Bishop, California

My parents moved our family to Bishop in 1968. I was 4 years old at the time so almost all my memories of growing up are centered on Bishop. It was only supposed to be a temporary move. My Dad worked for Caltrans, and "doing your time" in a small District (Caltrans District 9 is headquartered in Bishop) was considered a good career move. After living in Bishop for a few years though, my parents liked it so much they decided to make it their permanent home. I remember years later my Dad turning down a big promotion because it would have meant moving away from Bishop. I'm glad they decided to stay, because I cannot imaging a better place to go through childhood, adolescence, and into adulthood than Bishop, California.

The weather in Bishop is fairly mild - winters aren't too cold and summers aren't too hot. There is enough variation throughout the year that Bishop does have 4 distinct seasons, though. Unlike some places, none of the seasons in Bishop are unbearable, but some are more enjoyable than others. Also, the seasons in Bishop don't follow the official dates.

Spring in Bishop runs from March through May and is my least favorite season. The days are still short and it's windy almost all the time (I hate wind because it interferes with my model airplane flying). Also, it's the one time of year in Bishop when there's not a lot of things to do. The highlight of Spring in Bishop is the last Saturday in April which is opening day of Fishing Season in the Owens Valley (except for the Owens River which is open all year). The other big Spring event in Bishop is Mule Days, which happens on Memorial Day weekend.

Summer in Bishop runs from June through August. When I was a kid in Bishop, summer was my favorite season. I'd spend all week playing with my friends, riding bikes, building and flying model airplanes and rockets, exploring the fields near our house, stringing home made CB antennas across the roof... well, you can kind of get the idea. On Saturdays my dad would take us fishing, and on Sundays we went to church, did our grocery shopping, then I would help my dad take the garbage to the dump. For the 4th of July, my friends and I would ride to the "res" and buy (illegal) firecrackers and bottle rockets. We would also celebrate at home with (legal) fireworks and sometimes go to the Volunteer Fire Dept. sponsored fireworks show at the airport.

Fall in Bishop runs from September through November. When I got older, it became my favorite season as my dad started taking me hunting. Also, the subjects in school got a lot more interesting as I got older, and I played basketball when I got to high school.

Winter in Bishop runs from December through February. The winters in Bishop are actually pretty mild, though it does get snow - maybe about twice a year. The first year we moved there was a record snowfall year. I remember the snow was above my head.

We moved to Bishop at the height of the water war between the City of Los Angeles and the Owens Valley. Many people in Bishop at the time hated the City and its Dept. of Water and Power for pumping water out of the Owens Valley and sending it south to LA. I remember one year in the Mule Days parade there was a float that consisted of nothing more than a large billboard proclaiming "DWP SUCKS" in large letters with "Owens Valley Dry" in small letters. Local stores sold T-Shirts with an image of a man drinking a beer and urinating in the Aqueduct, with the slogan "Drink Up, LA Needs the Water." Occasionally someone would dynamite the Alabama Gates or one of DWP's ground water pumping stations.

This is still a controversial subject in the Bishop area, but at least people aren't bombing the aqueduct any more, and DWP has worked to restore a fishery along the lower Owens River. However one feels about the water issue, I'll say one thing for DWP. If they hadn't bought up all the land around Bishop (and the rest of the Owens Valley), the area could have turned into just another urban sprawl. In that sense, I am happy and grateful that they own most of the land around Bishop.

One of the things I liked best about growing up in Bishop was the strong sense of community.

Elementary School
Middle School
High School

One of my favorite things in Bishop was going to 4-H. I was in the Bristlecone 4-H Club, one of 3 4-H clubs in Bishop. Just the fact that a town as small as Bishop could host 3 different 4-H clubs gives you some idea about the kind of atmosphere that exists in small towns like Bishop.

Bishop has no commercial air service, so the best way to get there is to drive. Bishop is located on U.S. Highway 395, about 266 miles north of Los Angeles and 200 miles south of Reno. If you don't live close enough to drive all the way to Bishop, your best bet is to fly into either Los Angeles or Reno and rent a car for the remainder of the trip to Bishop. The drive to Bishop from Los Angeles is mostly smooth and straight on a 4 lane divided highway, so it takes about the same amount of time as the drive from Reno even though it's about 65 miles longer. The highway between Reno and Bishop has lots of 2 lane sections and it goes through many towns. Just getting through Carson City adds about 30 minutes to the drive.
I have made both drives many times, and I think the drive from Reno to Bishop is much more enjoyable than the drive from Los Angeles. The scenery is beautiful, and if you're not in a hurry there are many interesting places to stop and look around. The drive from Los Angeles on the other hand is pretty boring. The scenery is mostly flat desert and there's not a whole lot to see.