Welcome to Loreto The City of Loreto was founded in 1697 by the Jesuit Father Juan Maria Salvatierra, giving origin to the first mission, Nuestra Senora Loreto, and to the first Capital of all the Californias (which was understood as the current California U.S.A., Baja California and Baja California Sur). Currently, the Capital of Baja California Sur is La Paz. Protected by the Giganta Mountain Range to the West and The Sea of Cortez to the East, it is surrounded by five islands: Coronado, Del Carmen, Danzante, Monserrat and Catalana, with unique flora and fauna, in majority endemic, which have been protected since 2005 by the world-wide patrimony of the UNESCO. As a sea among the most abundant in the world with fish, established as a Mexican National Park in 1996, where 800 fish species are found, 400 types of snails and 3,000 species of marine fauna, the sport fishing and SCUBA is much appreciated. The close by Puerto Escondido is the largest natural marine port in Mexico. The Sea of Cortez is one of the eighth most important places for SCUBA and the great oceanographer Francés Jaques Cousteau defined it as the “aquarium of the world.” @