Black Butte Lake campgrounds open

Authorities at Black Butte Lake have opened all campsites in the Buckhorn Recreation Area and the Orland Buttes Campground.

The lake, formed in 1963 with the completion of Black Butte Dam, is located on Stony Creek west of Orland, and southwest of Corning.

Individual and group campsites in both the Buckhorn and Orland Buttes areas can be reserved in advance by calling the National Recreation Reservation Service at 1-877-444-6777 or on the internet at www.recreation.gov.

The fee for a standard campsite at either campground is $18 per night.

The Buckhorn Group Campground is available for $150 per night, and the Orland Buttes Group Campground is available for $100 per night.

Day-use and camping fees are half price with a federal recreation pass. For more information on the new senior or access federal recreation passes, go to store.usgs.gov/ pass/index.html.

Day-use fees at Buckhorn, Orland Buttes and Eagle Pass recreation areas are $4 per car for 2012. Fees are not charged in undeveloped areas, such as Grizzly Flat, Angler's Cove, Burris Creek or Observation Point.

A U.S. Army Corps of Engineers annual day-use pass is $30, and will be available at the Buckhorn entrance station beginning Sunday.

For more information, call 865-4781 or stop by the Black Butte Lake Park Office, located eight miles west of Orland on County Road 200. Business hours are 7:45 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday, but closed at lunchtime.

Black Butte Lake's website is www.spk.usace.army.mil/blackbutte.