Lowe opened the first section of the railway on July 4, 1893, from the corner of Lake and Calaveras in Altadena to the Rubio Pavilion in the Rubio Canyon, then transferring to a steep long funicular to Echo Mountain. At the top there was a 40-room chalet. In 1894, he added an 80-room hotel, the Echo Mountain House, and the observatory. By 1896, the upper division was finished into Grand Canyon at Ye Alpine Tavern. Altogether there were some seven miles (11.265 km) of track. Lowe lost the venture to receivership in 1899, which left him impoverished. The MLR became part of Henry Huntington's recently formed Pacific Electric Railway (also known as "Red Car") in 1902.