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"The
County of Inyo and the larger Eastern Sierra Region of California is geographically
isolated and currently has no real access to the air transportation network."
-Boyd Report
Although most visitors arrive in Bishop by automobile
or motor home, many vacationers from distant locations inquire about air travel.
Our area is very rural and remote, far from any cities (which is the main reason
so many folks visit our area), and at this time no regularly scheduled airlines
fly into the Bishop or Mammoth-Yosemite airports. This situation may be remedied
by the expansion of the Eastern Sierra Regional airport in the future, but for
now the closest major airport with regular airline service is Reno/Tahoe
International Airport in Reno, Nevada .
Reno airport is 200 miles north
of Bishop, about a four hour drive. Car
rental agencies can be found at the airport. Two other good choices would
be McCarran International
Airport in Las Vegas , 260 miles to the southeast or Los
Angeles International Airport, about 275 miles to the south. Another alternative
is to fly into the Inyokern Airport
(760-377-4789) near Ridgecrest , California, 127 miles south of Bishop.
They bill themselves as "a big airport with a small airport personality."
It is possible to fly from Los Angeles (LAX), on United Express (Sky
West Airlines) into the small town of Inyokern and rent a car from Avis
or Enterprise car rental services and then make the two hour drive north
on Highway 395 to Bishop.
Greyhound Bus Lines
has discontinued their bus service to the Eastern High Sierra but the Inyo-Mono
Transit Crest bus runs from Bishop to Carson City, Nevada and the Reno/Tahoe
Airport three times a week for very reasonable rates. For more information call
760-872-1901 or toll free at 800-922-1930.
We have had quite a few travelers inquire about the
possibility of flying into Fresno and driving a rental car to Bishop. Fresno
is only 85 air miles from Bishop but there are no roads that cross the 14,000
foot High Sierra between Fresno and Bishop (the longest wilderness area in the
U.S.A. unbroken by road). The only routes that are in close proximity are Tioga
Pass (winter closure) 60 miles to the north of Bishop and Walker Pass 127 miles
to the south.
In the early spring, late fall and winter, it is a 6 1/2 hour drive from Fresno
to Bishop, around the mountains and through the passes, via Mojave and Bakersfield
in the south or Lake Tahoe and Sacramento in the north. During the summer months,
when Tioga Pass is open, the quickest route from Fresno to Bishop is through
Yosemite National Park , a distance of 236 miles (about 5 hours driving time).
Regardless of how you get here, it is
worth the trip. The rural isolation from big cities is part of the charm and
reason that folks visit the High Sierra. The clean, clean, cool night air, the brilliant stars and beauty
of the Eastern Sierra await you.
Some good information to know: YARTS
(the Yosemite Area Regional Transportation System) runs daily from the
communities of Mammoth Lakes, June Lake and Lee Vining to Yosemite Valley; for
information visit the web at www.yarts.com
Note: SR 120, Tioga Pass Road (east entrance into Yosemite Park) is normally
closed from Nov. to late May of each year due to a heavy snow pack. During
that time period, there is no access to Yosemite Nat’l Park via Tioga Pass
from US 395 at Lee Vining (60 miles north of Bishop). Visitors to Yosemite must
cross the Eastern Sierra on Hwy 50 (155 miles north of Bishop) or SR 58 (150
miles south of Bishop) to access highways into Yosemite Park.
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