After telling the Mexican governor and the American Consul Larkin he was merely buying supplies on the way to Oregon, he instead went to the populated area of California and visited Santa Cruz and the Salinas Valley, explaining he had been looking for a seaside home for his mother.
Nakon što je meksičkom guverneru i Larkinu rekao da su došli samo kupiti namirnice za nastavak svog puta prema Oregonu, Frémont je umjesto toga ušao u naseljeno područje Kalifornije i posjetio Santa Cruz i dolinu Salinas, pod izgovorom da traži mjesto uz obalu za svoju majku.