Bighorn Canyon National Recreation Area is preparing for the upcoming Memorial Day weekend, which will lead off a modified summer season at the park.

The campgrounds in the south district, near Lovell, are open. That includes the utility sites and dump and fill station at Horseshoe Bend, as well as the fish cleaning station. The courtesy docks are in at Barry’s Landing and the Kane boat ramp is cleared and open. All hiking trails on the south district are open and offer a variety of spring and summer scenery, park officials say. The Bighorn Canyon Visitor Center in Lovell remains closed.

As of Monday, the Bighorn Lake elevation was 3,609.52 feet. The minimum launch level at Horseshoe Bend is 3,617 and the boat ramp at Horseshoe Bend is unusable until the lake reaches that level. The Horseshoe Bend Marina will be open for Memorial Day weekend with curbside services.

Boat tours have been suspended because of travel limitations during the current pandemic. For more information about boat tours or camping in the south district, call Hidden Treasure Charters at 307-899-1401.

Meanwhile, recreation is more limited in Bighorn Canyon’s north district.

Because of increased numbers of COVID-19 cases in Big Horn County, Montana, park officials say the Ok-A-Beh ramp will remain closed until at least June 1. The Ok-A-Beh Marina also remains closed, and there is no fuel available on the lake.

A Tuesday news release said the National Park Service is sensitive to the concerns of the Tribal communities for their safety.

“Factors such as few testing kits at area IHS facilities, multiple family members living in one home in which the virus could rapidly spread, higher risk factors for Native Americans made worse by lack of adequate supplies, and lack of transportation locally and in outlying reservation districts to medical facilities add challenges for reducing coronavirus risk on the Crow Reservation,” said the release.

The National Park Service and the Crow tribe will continue to assess the situation and update visitors on the Bighorn Canyon website and Facebook page.

The river launch ramps at 3 Mile and Afterbay are open on the north district, near Fort Smith, Montana, along with the Grapevine Campground and access to Afterbay Lake from Grapevine Road. The 3 Mile hiking trail is open, but the Afterbay Campground and Yellowtail Dam Visitor Center remain closed. The docks and the floating comfort stations have not been placed at Day Board 9, Black Canyon or Dryhead.

For current lake conditions or help planning a visit, visitors may call the Cal S. Taggart Bighorn Canyon Visitor Center in Lovell at 307-548-5406.