Tour the Owens Valley in The Bishop Chamber of Commerce's Guided Tours.
The motorcoach will be provided by Unterweg's of California. Tours last 4-6 hours.

Tour Dates and Prices below

May 24th – Owens Valley Guided Tour: “Paiutes & Planets” featuring the rare opportunity to visit the Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center, a museum gem honoring the lives and traditions of the Native people who occupied the Owens Valley before pioneers arrived in the mid-1800s. Experience Native American artifacts, exhibits, and displays at this one-of-a-kind Owens Valley facility. After a touch of the past, you will take a short ride down into the Owens Valley and launch yourself into a world of giant radio dishes and astronomy at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory aka “The Big Ears.” You will feel like you are on another planet when you visit this spectacular California Institute of Technology cosmic laboratory constructed to measure radio waves from outer space. Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:30 am and return by 12:15pm. $45 per person. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

May 25th – Owens Valley Guided Tour: “Pioneers, Prisoners & Fish Packers.” Imagine living in San Francisco just before World War II and your family is rounded up with others and dragged off to live indefinitely in a remote mountainous location. With no say-so about your future, you are forced into new home --- the Manzanar Relocation Center! Experience how Japanese Americans endured this indignity during the war years. From here, you will travel back to the community of Independence, home of the Eastern California Museum. Stroll around and view both outdoor and indoor exhibits/displays of 1800’s frontier life in the Owens Valley. Marvel at the amazing Native American basketry on display at the museum. You will drive a few miles up Scenic Byway 395 to the Historic Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery and experience a unique architectural feature unlike any other in the Owens Valley. Learn how the hatchery, now an educational facility, was designed to “match the mountains, last forever, and be a showcase for all time.” Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:30 am and return by 3:00pm. $75 per person, includes lunch. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

June 12th, 13th & 14th – TIME: 12 PM to 4 PM. (4 Hours) PICK UP/RETURN LOCATION: Tri-County Fairgrounds Parking Area at 12 noon and 4 PM. WHAT: Experience three separate motor coach tours to hear the story behind the scenery, visit cool places overlooked by many guests, and experience it all in a luxurious cross-country motor coach. FEE: $40 Per Person Per Tour. Reservations Required. We must have minimum of 20 on each tour with a maximum of 40. Tours #1 & #3 include complimentary wine/beer sampling. *Bring cameras, light walking shoes, hats, and sunscreen.

TOUR 1: June 12 – Paiutes, Planets, & Photos Tour. Visit the Owens Valley Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Museum and marvel at displays of cultural artifacts and resources used by the Native Americans who occupied the Eastern Sierra before pioneers settled here in the late 1800’s. Meet local Native Americans to hear the stories of their ancestors and lifeways. Then it’s back to the future when you check out the Owens Valley Radio Observatory (OVRO) for a true cosmic experience. Over a dozen radio telescopes peer deep into the universe from this location. An OVRO scientist will be available to lead you into one of the larger radio telescopes. The Charlie Sheen science fiction movie “The Arrival” was filmed here in the 1990s. Check out the movie before you come to Bishop! Bring your cameras for this very unique and rare opportunity! Our last stop will be a Wine Tasting at Mountain Light Gallery – a museum showcase of fine photo art by Galen & Barbara Rowell.

TOUR 2: June 13 – Prisoners & Pioneers Tour. Prepare yourself for one of the most emotionally moving museums in our region --- the Manzanar National Historic Site. You will go back in time seventy years ago when the world was at war. Learn about Japanese Americans, profiled as a potential threat to the United States, and then forcibly transported to the Manzanar internment camp set aside for them during the war. Explore a world class interpretive center which reveals the story and real life experiences of internees forced to live at this location. After Manzanar, go back further into time when you travel to the Eastern California Museum in Independence. This 3 acre facility is the county’s oldest museum and houses the largest public display of Paiute basketry in the United States. A museum employee will provide a tour of the
facility.

TOUR 3: June 14 - The M & M Tour (Monoliths, Moraines, Morrison, & Mining) Head up U.S. Highway 395 to experience one of the most stunning views in the Eastern Sierra --- Convict Lake. Hear the story about the famous shootout that occurred in this area and how the lake got its name. Learn about the area’s geology and why the Sierra is known as the “Land of Fire and Ice.” See the immense impact glaciers made when they formed the area’s landscapes. From Convict Lake, head up to Hot Creek Fish Hatchery and seethousands of trout raised for stocking the many lakes and streams of the Sierra Nevada.. From the hatchery, you will head to the Laws Historic Village – an 11 acre outdoor and indoor museum displaying historic cabins, building, tools, weaponry, and interpretive exhibits. Hop on the Death Valley Railroad Car and take an old time ride to experience what it was like in the 1800s. A brief wine and beer sampling will occur in the saloon at Laws. For more information, contact Bishop Chamber (760)873-8405.

September 14 – Owens Valley Guided Tour: Mammoth Lakes and Bodie: This motor coach tour will provide you with an up close and personal taste of the Eastern Sierra’s awe inspiring scenic and historic treasures north of Mammoth Lakes with an extended visit at Bodie State Historic Park. Experience and learn about the area’s treasures along the Eastern Sierra Scenic Byway (U.S. Highway 395) and then immerse yourself in the wild west spirit of Bodie. Here step back in time for a few hours to savor 1800’s frontier life. Bodie, a highly preserved ghost town, is a gem tucked away in the eastern Sierra. Finally, check out California’s Swiss Alps as you venture back to Mammoth Lakes via the June Lake Loop. Bring cameras, light walking shoes, hats, sunscreen etc. Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:00 am and return by 4:00pm. $80 per person, includes lunch and entrance fee to Bodie State Park. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

September 15th – Owens Valley Guided Tour: Convict Lake, Hot Creek & Laws Museum. This motor coach tour showcases the eastern Sierra’s scenic and historic treasures with a travel focus between Mammoth Lakes and Bishop. This tour will contain extended visits or stops at several sites which include Hot Creek Fish Hatchery – walk along the raceways among thousands of fish; Convict Lake – known for the infamous 1870’s shootout between several prison escapees and a sheriff’s posse; the Laws Historic Site – an 11 acre outdoor and indoor museum portraying late 19th century life at a prosperous Owens Valley railroad depot and town site; and Schat’s World Class Bakery – a 100 year old eatery with unique décor, great sandwiches, and chili cheese bread to die for. In Bishop, take the opportunity to have lunch at the Bishop City Park and visit the Bishop Visitor’s Bureau to browse for books, mementos, etc. before heading back to Mammoth Lakes. Bring cameras, light walking shoes, hats, sunscreen etc. Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:00 am and return by 4:15pm. $70 per person, includes fee for train ride at Laws. Lunch not included. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

September 22nd - Owens Valley Guided Tour: “Paiutes & Planets” featuring the rare opportunity to visit the Paiute-Shoshone Cultural Center, a museum gem honoring the lives and traditions of the Native people who occupied the Owens Valley before pioneers arrived in the mid-1800s. Experience Native American artifacts, exhibits, and displays at this one-of-a-kind Owens Valley facility. After a touch of the past, you will take a short ride down into the Owens Valley and launch yourself into a world of giant radio dishes and astronomy at the Owens Valley Radio Observatory aka “The Big Ears.” You will feel like you are on another planet when you visit this spectacular California Institute of Technology cosmic laboratory constructed to measure radio waves from outer space. Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:30 am and return by 12:15pm (if you are camping at the Millpond Music Festival, we can make special arrangements). $45 per person. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

October 6th - Owens Valley Guided Tour: “Pioneers, Prisoners & Fish Packers.” Imagine living in San Francisco just before World War II and your family is rounded up with others and dragged off to live indefinitely in a remote mountainous location. With no say-so about your future, you are forced into new home --- the Manzanar Relocation Center! Experience how Japanese Americans endured this indignity during the war years. From here, you will travel back to the community of Independence, home of the Eastern California Museum. Stroll around and view both outdoor and indoor exhibits/displays of 1800’s frontier life in the Owens Valley. Marvel at the amazing Native American basketry on display at the museum. You will drive a few miles up Scenic Byway 395 to the Historic Mt. Whitney Fish Hatchery and experience a unique architectural feature unlike any other in the Owens Valley. Learn how the hatchery, now an educational facility, was designed to “match the mountains, last forever, and be a showcase for all time.” Tour bus will leave Bishop Chamber of Commerce at 8:30 am and return by 3:00pm. $75 per person, includes lunch. Seating limited, advance reservations highly recommended (760)873-8405.

October 12th & 13th - Owens Valley Guided Tours. Different itineraries offered each day. For more information,
contact Bishop Chamber (760)873-8405. Meets at Bishop Chamber of Commerce & Visitors Bureau. Reservations Recommended. Capacity limited. Tour participants should wear comfortable shoes...you may want to walk a bit at some of the stops.