This place was a pleasant surprise indeed. Heading home from Ashland, we sort of planned to stop at Colusa again on the way home, in order to break up the long drive. However, as we were maybe fifty miles north of there, we spotted a brown sign indicating a recreation area at Black Butte Lake. Richard hopped onto his Allstays app and verified that there was a campground there and that it wasn’t too far off I-5 to go check it out.
Buckhorn Campground, which is managed by the Army Corps of Engineers, is on the northern side of the lake, while the smaller Orland Buttes campground is to the south. It was a pleasant and straightforward drive to the kiosk and the place definitely had spots available. For $20, we got a gorgeous view of the lake and a perfect place to stop. We even set out on a trail for a little hike where we spotted maybe eight deer and as many Jack Rabbits.
It’s a very nice place and we’ll be keeping it in mind whenever we’re hauling up or down I-5. No hookups, so if it’s hot, it could get brutal out there. Our timing treated us to lush green hillsides and temperatures in the 60s. Nice.
Total miles from Ashland: 209.2, 4 hours 27 min, 15.4 mpg. Total miles to home: 156.9, 3 hours 2 min, 17.1 mpg. Site 39, very nice, with a raised picnic area and view of the lake. Other nice sites: 36, 37, 38, 39*, 40*, 48, 49. Good solar, LTE for Verizon, but not much for ATT.
