The Russians offered to sell the settlement to the Mexican government, which declined; they then approached various American entrepreneurs. In 1841, John Sutter - a Swiss immigrant who had established a farming empire in California's Central Valley - purchased the entire establishment: buildings, livestock, agricultural equipment, and a small cannon. The Russians departed, and Sutter dismantled much of the fort for use at his own settlement. Seven years later, gold would be discovered on Sutter's land, launching the rush that made Fort Ross's brief commercial importance a footnote.

The fort has been reconstructed multiple times following earthquakes and fires. The current buildings are reconstructions based on archaeological evidence and historical documentation, but they accurately represent the original settlement's layout. The stockade walls enclose the commandant's house, barracks, and the distinctive Russian Orthodox chapel with its onion dome - rebuilt after the original burned in 1970. Outside the walls, the Rotchev House is the only original building remaining, a rare surviving example of Russian colonial architecture in North America. The visitor center provides context on Russian America, the fur trade, and the Kashaya Pomo people who witnessed these events on their ancestral land. Trails lead to the Russian cemetery, the historical orchard, and coastal overlooks where sea otters - now protected and recovering - can sometimes be spotted in the kelp beds their ancestors nearly vanished from.

Fort Ross State Historic Park lies on the Sonoma coast, accessible via Highway 1 - one of California's most scenic drives. From San Francisco, the journey takes roughly two hours through redwoods, vineyards, and coastal headlands. The park entrance fee is modest; the experience is priceless. Plan for fog, especially mornings; the coast often clears by afternoon. The visitor center museum provides essential historical context before exploring the reconstructed fort and coastal trails. Cultural Heritage Day on the last Saturday of July brings the fort to life with costumed interpreters demonstrating period crafts and activities. The beaches below the bluff are accessible via steep trails and offer tide pools, kelp-covered rocks, and views that the Russian settlers would recognize. Food options are limited; the historic Fort Ross Store two miles north sells picnic supplies. Nearby Salt Point State Park offers additional coastal hiking and camping.