El Camino Real, << `ehl` kah MEE noh ray AHL, >> was an early California highway. It is Spanish for The Royal Highway. It ran north from San Diego for 530 miles (853 kilometers) to Sonoma to connect the Franciscan missions. By 1823, there were 21 missions along the road. Saint Junípero Serra founded the first mission in San Diego in 1769. The mission at San Francisco, now called Mission Dolores, was built in 1776. United States Highway 101 closely follows the old route. El Camino Real is also the name of the first road established by Europeans in what is now the United States. It ran through what is now New Mexico. See New Mexico (Transportation).
