In downtown Bishop, begin by driving to the intersection of US 395 (Main Street) and Line Street, which is the southernmost signal light in town. The white building on the southeast corner of the intersection, now the Monument Bank, once housed the offices of the joint venture incorporating the "Red Apple" and the Aqueduct Lands and Orchards Company.
Plans were for the "Red Apple" line to begin at a point just south of here, probably at a point now occupied by the Vons grocery store at Main and Short Street, one block south of the Monument Bank. According to the "Gus Cashbaugh" map and newspaper articles, the grade was to run east along what is now Short Street. No visible remains of the grade can be found along Short, which is a quiet residential neighborhood today.
The second access to the grade is located on East Line Street, which is back at the signal light on Main (US 395). Drive east 0.8 miles on East Line and drive and stop. Look closely in the brush and trees both north and south of the road and you will see the grass and brush-covered hump of the grade as it curves and crosses East Line. The grade is further identified by the deep drainage ditches on each side of the grade, each dug rather deep into the ground.
From here the line crosses a small slough on the South Fork of Bishop Creek; no more roads accesses the line for about a half mile further north. To access our third area of the grade, continue east to the entrance of the Bishop Airport, 1.5 miles from the US 395 / Line Street intersection.
Drive north on Airport Road for a 1/4 mile, until a small building with satellite dishes is reached on the west side of the road. This is the starting point for a good dirt road that takes off to the west (left). Turn onto this road and travel slightly less than 1/2 mile until the road makes a sharp turn north (right). This dirt road is smooth and well bladed, suitable for all vehicles. This is a good vantagepoint for a look at the completed grade.
South of the swing of the dirt road, the brush-covered hump of the "Red Apple" grade can be seen as it exits a small slough on the South Fork of Bishop Creek. There are tire tracks along part of the grade, and the remainder is covered in brush. If you walk over to the west side of the grade toward the airport boundary fence line, the grade will become more prominent as viewed from the drainage ditch that was constructed with the grade. This ditch parallels the grade and is about four to 6 feet deep.
From this point north for the next few miles the modern dirt road runs directly upon the grade of the "Red Apple." At a point where Wye Road intersects with the airport road -- there will be a gate on the west (left) side that may or not be locked, possibly blocking access to or from Wye Road, a structure will be a ways off to your right -- the grade will emerge from under the present road and will make an obvious tangent northeast.
At this point, further progress for a distance further north is futile as far as the "Red Apple" is concerned. In 0.4 miles the road will access the Hyatt sand and gravel pits operation, which has long ago obliterated the grade.
If the gate is locked at the access of Wye Road, you can retrace your route back to Bishop, or better, continue north to the end of the fence line and the entrance to the Hyatt operation (0.3 miles). From here, turn west (left) and then immediately south (left) on a parallel road along the west side of the fence and back to Wye. Follow Wye Road west one mile to its junction with US Highway 6. It is well bladed for the first half, then paved for the remainder.
Bishop contains all services for the traveler, containing plenty of motels, restaurants, all the fast food chains, and markets. For information, consult http://www.395.com for information on the entire Eastern Sierra region of California and links to other websites of the same area.
